I have a good friend (that I heard from another friend) that has just been diagnosed with depression. I haven't talked to her yet, and didn't want to until I had some information about it.
No one in my family has depression, so please excuse me if I sound ignorant about it.
Is depression something you are clinically diagnosed with???? Can it be determined through a blood test or some other kind of test? Why is medication for it so important? What does it do to help control the depression?

Wow, you are pretty ignorant.

No, you cant get tested for it, its something you feel. I mean, you can be clinically depressed, and I was and prolly still am, but there is no sure thing about whether it is caused by the brain. Possibly you are just really sad.

If you talk to your friend, compliment her a lot, and dont pressure her for deltails about what is wrong...

As for the meds, they can help fix the chemical imbalance that is in the brain causing depression.

Me :bouncing:

I'm sorry but meds DO NOT "fix" the chemical imbalance that causes depression. This is an all too common false assumption promoted by the makers of these drugs. All they can do is alter brain function to give relief of the symptoms. If these meds actually did help the brain to function in a normal fashion, there also shouldn't be all the side effects and addiction potential.

SusieQ,

My opinion, don't learn anything about it just yet. Go have a talk with your friend with a clear and open mind, that way you'll both know you're listening and not analyzing.

As for the rest, no blood tests, no. It's decided on behavior and feelings and time. Drugs? Shrug. They work for some, not for others. The problem is that there's no way to properly titrate these drugs. Assuming one works, how much is needed to restore the pre-depressive levels of say, serotonin? Well that's a big question that no one ever addresses. Too little leaves one depressed, too much can give side-effects including paradoxical depression. -Rod-

SusieQ,

My opinion, don't learn anything about it just yet. Go have a talk with your friend with a clear and open mind, that way you'll both know you're listening and not analyzing.

As for the rest, no blood tests, no. It's decided on behavior and feelings and time. Drugs? Shrug. They work for some, not for others. The problem is that there's no way to properly titrate these drugs. Assuming one works, how much is needed to restore the pre-depressive levels of say, serotonin? Well that's a big question that no one ever addresses. Too little leaves one depressed, too much can give side-effects including paradoxical depression. -Rod-


Thank you, I will keep this in mind when I talk to her. I guess I just don't get it because I have never suffered from it. I know we all have our ups and downs in life, and I have always been able to learn from my downs and get over them. I truly feel for the souls that have a hard time with this and need medication.