Depression is not caused by a ‘chemical imbalance’ in the brain, say scientists

[Obliviax]

I saw this and thought I'd post it. I have no stance. However, when I hear of a kid going on drugs for depressing I cringe.

regardless, new study

Depression is not caused by a 'chemical imbalance' in the brain, say scientists

Research suggests that antidepressant use, which has risen steadily since the 90s, may not be the answer.

metro.co.uk

 

[jjw165]

Very interesting article

 

[Obliviax]

Depression is ‘not caused by chemical imbalance’

Major review suggests low serotonin levels are not a factor and the condition is more likely to be linked to stressful life events

www.telegraph.co.uk

 

[Obliviax]

Amazing

 

[jjw165]

Depression is ‘not caused by chemical imbalance’

Major review suggests low serotonin levels are not a factor and the condition is more likely to be linked to stressful life events

www.telegraph.co.uk

It’s amazing that scientists don’t explain how these SSRIs and SNRIs work, yet psychiatrists easily prescribe them to patients without testing serotonin or norepinephrine levels in the brain. Heck of a business model.

 

[DrJC]

I saw this and thought I'd post it. I have no stance. However, when I hear of a kid going on drugs for depressing I cringe.

regardless, new study

Depression is not caused by a 'chemical imbalance' in the brain, say scientists

Research suggests that antidepressant use, which has risen steadily since the 90s, may not be the answer.

metro.co.uk

The battle over nature versus nurture is alive and well. In my opinion as a psychoanalytic therapist, depression is psychological in nature. We have long sought a chemical or genetic basis to mental and emotional distress. With the exception of schizophrenia, I think we have leaned to hard on prescription drugs, psychotropic medications, etc. to provide a cure. At best, they might provide some lessening of the symptoms. Most depressive patients I have worked with over the years have a basis in their early development and/or life circumstances to experience long term sadness and depression. Just an opinion

 

[Obliviax]

The battle over nature versus nurture is alive and well. In my opinion as a psychoanalytic therapist, depression is psychological in nature. We have long sought a chemical or genetic basis to mental and emotional distress. With the exception of schizophrenia, I think we have leaned to hard on prescription drugs, psychotropic medications, etc. to provide a cure. At best, they might provide some lessening of the symptoms. Most depressive patients I have worked with over the years have a basis in their early development and/or life circumstances to experience long term sadness and depression. Just an opinion

I agree. These drugs can be helpful in bending the curve. But they are not a cure. Too often, they've been misinterpreted as being a cure.

 

[Obliviax]

It’s amazing that scientists don’t explain how these SSRIs and SNRIs work, yet psychiatrists easily prescribe them to patients without testing serotonin or norepinephrine levels in the brain. Heck of a business model.

I've long been an anti-drug person. I don't do drugs unless they are absolutely needed. I am now recovering from a bought with COVID and took some Mucinex yesterday and Nyquil the last two nights. Before that, I haven't taken a drug since last July when I had the same thing while on vacation with my family. That is an entire year without any drugs at all. I do take a vitamin supplement.

Drugs can be good. But western medicine has gone WAY too far. I see healthy people with these seven-day drug boxes and wonder WTF? But I also know people with cancer, lupus, and other ailments where their drugs really help them. It is hard to know. I have lost any hope or trust in the general medical industry during COVID. I have decided I need to gather all of the data and make my own decisions on health care.

 

[jjw165]

I've long been an anti-drug person. I don't do drugs unless they are absolutely needed. I am now recovering from a bought with COVID and took some Mucinex yesterday and Nyquil the last two nights. Before that, I haven't taken a drug since last July when I had the same thing while on vacation with my family. That is an entire year without any drugs at all. I do take a vitamin supplement.

Drugs can be good. But western medicine has gone WAY too far. I see healthy people with these seven-day drug boxes and wonder WTF? But I also know people with cancer, lupus, and other ailments where their drugs really help them. It is hard to know. I have lost any hope or trust in the general medical industry during COVID. I have decided I need to gather all of the data and make my own decisions on health care.

