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Deepak Chopra, MD wrote a recent article about new research showing our faith in antidepressants is ill founded. He writes about a study from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine that states, “More than half the people who take antidepressants for depression never get relief. “
These researchers found molecular evidence that counters the prevalent dogma that stress is generally a major cause of depression. Specifically, their research more than questioned two beliefs/lies:
Lie #1: Depression is directly linked to stress.
Stress is not causing depression because the genes related to stress are “totally different from those related to depression.”
Lie #2: Depressed people have chemical imbalances in their brains.
Depression doesn’t come from the imbalance of Neurotransmitters, but from the formation and functioning of neurons. These nerve cells adapt to express depression, meaning a depress person develops more sad and hopeless neural pathways than the happier ones we all would want.
How were sold the lies
In the study published in the August issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers analyzed data from a national survey of antidepressant conducted in 1996 and again in 2005.From – Washington Post article:
Pharmaceutical companies nearly quadrupled their spending on consumer advertising for antidepressants during the period of the study. In 1999, drug-makers spent $32 million on direct-to-consumer advertising; by 2005, this figure had jumped to $122 million. Drug ads lead to increased prescriptions and often overstate the benefits of a drug while downplaying the risks.
Recently we celebrated the 20th year anniversary of Prozac. For 20 years, we were lead to believe that depression was solely a “chemical imbalance.” It was as if our bodies was a high school chemistry lab experiment – if we add a little more of a certain chemical we would get a different reaction. Now we are finding out that may be the most powerful effect Prozac and other similar anti-depressants had was a placebo effect.
More research and clinical evidence is showing life style changes have a huge effect on preventing and healing depression. Being depress can be a normal part of life. Staying depressed is not normal. We don’t need to treat depression with drugs, we need to address what causes ongoing depression.
Mindfulness stress reduction has proven to be a powerful prevention and healing for depression, as well as nutrition, mild exercise, bodywork, acupuncture and other holistic techniques. It is about time we all start using common sense and start questioning the marketing hype of drug companies. I have seen people completely cure themselves of depression and related symptoms with never taking a drug. Let’s do research on that!
Let us know what you feel. What are your experiences with these drugs?
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Further Reading:
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
This is dangerously irresponsible information. I would feel remiss if I didn’t point out that Deepak Chopra is a crackpot who relies on such bedrock medical practices as astrology and a dualistic view of humans as possessing a “mind” separate from the “body” in some amorphous, misunderstood “quantum” level.
For solid, up-to-date, empirically based, peer-reviewed, published information on depression, biology, stress, and the connections between the three, take a look at a Nov 2009 lecture by Robert Sapolsky, a professor of biological sciences at Stanford University and of neurology at Stanford’s School of Medicine. Obviously you need a refresher, given your comment that “genes related to stress are ‘totally different from those related to depression.’” Such a statement indicates that you are ill-informed about the role of genetics in illness of any type.
Sapolsky’s lecture is found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOAgplgTxfc . You will be enlightened as to the complexities of depression, neuroscience, psychology, and environmental factors. While I applaud your emphasis on finding more sophisticated models for depression than merely blaming a “chemical imbalance.” Responsible physicians and researchers would agree with you wholeheartedly. This is a complex condition, one that I urge to study before publishing such posts as this one.
The reason? Spreading misinformation is downright dangerous given the propensity for self-harm — including, of course, suicide — among those suffering from major depression.
In the past, I took an SRI to alleviate the syptoms of anxiety. I was in school, feeling overwhelmed by a second mortgage and in a relationship that was no longer healthy. I While the antidepressants did help a little, they could not change my belief about the circumstances that I was in. I was fortunate enought to have been introduced to a leading edge education that provided an extremely powerful paradigm through which to view my life. It also prompted me to make some changes. Re thinking my beliefs to treat anxiety is akin to teaching someone how to fish. I know that I wll never need these types of med again because I have gotten to the source of the anxiety.I am now in what some would call “less than desireable circumstances”, but they are not defining how I react. I certainly have some ups and downs, but I have not fallen into the pit of despair. However, my husband is exhibiting some signs of depression. He has not had access to the same education that I have and he doesn’t seem to be interested. He began taking medication to treat the symptoms, which I am thankful for. He is a calmer and more relaxed. I realized that He has not gotten to the source of his depression. However, for him, the cure is a change in circumstance. Meanwhile, he is taking meds to prevent the crippling effects of anxiety so that he can go about his day. I am thankful to the meds that offer some relief, but I feel that it is far more powerful and long lasting to get to the source.