Posted by Danieli23 on January 30, 2006, at 18:10:17
In reply to Re: Dont do it!!!!, posted by linkadge on January 27, 2006, at 11:37:50
Hi Linkadge,
Thank you for your post. I did not find it offensive although I did find the reference to 'my denial' to be so. I am not in denial and in fact struggle daily with, among other issues, fear of falling into a depression, which is inevitable.
Anyway, regarding the morphometric and neurochemical abnormalities that are evidenced in BP brains that you list, indeed it seems that neuronal activity, structural change/plasticity could be enhanced by LT lithium use: How would you square the poss increase in neural viability & functioning (indicated through grey matt) qua lithium use (eg brain power!) with much evidence that suggests that there is an extremely high creative mental productivity associated with (manic episodes of) untreated BP? Also, structural changes supposedly take place over long periods; ST relief v LT changes....
Perhaps for your bro as well, I don't know, the largely pleasant, highly productive if alternately scary experiences of manic episodes, and reasonably chill stable periods in between episodes simply outweigh what are perceived as overly negative effects (I do not think it is fair to label them 'side' as this connotes secondary, eg lesser in sig) of medications so as to rule out their viability.
Are you really willing to make the rather general statement: "for those who choose to continue taking it, the burden of side effects does not surpass the burden of the disease." I do not mean this facetiously and would appreciate your feedback.I would maintain that not taking medication is a viable option for some, & I still believe it is a highly under-considered one and incidentally, feel that engaging this alternative does have a place on a board that deals with mental illness: 'not to take' is certainly part of drug questions; this fact was disrespected by many as they Chose to take my statements as an attack on their self/choices.
I think it is obvious that every individual ultimately makes the best choice for themselves and tolerance, here, can be part of feeling better for many.Best wishes,
Daniela> No offence, (and I cannot say for you because I don't know), but this attitude is *very* common among people with bipolar disorder. The attitude that one has the power to pull onesself out of one's illness.
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> My older brother has bipolar disorder, and won't take meds. He has been depressed, and continues to have recurrent depressions. Whenever he gets better, he always attrubutes it to something within his own power that got him there.
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> The depression will improve naturally on its own, as it does with the natural course of the illness, and it only seems natural to attribute it to somthing within one's power that got them well. But, correlation does not imply causation. For instance, self esteem will increase as depression improves. That does not mean that your self-esteem, or your self-motivation was actually what got you better!
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> But we need to look at the facts. There are real, structural and biochemical abnormailities that have consistantly been found in bipolar disorder who do not medicate. Abnormalities like glial reductions in the fronal cortex, grey matter reductions, n-acetyl-aspartate, hippocampal volume abnormalities etc.
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> I know that the case for antidepressants is confounded by the buisness of drug marketing, but whenever I start to think that the disease is fabricated, I need only to look a the case for lithium.
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> Lithium is no money maker. It does make people high. It does work though. Of course it has some side effects, but for those who choose to continue taking it, the burden of side effects does not surpass the burden of the disease. Lithium does reduce suicide which is high in bipolar disorder.
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> Nobody is asking you to take your medications, but please be mindfull of the possability that the parameters of your individual case may not extend to everbody.
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poster:Danieli23
thread:603370
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060129/msgs/604574.html