Many of the drugs we use in Western medicine can help the patient in one regard, but hurt them in another with their side effects. Since we’re on the topic of antidepressants, let’s use them as an example. An SSRI can help some individuals reduce or alleviate their depression, but when taken over the long term can cause weight gain, insomnia, sexual dysfunction, even worsening of depression. That’s a hell of risk placed on the user for taking them. Scientists have a rudimentary understanding of mental health and the drugs used to treat problems.

 

[PSUSignore]

Amazing

View embedded media

Yeah, I'm going to take comments about such matters from an actor, particularly one that believes in Scientology, with a massive helping of skepticism. He may be right, but I'd hardly consider him a reliable source of information. And I don't think what he said is anything groundbreaking anyway. US medicine in general focuses on treatment of the symptoms and not correcting root causes of problems. Most medication does this, whether you're talking about basic over the counter stuff like ibuprofen and acetaminophen or stronger, more dangerous prescription medications.

 

[Obliviax]

Yeah, I'm going to take comments about such matters from an actor, particularly one that believes in Scientology, with a massive helping of skepticism. He may be right, but I'd hardly consider him a reliable source of information. And I don't think what he said is anything groundbreaking anyway. US medicine in general focuses on treatment of the symptoms and not correcting root causes of problems. Most medication does this, whether you're talking about basic over the counter stuff like ibuprofen and acetaminophen or stronger, more dangerous prescription medications.

I am good with your post. I just thought it was interesting.

 

[Steve G]

I saw this and thought I'd post it. I have no stance. However, when I hear of a kid going on drugs for depressing I cringe.

regardless, new study

Depression is not caused by a 'chemical imbalance' in the brain, say scientists

Research suggests that antidepressant use, which has risen steadily since the 90s, may not be the answer.

metro.co.uk

https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2018/06/axelrod-lecture.pdf

The basis of the "chemical imbalance hypothesis of depression" comes from the work of Julius Axelrod in the mid 1960s. His Nobel lecture linked above. Basically he showed that the antidepressant imipramine blocks the uptake of norepinephrine into pre synaptic vesicles and increase amount and duration of NE in synapse. That was proposed as mechanism of action for the antidepressants. What followed then was a logical failure, if increasing neurotransmitter levels treats depression then depression is due to low levels of neurotransmitters, hence the chemical imbalance hypothesis. This has never born out despite decades of research. Schilkraut has whole series of publication measuring catecholamine levels in urine and other bodily fluids in effort to develop quantitative test for depression, which was basic ally a big dead end. But there is no reason to think that a treatment specifically targets a pathophysiologic process. Increase catecholamine levels and serotonin most definitely can treat depression, but that does not mean depression due to deficits in those transmitters. But that is also true in other areas of medicine. Anti hypertensives target all manner of molecular/ physiological pathways to relieve hypertension none of which is the cause of hypertension. Melancholia is most definitely a real disease with devastating consequences and does respond to m multiple different treatments. It is not stress or the absence of happiness or the presence of bad and sad tings happening. It is a pathological mood state that results form network wide dysfunction in the brain. Melancholia is different than the wide spread use of the word depression and wide spread use of antidepressants, which are most def over prescribed. Below about distributed network hypothesis of depression

A connectomic approach for subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation surgery: prospective targeting in treatment-resistant depression - Molecular Psychiatry

Target identification and contact selection are known contributors to variability in efficacy across different clinical indications of deep brain stimulation surgery. A retrospective analysis of responders to subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation (SCC DBS) for depression demonstrated the...

www.nature.com

 

[Obliviax]

https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2018/06/axelrod-lecture.pdf

