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flylock shox · 02-09-2008, 02:28 AM

I'm sorry to hear things haven't improved much since your first post in this thread Rico.

Here's my take, for what it's worth.

There are really two components to depression: a rational component where you are responding to real troubles and difficulties in your day to day life, and an emotional or biochemical component which is not necessarily connected to any objectively identifiable circumstances. It may be that things in your life actually are pretty bad, and that your emotional state is connected to these real problems. On the other hand, it may be that you're able to identify lots of positives in your life, and that while you know that you've got it pretty good, you still don't feel that way.

Take a step back and look at your life objectively. From that vantage point, how are things going? Is your life really that bad, or do you just feel that it is? If you're able to look at your life and say "Actually, I've got a lot of things going for me, and I'm luckier than a lot of people I know, but I still feel sad all the time" then your depression is not rooted in real tangible problems; it's source is emotional/biochemical.

Treatment for depression follows along a similar dichotomy. If your feelings are the result of real life problems, then psychotherapy or life coaching may be useful for you to develop ways to change your life so as to eliminate those problems. If your feelings are not based in real life problems (i.e. there is no rational basis for you to be depressed), then medication can be useful to break out of the depression, and may allow you to bring your feelings in line with your reasoning. Again, be cautious about this. If you decide to medicate, ask for a referral to someone with expertise in the area - medical doctors receive little training in this area when compared with psychiatrists, and their advice is likely to be limited and their first instinct to prescribe the most popular medication available.

Often when people become depressed, although they have a rational understanding that they can escape the depression, they don't feel a sense of hope about the situation. Even a brief stint on medication can reduce negative feelings to the point where you remember what it feels like to be happy again, and once you recapture that you can regain hope for the future, and your entire outlook changes. How long you remain on the meds, well, that will depend.

Take the time to identify the source of your problems: real world problems, or feelings which are not connected to anything in particular. Once you do that, you'll have a better idea of what would benefit you as far as treatment is concerned.

02-09-2008, 02:28 AM	#71
flylock shox 1 millionth post winnar! Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Now world wide! Exp:	I'm sorry to hear things haven't improved much since your first post in this thread Rico. Here's my take, for what it's worth. There are really two components to depression: a rational component where you are responding to real troubles and difficulties in your day to day life, and an emotional or biochemical component which is not necessarily connected to any objectively identifiable circumstances. It may be that things in your life actually are pretty bad, and that your emotional state is connected to these real problems. On the other hand, it may be that you're able to identify lots of positives in your life, and that while you know that you've got it pretty good, you still don't feel that way. Take a step back and look at your life objectively. From that vantage point, how are things going? Is your life really that bad, or do you just feel that it is? If you're able to look at your life and say "Actually, I've got a lot of things going for me, and I'm luckier than a lot of people I know, but I still feel sad all the time" then your depression is not rooted in real tangible problems; it's source is emotional/biochemical. Treatment for depression follows along a similar dichotomy. If your feelings are the result of real life problems, then psychotherapy or life coaching may be useful for you to develop ways to change your life so as to eliminate those problems. If your feelings are not based in real life problems (i.e. there is no rational basis for you to be depressed), then medication can be useful to break out of the depression, and may allow you to bring your feelings in line with your reasoning. Again, be cautious about this. If you decide to medicate, ask for a referral to someone with expertise in the area - medical doctors receive little training in this area when compared with psychiatrists, and their advice is likely to be limited and their first instinct to prescribe the most popular medication available. Often when people become depressed, although they have a rational understanding that they can escape the depression, they don't feel a sense of hope about the situation. Even a brief stint on medication can reduce negative feelings to the point where you remember what it feels like to be happy again, and once you recapture that you can regain hope for the future, and your entire outlook changes. How long you remain on the meds, well, that will depend. Take the time to identify the source of your problems: real world problems, or feelings which are not connected to anything in particular. Once you do that, you'll have a better idea of what would benefit you as far as treatment is concerned.