Healthy Living

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If ever the analogy of LOCK and KEY might be useful to illustrate the need of a SPECIFIC KEY TO EASILY OPEN A DOOR, it is in the treatment of depression. Without this specific key you will fumble forever and still remain locked. With the key, usually, it is surprisingly easy.

What most people never realize is that DEPRERSSION is a real, physical sickness, like a broken leg or major infection. It must be treated like the serious illness it is. It is not amenable to changes of attitude, will power, reassurance or anything else, things which people who never experienced or effectively treated depression might recommend.

There are a number of biological indicators accompanying depression. SERATONIN blood levels are generally indicative, although other precursors and components of neurotransmitters are involved.

The major ANTIDEPRESSANTS in current use are thus called SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, agents which boost serotonin blood levels. Like what? Like Fluoxetine, Paroxetine, Sertraline, Citalopram; and there are newer ones too, just to charge you more.

One herbal supplement is also affective against mild to moderate depression, called St. JOHNS WART. It’s very cheap and no prescription needed. It is generally safe in low doses. It has some side effects, especially at high dose. You can check it out with any physician or pharmacist. There is emerging evidence that ACETYL- L- CARNITINE and DHEA (for Dysthenia - fear) may also be of additional help.

Antidepressants never act rapidly. It is not like taking a headache pill and have the headache gone in one hour. A major biological adjustment, a healing, needs to take place. The patient must keep taking the antidepressant for a long time, say 1-2 weeks, BEFORE THE MOOD EVEN BEGINS TO ELEVATE. The fear and desire to hide BEGIN to diminish and disappear. The condition continues to improve steadily and in 1-3 months the depression is usually gone, or under control, and the personal “outlook “improves” incredibly. In many or most cases the antidepressants have to be taken for a very long periods, or the depression gradually returns.

This is NOT like taking a TRANQUILIZER (diazepam, alprazolam, lorazepam, etc.) for anxiety. These work (orally) in about 1 hour (onset) and keep working for up to 6-8 hours (duration), but cure nothing. They may also be habit forming. These are frequently prescribed during the first week of taking the antidepressants. After that they are usually not needed.

The antidepressants are generally not habit forming. If you don’t need them, they will do nothing for you. If you need them, they are very effective. There are warnings of suicidality, because a depressed person often suffers so greatly that they want to kill themselves, but are too depressed, too afraid to do it. This is how serious and debilitating depression might become.

You need a prescription (any physician with a little experience) to prescribe an antidepressant. This medication might better be avoided during pregnancy.

With the INITIAL treatment, when fear is lessened but not gone, patients might try suicide. If they wait a while until the depression lifts, they will no longer want to do die. They will want to enjoy life. Have a “buddy” guarding you. Someone interested. Is it not good to have a friend?

Psychiatrists often confuse the issues further, pushing PSYCHOANALYSIS on their patient, which provides these dear people with most of their huge income. If they simply prescribed antidepressants, who would pay for psychoanalysis? This “analysis” is unfortunately a type of “satanized pseudo religion” promoting sex, pride (self-esteem, sounds better?), divorce and crime.

Who do you suppose DEFENDS CRIMINALS, so they can come back to shoot at you again or rob you again? Who teaches you NOT TO DISCIPLINE YOUR KIDS, so that monsters might grow up? The originators of these theories were practically all heavily demonized men, like Freud (sex), Adler (pride, ego), Maslow, etc.

No need to be very impressed with all the fancy nomenclature – cognitive behavior therapy, personality inventory, interpersonal psychotherapy – and baloney to Noni. They say about actors, the less the talent, the bigger the scrapbook, with all the paper clippings and references. To sound mysteriously powerful they need impressive language. But it only means the same thing. Like the Eskimos having a hundred names for snow. What else is there to talk about? Fluffy snow, lumpy snow, wet snow – it’s all snow.

The only exception would be the subject of co-morbidities (other ailments – insomnia, alcoholism, etc.). This might affect selection of the antidepressant.

INSIST WITH THESE PEOPLE, THAT IF COUNSELING IS TO BE DONE, IT IS DONE OUT OF THE BIBLE, NOT OUT OF DEMONISM. If you break a leg, how important is the history, of how, where you broke it, or your personality inventory? Depression is the same. Dwelling on history in psychoanalysis is usually redundant and may actually do harm.

Perhaps I will put in my two cents in as well. I don’t really expect anyone to believe me. But it appears to me, dealing with depressed patients, as if a “window” may be opening for them to receive input from demons. Laugh if you want to.

If you disorganize a brain, you would expect that half the resulting, randomized thought pattern to be positive. Or at least some of it to be positive. But in EVERY CASE the input to the unfortunate depressed patient is disastrously negative, actually directly THREATENING, as if someone was deliberately and continuously hurling threats at the patient. Why? Why EVERY thought only negative? Is it perhaps that God set up an actual perception barrier between us and demons – and the protective barrier is lowered or lost in an ongoing neurological malfunction?

If you improve the blood levels of neuroconductor precursors (like serotonin), by simply taking the antidepressants daily, it is like a “WINDOW” actually “CLOSING”. The unrelenting negative input simply decreases and stops.

It is very much more serious in psychotic disorders (loss of reality, schizophrenia, mania, bipolar)) and actually dangerous. Best left to professionals, and I hope, Christian professionals.

No doubt, I have probably gained enough enemies writing this. But who can abandon brothers and sisters to agonize in an actual type of living hell, looking for a solution and going nowhere or in the wrong direction? I have seen plenty of these wrong directions. This happens to far- too- many brethren.

Short of a miracle from our Lord, depression must be treated medically, and the first step is with antidepressants. Seek a knowledgeable Christian physician. Generally speaking, you don’t need a psychiatrist or psychologist (to talk you into divorce or worse).

But you may need legal protection and legal counseling, if you have real enemies providing unceasing stress and threats.

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