The basis of the "chemical imbalance hypothesis of depression" comes from the work of Julius Axelrod in the mid 1960s. His Nobel lecture linked above. Basically he showed that the antidepressant imipramine blocks the uptake of norepinephrine into pre synaptic vesicles and increase amount and duration of NE in synapse. That was proposed as mechanism of action for the antidepressants. What followed then was a logical failure, if increasing neurotransmitter levels treats depression then depression is due to low levels of neurotransmitters, hence the chemical imbalance hypothesis. This has never born out despite decades of research. Schilkraut has whole series of publication measuring catecholamine levels in urine and other bodily fluids in effort to develop quantitative test for depression, which was basic ally a big dead end. But there is no reason to think that a treatment specifically targets a pathophysiologic process. Increase catecholamine levels and serotonin most definitely can treat depression, but that does not mean depression due to deficits in those transmitters. But that is also true in other areas of medicine. Anti hypertensives target all manner of molecular/ physiological pathways to relieve hypertension none of which is the cause of hypertension. Melancholia is most definitely a real disease with devastating consequences and does respond to m multiple different treatments. It is not stress or the absence of happiness or the presence of bad and sad tings happening. It is a pathological mood state that results form network wide dysfunction in the brain. Melancholia is different than the wide spread use of the word depression and wide spread use of antidepressants, which are most def over prescribed. Below about distributed network hypothesis of depression

A connectomic approach for subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation surgery: prospective targeting in treatment-resistant depression - Molecular Psychiatry

Target identification and contact selection are known contributors to variability in efficacy across different clinical indications of deep brain stimulation surgery. A retrospective analysis of responders to subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation (SCC DBS) for depression demonstrated the...

www.nature.com

above my pay grade...

 

[SheldonJoe2215]

It's funny how much of an ass Tom Cruise comes across. Even if he is right, and I don't know either way, it's difficult to get people to take your message seriously if you are so douchy. See NJPSU, Peeoli, Royal as current examples.

 

[Obliviax]

It's funny how much of an ass Tom Cruise comes across. Even if he is right, and I don't know either way, it's difficult to get people to take your message seriously if you are so douchy. See NJPSU, Peeoli, Royal as current examples.

I agree. TC was getting frustrated because he was trying to make a point and the rapist was diluting that message. Of course there are lots of drugs that work but they have plenty of paid-for megaphones. Take the point, Matt, digest it, and say something smart.

 

[Obliviax]

the jury got it right, IMHO. Bannon is happy. he'll spend a week or two in jail and get all kinds of press and media attention, which is exactly what he wants.

The problem is the politicization of the DOJ and congress. This is far worse, IMHO, than J-6. J-6 was a one-time event. We've now seen the democrats do this with congress for several years. (two time-wasting impeachments and tons of time wasted on anything but fixing the nation's problems). If the GOP takes the house, batten down the house.

 

[bourbon n blues]

The battle over nature versus nurture is alive and well. In my opinion as a psychoanalytic therapist, depression is psychological in nature. We have long sought a chemical or genetic basis to mental and emotional distress. With the exception of schizophrenia, I think we have leaned to hard on prescription drugs, psychotropic medications, etc. to provide a cure. At best, they might provide some lessening of the symptoms. Most depressive patients I have worked with over the years have a basis in their early development and/or life circumstances to experience long term sadness and depression. Just an opinion

I found getting up and moving would make me feel better. I found that attempting to help others would help me feel better and also eating better. All things that I can take direct action and help myself.

 

[Obliviax]

I found getting up and moving would make me feel better. I found that attempting to help others would help me feel better and also eating better. All things that I can take direct action and help myself.

Great post. I know getting up and out is the hardest part. But doing some volunteer work is incredibly good therapy. Working out, eating right, taking a bike ride anything but inactivity. This is the best path to pursue before drugs are involved.

 

[Steve G]

above my pay grade...

Antidepressants had been discovered by accident in 1950s and was work of Axelrod that linked antidepressant action to neurotransmitter levels. That was the first indication that depression/mood/ emotion was dependent on the functioning of the Brian and altering the functioning of the brain could alter mood. While the whole chemical imbalance metaphor has been helpful in some ways it is not explanatory. My post doctoral advisor himself had been a post doc in Axelrod's lab. So I am 2 degrees separation from him and am sort of immersed in this as a general intellectual milieu......

