Posted by SLS on March 28, 2018, at 8:26:59
In reply to Re: Antidepressant Pipeline Page » bleauberry, posted by Tony P on March 28, 2018, at 1:17:38
> Interesting thoughts. To your list of "infection, toxins, and inflammation" I would add: addictive substances, and behaviours that are short-run relief but long-term trouble. I believe I've heard of some antibiotics relieving depression. I am sure that behaviour, and perhaps treating infection is a sort of behaviour, modifies brain chemistry just as much as changing brain chemistry modifies behaviour. The question is, where to start? Or which is easier? As Alan Watts said, "Do You Do It, or Does It Do You?"....
Regarding antibiotics, another possibility is that it helps to reset gut flora. There seems to be a very strong connection between bacteria in the GI tract and brain function - and vice-versa. There need not be an infection. I wouldn't know which antibiotics are effective for this purpose. I guess one would want to take pro-biotics to re-establish the good critters while vanquishing the bad ones.
I like to mention minocycline because it penetrates the brain efficiently and acts to reduce inlammation while modulating glutamate activity. The only two people I know who tried minocycline for depression felt significantly improved within a few days. One would think that if the antibiotic action of minocycline were to be involved, it would have taken longer. The improvement persisted. Doxycycline had no effect on me after 3 months, but minocycline helped after 3 days. Unfortunately, a long-term side effect of minocycline is hyperpigmentation that usually manifests as dark black and blue discolorations on the feet and shins. It can take as long as 1.5 years to develop this if you were to take minocycline every day.
An idea just occurred to me. If minocycline helps within a few days, you might be a responder to its glutakate modulating effects. You could then add lamotrigine (Lamictal), possibly combined with NAC (N-acetylcysteine), and try discontinuing the minocycline after three weeks or so. It almost makes sense to try minocycline before going with doxycycline. It is unlikely that minocycline would produce hyperpigmentation during a short course of treatment. So, if minocycline does not produce a rapid response, and you feel the need to be on an antibiotic long-term, you could then switch to doxycyline. Both minocycline and doxycycline reduce brain inflammation. So do antidepressants when they work.
Don't forget to take pro-biotics to repopulate the gut with a healthy flora.
- Scott
Some see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1097033
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