Topic: antidepressants

What Prevents People From Seeking Mental Health Treatment? Everything

What Prevents People From Seeking Mental Health Treatment? Everything

This morning, a PsychCentral article titled “What Prevents People From Seeking Mental Health Treatment?” caught my eye. The author cites a range of reasons, from the continuing stigma surrounding mental illness to the cost of therapy to well-meaning loved ones who discourage mental health care. In other words: Just about everything involved in getting proper mental health care is a possible deterrent. And as someone who’s recently been struggling to maintain my own mental health care, I vehemently agree. More »

Taking Antidepressants While Pregnant Won’t Increase Risk Of Infant Death

Taking Antidepressants While Pregnant Won't Increase Risk Of Infant Death

Taking anti-depressants while pregnant won’t increase a woman’s chances of stillbirth, according to a large new study. After looking at nearly 30,000 Nordic women who had taken selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) anti-depressants while pregnant, Swedish researchers concluded that there was no significant association between use of these medications and risk of stillbirth, neonatal death or infant death. More »

Study Says Talk Therapy Eases Depression. Isn’t That Kind Of The Idea?

Study Says Talk Therapy Eases Depression. Isn't That Kind Of The Idea?

A new study confirms that the decades-long practice of talk therapy does, in fact, ease depression. But what at first seems like a pretty obvious research finding is surprisingly revealing: The premise of the study isn’t just to ask “does therapy work?”–it’s mostly to uncover the best cure for depression is for people who don’t respond to antidepressants. More »

Professor Says Women Should Avoid Antidepressants Because They Have Uteruses

Professor Says Women Should Avoid Antidepressants Because They Have Uteruses

Anti-depressants and pregnancy are a touchy issue. For those women who are debilitated by depression and need to protect their own health, remaining on anti-depressants while pregnant can be a bit of a Catch-22. But while the decision is one that is probably best left between a woman and her personal doctor, one professor says that no menstruating lady should be handed the prescription. According to her, all ladies are potential baby-makers, and didn’t you know that the possible fruits of your uterus come before trivial things like your own mental health? More »

The ‘Medication Generation’ Has Grown Up … Now What?

The 'Medication Generation' Has Grown Up ... Now What?

Are we ‘overmedicating’ today’s youth with Ritalin and Prozac? The issue routinely gets dredged up by parents and media outlets, but it’s hardly a new concern. In the 1980s and 1990s, kids and teens who in a previous generation may have received therapy (or gone untreated) began to routinely be prescribed psychotropic drugs–antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, mood stabilizers. It’s not uncommon for 20- and 30-somethings today to have spent the better part of their lives on such medications. Meanwhile, the consequences of their long-term use is virtually unknown. More »

Exercise Out; Ketamine In: This Week’s News In Depression Remedies

Exercise Out; Ketamine In: This Week's News In Depression Remedies

Exercise it out; ketamine is in. Take a look at some of the discoveries in depression research this week—we’ve got blood tests and guilt signals gone haywire and a reason it may be better to skip the therapist’s office and opt instead for a phone session. As always with this kind of stuff, there’s a lot of genuinely interesting news here, but don’t trust any headline touting the depression ’cause’ or ‘cure.’ [And exercise probably isn't so bad, either.] More »

Quitting Smoking, Week 3: How Bupropion Is Helping Me Not Miss Cigarettes

Quitting Smoking, Week 3: How Bupropion Is Helping Me Not Miss Cigarettes

I’m happy to report that I made it another week in my quest to quit smoking without any relapses. I’m actually amazed at how little I’ve thought about cigarettes at all—even grabbing a drink in a smoky bar didn’t set me to pining. I think the bupropion pills I’m taking must be making a difference, because it can’t naturally be this easy for your brain or body to get over a long-term smoking habit. So for my quitting smoking chronicles this week, I thought I’d explore a little further just how bupropion works to help people quit smoking. More »

I’m One Of The 20% Of U.S. Women On Antidepressants: And My Life Is Better For It

I'm One Of The 20% Of U.S. Women On Antidepressants: And My Life Is Better For It

Last week, new research revealed that one in five Americans take some sort of psychiatric medication. Among women, that number was a little higher—25% on mental health drugs in general, with 20% taking an antidepressant. I’m one of those 20% of women. And I am oh-so-thankful that I am. Depression is one of those things that goes untreated by a large number of sufferers—and for a long time, I was part of that group. But taking matters out of my own hands (and head) has done wonders for my quality of life. More »

Feeling S.A.D.? How To Choose A Light Therapy Box

Feeling S.A.D.? How To Choose A Light Therapy Box

The New York Times ran a great article yesterday on how using light therapy can help combat everything from mild winter blues to serious seasonal affective disorder. And according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, between 50% and 80% of people using light therapy to treat S.A.D. experience a complete recovery from symptoms. But how do you find a light therapy box? How much do they cost? And what features should you look for? More »

Antidepressants Used By 1 In 10 Americans—So Why Is Depression Still Misunderstood?

Antidepressants Used By 1 In 10 Americans—So Why Is Depression Still Misunderstood?

Holy Zoloft—nearly one in 10 Americans now takes antidepressants, according to the CDC. That’s 11% of U.S. citizens 12 and over, making antidepressants the third most common prescription drug taken overall and the most frequently taken drug among people 18-44. The most frequently taken drug among people 18-44 (I felt that bared repeating). Since Elizabeth Wurtzel wrote Prozac Nation in 1994, the rate of antidepressant use in the U.S. has increased nearly 400%. But has our understanding of depression and antidepressant use kept pace? More »

Study: Depression Linked To Higher Stroke Risk (But So Are Antidepressants)

Study: Depression Linked To Higher Stroke Risk (But So Are Antidepressants)

In the latest ‘damned-if-do, damned-if-you-don’t’ health news: New research says that depression increases a woman’s stroke risk—but taking antidepressants makes the risk even higher. And this is no half-hearted, small-scale study we’re talking about, either; Harvard University researchers looked at the health histories and practices of 80,000 women, beginning in 1976. Between 2000 and 2006, women aged 54 to 79 with no previous stroke history were specifically monitored. Ultimately, depressed women had a 29% greater risk of having a stroke, and depressed women who were taking anti-depressants had a 39% greater stroke risk. More »

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