Aa
why don't they blood test for serotonin levels?
Why don't they blood test for serotonin levels? Couldn't this help differentiate between a chemical depression and situational one?
I agree 100% and there are very brilliant Psychiatrists and Psychopharmocologists contuing to work on more exacting test that are accurate enough to make a determination between situaltional depression and the type of cronic depression that is caused by actual brain malfuction in the mood receptors of our brains.
The main and most difficult part about the development of such tests is the sheer complexity of the human brain.
My Psychiatrist once told me that current treatment with psycotropic meds is more of an art, rather than an exact science.
He alos told me that current top notch Psychiatry only understands about 10% of how the disease of cronic depression and anxiety manifest in the brain. He also mentioned that currently there are about 4 known chemical neurotransmitters in the brain that they know of which effect mood regulation. He also stated that there are many more, in fact dozens more of these mood regulating neurotransmitters that have yet to be discovered.
My P-doc also told me that in the next 10 years there will be an absolute revolution regarding the treatment of very severe uni-polor and bi-polor types of depression. He said that science is just on the cusp of cracking the code to why depression effects so may people and this will result in better medications and better treatments.
The main and most difficult part about the development of such tests is the sheer complexity of the human brain.
My Psychiatrist once told me that current treatment with psycotropic meds is more of an art, rather than an exact science.
He alos told me that current top notch Psychiatry only understands about 10% of how the disease of cronic depression and anxiety manifest in the brain. He also mentioned that currently there are about 4 known chemical neurotransmitters in the brain that they know of which effect mood regulation. He also stated that there are many more, in fact dozens more of these mood regulating neurotransmitters that have yet to be discovered.
My P-doc also told me that in the next 10 years there will be an absolute revolution regarding the treatment of very severe uni-polor and bi-polor types of depression. He said that science is just on the cusp of cracking the code to why depression effects so may people and this will result in better medications and better treatments.
Seems what we need is a test to measure how well the brain receptors are working - wouldn't this help determine whether or not depression was caused by a chemical imbalance?
Thank you , thank you, thank you for the response and clear explanation !
Buspar or "buspirone hydrochloride." is an anti-anxiety agent. It's not a Benzodiazaphine like Xanax or Valum. Thus it is considered better for the "long term" treatment of anxiety dissorder.
That is if all you suffer from is anxiety dissorder. About 60% of people that suffer from Anxiety dissorder also suffer from Major cronic depression. About 85% of people that suffer from Severe Depression also suffer from Anxiety dissorder.
So now you see how common it is for the two dissorders to play together.
Depression and anxiety are like two little peas in a pod. They both need each other to survive. Alone they are less powerful and they know this very well. That's not to say that both don't need to be treated.
You may not have been properly disagnosed, and as such you may not be getting the proper medication which can = trouble for you and your condition.
Not sure if your doctor is an expert in Mental health, but if he isn't may I suggest you find a Psychiatrist ASAP so that you can get proplerly treated and feel better.
Please refer to the post I just made on the boards about Regular doctors & Psychiatrists. There is a huge difference.
That is if all you suffer from is anxiety dissorder. About 60% of people that suffer from Anxiety dissorder also suffer from Major cronic depression. About 85% of people that suffer from Severe Depression also suffer from Anxiety dissorder.
So now you see how common it is for the two dissorders to play together.
Depression and anxiety are like two little peas in a pod. They both need each other to survive. Alone they are less powerful and they know this very well. That's not to say that both don't need to be treated.
You may not have been properly disagnosed, and as such you may not be getting the proper medication which can = trouble for you and your condition.
Not sure if your doctor is an expert in Mental health, but if he isn't may I suggest you find a Psychiatrist ASAP so that you can get proplerly treated and feel better.
Please refer to the post I just made on the boards about Regular doctors & Psychiatrists. There is a huge difference.
I am frustrated and confused, maybe you can shed some light please.
I had an anxiety attack that landed me in the hospital for 24 hours. First time in my life and didn't know what it was, thought I was having a severe allergic reaction or heart attack. That was back in July and I'm just "slightly" feeling better since then. I've been taking Buspar and feel anxious, tense, weepy every day and have HOT/BURNING spots in different areas of my body sporadically. The heat build up in my body drives me crazy, is that too much serotonin or what could it be? Have you ever heard of that ? My email is ***@**** if you could please respond. I cant get any answers from doctors. Thank you !
I had an anxiety attack that landed me in the hospital for 24 hours. First time in my life and didn't know what it was, thought I was having a severe allergic reaction or heart attack. That was back in July and I'm just "slightly" feeling better since then. I've been taking Buspar and feel anxious, tense, weepy every day and have HOT/BURNING spots in different areas of my body sporadically. The heat build up in my body drives me crazy, is that too much serotonin or what could it be? Have you ever heard of that ? My email is ***@**** if you could please respond. I cant get any answers from doctors. Thank you !
SSRI's don't help reuptake of Serotonin, they do just the opposite, they inhibit the reuptake of Serotonin. It's this inhibition effect that slowes the reuptake process, which in turn allows for higher levels of Serotonin to build up in the brain.
It's kind of like finding a back door to raising Serotonin levels without introducing a chemical to the system that directly forces a flood of serotonin to be produced artifically.
Scientists could easily make a drug that simply and directly raises levels of Serotonin in the brain. The problem with that approach is that to do so would have very serious long term effects on proper brain function.
For example, if I were to inject you with an artifical hormone that your body already produces naturally and I did this for several months, the end result would be that your body would say, "well, I'm getting plenty so I can shut down making anymore."
Then if the injections were stopped, there is a good chance your body may not start producing that hormone again. At least not in sufficient levels to keep you well.
The same thing could happen if pure Serotonin were taken. The results could be devistating.
This action is much different than our bodies ability to build resistance to drugs and alcohol. SSRI meds and other AD medications often poop out in time.
This is why you see so many people having to change meds that once worked well for them.
Our bodies are amazing machines and they are very good at learning how to destroy any Chemicle or drug that is not native to it. Some peoples bodys do this very fast and others are slower at it. My body happens to be very good at building resistance to any medication I put in it. I get maybe 1 year on any one AD medication before my body renders it usless.
It's kind of like finding a back door to raising Serotonin levels without introducing a chemical to the system that directly forces a flood of serotonin to be produced artifically.
Scientists could easily make a drug that simply and directly raises levels of Serotonin in the brain. The problem with that approach is that to do so would have very serious long term effects on proper brain function.
For example, if I were to inject you with an artifical hormone that your body already produces naturally and I did this for several months, the end result would be that your body would say, "well, I'm getting plenty so I can shut down making anymore."
Then if the injections were stopped, there is a good chance your body may not start producing that hormone again. At least not in sufficient levels to keep you well.
The same thing could happen if pure Serotonin were taken. The results could be devistating.
This action is much different than our bodies ability to build resistance to drugs and alcohol. SSRI meds and other AD medications often poop out in time.
This is why you see so many people having to change meds that once worked well for them.
Our bodies are amazing machines and they are very good at learning how to destroy any Chemicle or drug that is not native to it. Some peoples bodys do this very fast and others are slower at it. My body happens to be very good at building resistance to any medication I put in it. I get maybe 1 year on any one AD medication before my body renders it usless.
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