 

[Obliviax]

Antidepressants had been discovered by accident in 1950s and was work of Axelrod that linked antidepressant action to neurotransmitter levels. That was the first indication that depression/mood/ emotion was dependent on the functioning of the Brian and altering the functioning of the brain could alter mood. While the whole chemical imbalance metaphor has been helpful isn some ways it is not explanatory. My post doctoral advisor himself had been a post doc in Axelrod's lab. So I am 2 degrees separation from him and am sort of immersed in this as a general intellectual milieu......

my biggest issue is that kids go through imbalances during growth spurts and are often immature as their physicality doesn't match their mentality as they mature. But these kinds of prescribed drugs end up being a life sentence. In the USA, we prescribe far too many drugs.

 

[Steve G]

The battle over nature versus nurture is alive and well. In my opinion as a psychoanalytic therapist, depression is psychological in nature. We have long sought a chemical or genetic basis to mental and emotional distress. With the exception of schizophrenia, I think we have leaned to hard on prescription drugs, psychotropic medications, etc. to provide a cure. At best, they might provide some lessening of the symptoms. Most depressive patients I have worked with over the years have a basis in their early development and/or life circumstances to experience long term sadness and depression. Just an opinion

The notion of nature vs nurture in. regards to mental (or physical ) illness is a false dichotomy. We are all the product of our genetic make up interacting with our environmental exposures broadly defined from conception on. Genetics with some exceptions like Huntington disease is not destiny. So people who have the genetic risk for schizophrenia do not all develop that disease, some other set of forces interact with that genetic risk that results in manifestation as disease. Melancholia follows a very similar pattern and is most certainly a disease that does respond to multiple somatic interventions and not so much to psychotherapy, life style interventions etc. Broad definition depression as used in common and even psychiatric/psychologic parlance is a different situation and may be depending on the patient and situation responsive to non medical intervention, psychotherapy, life style etc.

 

[Steve G]

my biggest issue is that kids go through imbalances during growth spurts and are often immature as their physicality doesn't match their mentality as they mature. But these kinds of prescribed drugs end up being a life sentence. In the USA, we prescribe far too many drugs.

on that we agree.

 

[PAgeologist]

I've long been an anti-drug person. I don't do drugs unless they are absolutely needed. I am now recovering from a bought with COVID and took some Mucinex yesterday and Nyquil the last two nights. Before that, I haven't taken a drug since last July when I had the same thing while on vacation with my family. That is an entire year without any drugs at all. I do take a vitamin supplement.

Drugs can be good. But western medicine has gone WAY too far. I see healthy people with these seven-day drug boxes and wonder WTF? But I also know people with cancer, lupus, and other ailments where their drugs really help them. It is hard to know. I have lost any hope or trust in the general medical industry during COVID. I have decided I need to gather all of the data and make my own decisions on health care.

Many doctors in this country are way too happy to prescribe opiates as well. They created much of the mess we are in today with drug abuse. My cousin recently got hurt and had to be taken to the ER for stitches and a couple cracked ribs. First thing they asked before even getting a medical history was if he wanted an opiate.

He has been in rehab several times for drug abuse and alcohol, which he doesn't hide if asked. Thankfully my uncle was there and I don't think he would have taken them anyway.

 

[bourbon n blues]

Great post. I know getting up and out is the hardest part. But doing some volunteer work is incredibly good therapy. Working out, eating right, taking a bike ride anything but inactivity. This is the best path to pursue before drugs are involved.

You need to slow down your brain, live in the moment. Easier said than done but so many activities can foot that bill. Cooking, cleaning, painting , whatever.
Make it something constructive in a positive way.

 

[lazydave841]

It's funny how much of an ass Tom Cruise comes across. Even if he is right, and I don't know either way, it's difficult to get people to take your message seriously if you are so douchy. See NJPSU, Peeoli, Royal as current examples.

