why don't they blood test for serotonin levels?

[laughingman]

Why don't they blood test for serotonin levels? Couldn't this help differentiate between a chemical depression and situational one?

[drwiselouie]

I think that endorphin levels are low in most cases and they don't want to deal with it (the doctors) because the medication to correct this low level of endeginous morphins are the narcotics themselves morphine heroin etc. The drug companies are the biggest crooks cartels on the face of the earth.Why is it that when I get access to heroin I stop taking antidepressants major and minor tranquilizes mood stabilisers etc.ect.ect. and I loose weight my type 2 diabities is cured etc.etc. etc. Wake up people the devil is in the details every where in the corrupt medical community political system etc.

[BookwormTech]

That's not completely accurate-- Blood tests for serotonin are relatively new, decently pricey, and it's a challenge to find someone to do them. (There's also urine and saliva tests, but they're not known to be accurate) Serotonin reuptake is not the only reason people have depression. In fact, most types of depression are not caused by issues with reuptake inhibitors. (Only one specific kind is, can't currently remember the name)

In fact, if the only issue is a low level of serotonin, there's two simple solutions, eat more whole wheat foods, and take HTP-5 supplements. (And these are not dangerous!) If your problem is a Reuptake problem, then St.John's wart works well.

(In actuality, reuptake inhibitors cause more issues--they affect the rate at which your brain recycles the serotonin compounds. Some people need this, but more often than not, a person's brain will stop creating sufficient amounts of serotonin because it thinks it has enough. That's why people often fluctuate in their depressive moods (even moreso) when taking SSRI's. (or SNRI, NRI's...) Typically it create a downward spiral every 1-3 months until the patient's brain readjusts and creates more serotonin (if it can create enough.)

But yes, there are a cocktail of neurotransmitters, such as... serotonin, GABA, PEA, norepinephrine, epinephrine, and histamine that can cause these issues. There are tests for specific types of depression, which, are very new, and I'd guess insanely expensive.

[justme442214]

Not as screwed up as you are? Does that mean some of your depression manifested from experiences? Or, do you and your Pdoc think depression is a genetic disorder?

[Anneinside]

I have been reading about the DSM- 5 and it will not include bipolar 3 & 4.

[theunbeliever]

How much serotonin is too much? How much is too little? What is the average amount of serotonin present in samples of non psychiatric patients within the population? How are samples obtained from brains of depressed members of the population and compared with the non depressed? Who originated the theory that depression was a result of a serotonin imbalance? What role does serotonin play in other areas of the body? How does excess serotonin impact the endocrine system as a whole? How many studies and tests have been done to inarguably answer these questions based on pure measurable untainted scientific data? If blood tests or brain tissue tests for serotonin levels are not performed, assessment of whether or not there is excess or deficiency of serotonin cannot be logically determined.

[Celia_]

Hi Weasly ,  

In response to your question about too much serotonin causing symptoms that were misdiagnosed as anxiety and hypomania , it happened to me.
  
Since approx. 1997 , I have been put onto Prozac , Zoloft , Effexor (snri), Lexapro then Cymbalta (snri).  Each of these seemed to help the severe depression initially , then I developed a range of adverse reactions that were interpreted as a "worsening of my condition" , and doses were increased.  
The psychiatrist I was seeing then supplemented the Lexapro with Epilim (mood stabiliser for mania) , and eventually Largactil then Zyprexa - anti-psychotics. Over these years my life totally fell apart and nothing I did was able to make it better.

I recently started seeing a psychiatrist who recognized serotonin syndrome , and suggested I have a cheek-swab test to see if I had ever been able to metabolize ssri or snri's.  And ,guess what ?   Out of the six genes that metabolize these medications , I have genetic variations in three of them.  So for all the years I  trusted my doctors and took what was recommended , I now find out it was those very meds and a lack of understanding of them by my  doctors that made me so extremely ill that I became a hermit living in a world filled with intolerable pain.

I'm currently coming off the Cymbalta , and am absolutely furious that these doctors totally ****** up the past 16 years of my life.