Depression and exercise (Read 1492 times)

I don't think you're qualified to decide what is a 'crutch' for a medical condition.

No, obviously I'm not qualified....otherwise I'd have a MD after my name . But long-term drug use (prescribed or otherwise) isn't the ideal situation for most people either (note I said 'most').

After reading all comments in this topic, all I can say depression really sucks. Totally, and i hope people won't see us depressives as lazy cos some of us work damn hard to get out of the pits.

Actually you are wrong. The drugs are handed out first to get the patient feels normal again, and then other therapies are used. It's pretty hard to have psycho therapy when your head is spinning, throbbing, and your vomitting.

you are absolutely correct. I wasn't even considering it from that end. I was only thinking about it from the end of the misused. There are many people out there who take drugs they do not need. And that is where I was coming from with the why is it a first option thought. There are many people out there who believe that they should not ever have a down period in their life and so at the first sight of funkiness they run to the doctor to get some med's to keep them from falling into a funk instead of looking at what is causing it. Funk's happen and so does periods of depression. All of that is very very different then being depressed. People's lives ebb and flow through periods of good and bad, calm and turmoil, and I think it is wrong for doctors to prescribe antidepressants for people who are not truely depressed especially since they can lead to depressed or suicidal thoughts in people who aren't truely depressed due to a chemical imbalance in their brain. However, my thoughts on that have absolutely no bearing on people who are suffering from depression. I agree that if you have a chemical imbalance in your brain which has caused you to become depressed then you need to fix it and in order to fix it you typically will need medicine for that. Sorry if I was not clear. My thoughts on where this article would go was that the people looking for these pills are not looking for a way to solve their depression, but looking for a legal high. Looking to escape their mundane life and the funk they have gotten themselves into.

you are absolutely correct. I wasn't even considering it from that end. I was only thinking about it from the end of the misused. There are many people out there who take drugs they do not need. And that is where I was coming from with the why is it a first option thought. There are many people out there who believe that they should not ever have a down period in their life and so at the first sight of funkiness they run to the doctor to get some med's to keep them from falling into a funk instead of looking at what is causing it. Funk's happen and so does periods of depression. All of that is very very different then being depressed. People's lives ebb and flow through periods of good and bad, calm and turmoil, and I think it is wrong for doctors to prescribe antidepressants for people who are not truely depressed especially since they can lead to depressed or suicidal thoughts in people who aren't truely depressed due to a chemical imbalance in their brain. However, my thoughts on that have absolutely no bearing on people who are suffering from depression. I agree that if you have a chemical imbalance in your brain which has caused you to become depressed then you need to fix it and in order to fix it you typically will need medicine for that. Sorry if I was not clear. My thoughts on where this article would go was that the people looking for these pills are not looking for a way to solve their depression, but looking for a legal high. Looking to escape their mundane life and the funk they have gotten themselves into.

I still don't know how people can generalize and assume anything about the use of antidepressents with such little informtion or education. In the mean time we use words like "funk", "just", "lazy" and "crutch" that are hurtful. It's no wonder people commit sucide and days after you hear,"If only I had I know I could have done something." Ah hell, you wouldn't have wanted to hear about it anyway and if they said something look at the critism received. I guess the hard part is knowing if you're the crazy looney with the chemical imbalance or if you're the miserable person trying to escape their mundane life.

I'm sorry Bugs, but a chemical imbalance does not make one a "crazy looney". I find this ironic right after you talk about words like "crutch" and "lazy" being hurtful.

Some of my friends would probably call me a 'crazy looney' even if I weren't feeling down . This is obviously a fairly emotive issue and one that raises the emotions. I know I've spoken from my own experience (what I've personally gone through, seen, heard) but obviously other people's experiences are different and I'm sorry if my opinions have offended or upset anyone. I think bottom line is that if someone is depressed they obviously need help, but that help should come in more than one form. Anti-depressants with no counselling (or exercise, or a good support system of friends & family etc) isn't the answer. And neither is someone who only exercises the try and rid themselves of depression....they may need anti-depressants or counselling. The original point was that drugs are so often given without any other methods to help someone get through their day - they end up relying on those drugs, which creates a catch-22.

I'm sorry Bugs, but a chemical imbalance does not make one a "crazy looney". I find this ironic right after you talk about words like "crutch" and "lazy" being hurtful.

I was being VERY sarcastic. I'm sorry, that is not always easy to be clear when you can't hear tone of voice. In general I see the good in people. Most people are NOT going to tell their whole life story to their friends, not even online. A person can go through a very serious depression due to circumstances, and when symptoms pop back up it's hard to know if you need the medicine or it's something else. I just always assume I don't know all the facts, and assume people are doing the best they can and give people's and doctor's judgement more credit. I watched my Mom die from clinical depression. I will not let my kids go through the same.