Matt cames across pretty assy as well watching it. Almost like he was directed to thwart TCs message or he vehemently disagreed.

Cruise did remind me of the people who want to "enlighten" you on something with the whole "listen to me, I know, you don't" spiel, even if I agree with what he was saying.

Tact is important in presentation.

 

[LionDeNittany]

Amazing

View embedded media

If you recall at the time of this interview I was defending his position.

Cruise was angry. He was correct to be angry.

LdN

 

[LionDeNittany]

Yeah, I'm going to take comments about such matters from an actor, particularly one that believes in Scientology, with a massive helping of skepticism.

So you agree with Tom Cruise here.

The genesis of this interview was that some celebrity (in this case Brooke Shields) was pushing how great drugs were on facebook or some other medium. Something along the lines of how they helped her and others should do the same.

And Tom attacked her for doing that. Then he got the interview.

Tom's point is two fold... 1. people shouldn't listen to actors about drugs without doing the research, and 2. Actors shouldn't be glib about pushing drugs to others / promoting them.

He was 100% correct.

LdN

 

[RickinDayton]

The battle over nature versus nurture is alive and well. In my opinion as a psychoanalytic therapist, depression is psychological in nature. We have long sought a chemical or genetic basis to mental and emotional distress. With the exception of schizophrenia, I think we have leaned to hard on prescription drugs, psychotropic medications, etc. to provide a cure. At best, they might provide some lessening of the symptoms. Most depressive patients I have worked with over the years have a basis in their early development and/or life circumstances to experience long term sadness and depression. Just an opinion

Thank you for sharing your clinical observations.

 

[jjw165]

KEY POINTS​

• In the USA, 1 in 12 children are on psychiatric drugs, including 1.2 percent of pre-schoolers and 12.9 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds.
• The use of psychiatric drugs in children has been steadily increasing for many years in several countries, including the US and Australia.
• Little is known about the adverse effects of these powerful chemical agents, alone or in combination, on the developing brain.

Are Children and Adolescents Overprescribed Psychiatric Medications?

The use of psychiatric drugs on adolescents and children has steadily increased for many years, often with little understanding of the effects on the developing brain.

www.psychologytoday.com

 

[Little J]

A whole lot of unknowns in the prescribed drug world. Drug trials are rigorous but it comes down to what they are measuring and how good their measurement technique is. If you are not looking for it, or your technique of measurement has a limit that is higher than the limit which can cause harm there could be unforeseen consequences

Then there is the question of whether the benefit outweighs the risk. Think about the Covid vaccine. It is/was the best approach science had to mitigate risk of the disease. Yet the long term effects are unknown and vary individual to individual. Opiates were not intended to cause all the issues we see today. The intent was a Nobel one as are most drugs.

I’ve never been an addict of what society terms drugs, yet sometimes I crave caffeine, sugar, or even a beer. The biochemical drive for such things Vary person to person. It is quite fascinating when you consider it all.

 

[cntblvitsbutter]

https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2018/06/axelrod-lecture.pdf

The basis of the "chemical imbalance hypothesis of depression" comes from the work of Julius Axelrod in the mid 1960s. His Nobel lecture linked above. Basically he showed that the antidepressant imipramine blocks the uptake of norepinephrine into pre synaptic vesicles and increase amount and duration of NE in synapse. That was proposed as mechanism of action for the antidepressants. What followed then was a logical failure, if increasing neurotransmitter levels treats depression then depression is due to low levels of neurotransmitters, hence the chemical imbalance hypothesis. This has never born out despite decades of research. Schilkraut has whole series of publication measuring catecholamine levels in urine and other bodily fluids in effort to develop quantitative test for depression, which was basic ally a big dead end. But there is no reason to think that a treatment specifically targets a pathophysiologic process. Increase catecholamine levels and serotonin most definitely can treat depression, but that does not mean depression due to deficits in those transmitters. But that is also true in other areas of medicine. Anti hypertensives target all manner of molecular/ physiological pathways to relieve hypertension none of which is the cause of hypertension. Melancholia is most definitely a real disease with devastating consequences and does respond to m multiple different treatments. It is not stress or the absence of happiness or the presence of bad and sad tings happening. It is a pathological mood state that results form network wide dysfunction in the brain. Melancholia is different than the wide spread use of the word depression and wide spread use of antidepressants, which are most def over prescribed. Below about distributed network hypothesis of depression

A connectomic approach for subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation surgery: prospective targeting in treatment-resistant depression - Molecular Psychiatry

Target identification and contact selection are known contributors to variability in efficacy across different clinical indications of deep brain stimulation surgery. A retrospective analysis of responders to subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation (SCC DBS) for depression demonstrated the...

www.nature.com

So what causes hypertension? Sodium intake? I think I'd rather have tasty food and take a med than eat an unsalted steak!

 

[OaktonDave]

Matt cames across pretty assy as well watching it. Almost like he was directed to thwart TCs message or he vehemently disagreed.

Cruise did remind me of the people who want to "enlighten" you on something with the whole "listen to me, I know, you don't" spiel, even if I agree with what he was saying.

Tact is important in presentation.

The other aspect is TC's own background and beliefs. Scientology has some rather interesting teachings on health, psychology, and medical care that aren't exactly supported by scientific research.

 

[The Spin Meister]

https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2018/06/axelrod-lecture.pdf

The basis of the "chemical imbalance hypothesis of depression" comes from the work of Julius Axelrod in the mid 1960s. His Nobel lecture linked above. Basically he showed that the antidepressant imipramine blocks the uptake of norepinephrine into pre synaptic vesicles and increase amount and duration of NE in synapse. That was proposed as mechanism of action for the antidepressants. What followed then was a logical failure, if increasing neurotransmitter levels treats depression then depression is due to low levels of neurotransmitters, hence the chemical imbalance hypothesis. This has never born out despite decades of research. Schilkraut has whole series of publication measuring catecholamine levels in urine and other bodily fluids in effort to develop quantitative test for depression, which was basic ally a big dead end. But there is no reason to think that a treatment specifically targets a pathophysiologic process. Increase catecholamine levels and serotonin most definitely can treat depression, but that does not mean depression due to deficits in those transmitters. But that is also true in other areas of medicine. Anti hypertensives target all manner of molecular/ physiological pathways to relieve hypertension none of which is the cause of hypertension. Melancholia is most definitely a real disease with devastating consequences and does respond to m multiple different treatments. It is not stress or the absence of happiness or the presence of bad and sad tings happening. It is a pathological mood state that results form network wide dysfunction in the brain. Melancholia is different than the wide spread use of the word depression and wide spread use of antidepressants, which are most def over prescribed. Below about distributed network hypothesis of depression

A connectomic approach for subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation surgery: prospective targeting in treatment-resistant depression - Molecular Psychiatry

Target identification and contact selection are known contributors to variability in efficacy across different clinical indications of deep brain stimulation surgery. A retrospective analysis of responders to subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation (SCC DBS) for depression demonstrated the...

www.nature.com

Interesting how the imbalance theory got started. Scientists are supposed to test hypothesis instead of assuming cause and effect. Blocking the action of a neurotransmitter doesn’t necessarily mean an imbalance is the cause. Could be the uptake mechanism of the synapses has failed. Or the response to that uptake.

Deep Brsin Stimulation has been very successful in Parkinson's and epilepsy, IIRC. Did you see the thread from three years ago on treating depression with psilocybin? Any updates?

OT: Psylocybin treatment for depression, schizophrenia, addiction. Updated April 19

60 Minutes did a segment on psylocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms. John Hopkins and others are researching using it to treat various mental issues including addiction. Treatment was a six hour IV of a high dose. Interviewed people that received the treatment with great...

bwi.forums.rivals.com

 

[Rip_E_2_Joe_PA]

my biggest issue is that kids go through imbalances during growth spurts and are often immature as their physicality doesn't match their mentality as they mature. But these kinds of prescribed drugs end up being a life sentence. In the USA, we prescribe far too many drugs.

This! For sure!

 

[The Spin Meister]

The notion of nature vs nurture in. regards to mental (or physical ) illness is a false dichotomy. We are all the product of our genetic make up interacting with our environmental exposures broadly defined from conception on. Genetics with some exceptions like Huntington disease is not destiny. So people who have the genetic risk for schizophrenia do not all develop that disease, some other set of forces interact with that genetic risk that results in manifestation as disease. Melancholia follows a very similar pattern and is most certainly a disease that does respond to multiple somatic interventions and not so much to psychotherapy, life style interventions etc. Broad definition depression as used in common and even psychiatric/psychologic parlance is a different situation and may be depending on the patient and situation responsive to non medical intervention, psychotherapy, life style etc.

As to the nature vs nature debate...just read an article totally unrelated to this as it was on the abortion vs adoption argument. The author wrote that adopted children have a much higher rate of depression, suicide, addiction, placed in juvenile centers, and more. There was no discussion about the cause of these stats. Was it a genetic link to troubled parents? Was it knowing they were adopted gave them a sense of loss, abandonment, rejection, and/or the void of not knowing their roots? Was it something like alcohol fetal syndrome, drug abuse of parents, poor prenatal care? How much of that is inherited in their genes?

Do you know of any studies that went into these details? If so, what were their results?

 

[DrJC]

As to the nature vs nature debate...just read an article totally unrelated to this as it was on the abortion vs adoption argument. The author wrote that adopted children have a much higher rate of depression, suicide, addiction, placed in juvenile centers, and more. There was no discussion about the cause of these stats. Was it a genetic link to troubled parents? Was it knowing they were adopted gave them a sense of loss, abandonment, rejection, and/or the void of not knowing their roots? Was it something like alcohol fetal syndrome, drug abuse of parents, poor prenatal care? How much of that is inherited in their genes?

Do you know of any studies that went into these details? If so, what were their results?

There is a lot of literature on adopted children and the problems they develop. Yes, in the unconscious mind there remains the notion of being rejected, not good enough to struggle to keep, etc., etc. There is also an anger towards the biological parents they gave them up and it can be directed (misdirected) at the adopting parents. Depression is common.

 

[The Spin Meister]

There is a lot of literature on adopted children and the problems they develop. Yes, in the unconscious mind there remains the notion of being rejected, not good enough to struggle to keep, etc., etc. There is also an anger towards the biological parents they gave them up and it can be directed (misdirected) at the adopting parents. Depression is common.

But are there studies that researched the birthing parents to see if there may be genetic issues involved? A lot of women with depression become addicts or alcoholics. Teenagers with low esteem and/or depression often get pregnant. And these are the most likely to give up a child for adoption. Studying any connections could possibly be a good way to discern the impact of genetics over nurture, knowledge that would help all people.

I have known at least five people that were adopted and all were well adjusted people that had good lives. But it is true that adopted kids have a tougher road to follow. Understanding the issues in loved would be very helpful.

 

[Ian]

Mother Tucker nailed it last night on this subject regarding big Pharma and depression drugs. Incredible scam over the last 30 years. A lot of people made huge $$$$ and suicide rates climbed.

 

[DUNNELLONFLBUCK]

Don't know what causes depression, I just know it will crush you.

 

[LMTLION]

This interesting article comes just a few weeks after the recent news that the original research on the causes of dementia was perhaps falsified. And that follows news that a new dementia drug is so useless that insurance won’t even cover it. WTF is going on out there in the realm of neuroscience? Are we that mired in profit at any cost that we will burn down our society to achieve it? It is getting more difficult to trust research being conducted in this country.