Psychotherapy London

6 Responses to “Should people with extreme treatment resistant depression take their own life?”

1. munkee2 said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   How can anybody answer that? Nobody SHOULD take their own life but I’m afraid to say in extreme and very rare circumstances when somebody has done, or has tried, I sometimes think ‘I can’t blame them’.

2. AiYA said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   No, Why would someone be allowed to take their life based on their willingness to treatmeant? Lol.

3. RWPossum said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   You might be surprised at how effective treatments can be. Dialectical Behavior Therapy is effective with people who habitually risk their lives with things like DUI. Although shock treatment has very unpleasant side effects, it’s very effective with severe depression, and will work with people when drugs have failed. Also, time by itself tends to heal depression.

4. Jerry said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   They very probably just haven’t found an effective combination of treatments yet, and around 98% - 99% can improve greatly, and the remainder can adopt good coping strategies, and improve somewhat; much is about changing your thought patterns. A previous answer follows: Antidepressants/anxiolytics either don’t work for, cause side effects, or lose efficacy, over time, with a considerable proportion of people; probably more than 50%. See: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articl… and http://suiciderateup.wordpress.com I suggest that you view http://your-mental-health.8m.com/blank_27.html about depression, then page B. Check out http://www.drugs.com & http://www.rxlist.com and wean off, in accordance with http://www.theroadback.org/workbook.htm and begin the core treatments immediately, and the herbal remedies, or OTHER supplements, like SAM-e, 5-htp, or L-phenylalanine, when below 50% weaning dosage. St. John’s wort has anxiolytic, as well as antidepressant properties, so consider taking a recommended brand, along with a low dosage of 5-htp, (50 mg daily; no more!) which works quicker than the wort, and employing the core treatments shown for depression, and a relaxation method, and/or the EFT. SJW is thought to work by increasing the levels of multiple neurotransmitters moderately, rather than just boosting those of serotonin considerably, as with many antidepressants. Check out: http://www.foodforthebrain.org/content.a…
   At least, give the above a trial period of 3 - 6 months, after weaning off, to see if they are sufficient. If not, (which is unlikely) medications will still be available, but maintain the core treatments as complementary ones, because they treat the cause, rather than mask symptoms.

   There are various kinds, and levels of depression, with at least 7 different causes. Different treatments may apply. Doctors and psychiatrists rely too much these days on medications, and are overly influenced by the sales reps of the drug companies, who profile them psychologically, and study their prescribing record, then offer rewards, freebies, courses, payments to lecture; even attendance fees to view lectures. View: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articl… and http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articl… Use the Mercola.com SEARCH BAR, about how drug company money has corrupted psychiatry, & view: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2007/08/18/drug-company-reps-are-using-psychological-warfare-techniques-on-your-doctor.aspx People who ask their doctor for a certain brand have it prescribed 70% of the time, hence the huge media campaigns - see http://www.naturalnews.com/010315_advertising_drugs_doctors.html The feedback that I have received here is that antidepressants work, if they do, by blunting the emotions. Many users describe it as "zombification", or emotional deadness. They produce side effects in around 25% - 30% of cases, and they can sometimes (rarely) include the possibility of permanent inorgasmia, (inability to achieve orgasm: "I haven’t tried zoloft, but since the very first lexapro tablet I ever took, I have never had an orgasm again. And I came off it a year ago".) or even the permanent loss of the ability for a male to achieve an erection, which is something they don’t advertise.

   Although they may limit the lows, they also limit the excitement, and joys of life. That effect is far less pronounced with St. John’s wort, and may be unnoticeable. Antidepressants have demonstrated increased rates of suicide, homicide, and aberrant behaviour, especially in people under the age of around 24 - 25. Note the warnings on the label/insert, or at http://www.drugs.com The wort carries no such risks, and side effects are rarer, generally much milder, and never permanent., so why take an unnecessary risk? I suggest that such people immediately adopt the core treatments shown, and consider using the herbal remedies, or OTHER supplements. If antidepressants are offered, say "thank you very much" and pocket the prescription, but don’t fill it until giving the natural & alternative treatments a trial period of at least 3, and preferably 6 months. Antidepressants will still be available, if required, (unlikely) but it’s best to avoid the risks, and side effects.

5. Silver Moon said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   No, they should keep trying different medications and different doctors and until they find something that works for them. Keep holding out hope and eventually something will help you.

6. epistemology said:
   

   February 9th, 2010 at 1:46 pm

   Absolutely not.

   Treatment, in several ways, is work, very heavy work. Some of the depressed may feel that death is easier. Of course, they would not put the idea in the same words I have here, but such idea may be in their heads.

   If I were to meet a person with such belief, I would say that in any treatment, it is the patient who does most of the work. It is said that in any treatment, it is the patient that heals himself, and that any treatment only assist this self-healing; without the willingness of the patient, no treatment can work.

   Healing takes a lot of work, a level of effort that is impossible to explain to others who have not gone thru treatment. Yet, you can see success if you know how to look for it. Real life is not like television, where problems can be solved within an hour. As part of treatment, there are days when the patient may just trudge ahead, with the no end of treatment anywhere in sight. A feeling of despair, of futility is made worse by the depression. Such days are reported even by patients who healed. They see such days are part of the price they pay for success.

   To kill yourself may be moral only in situations were there is no possibility of happiness. Part of the treatment involves dealing with bad days, with no hope in sight. It is the nature of the treatment and the condition of depression that a judgment of whether there is a way out, a happy ending, cannot be made objectively. In conclusion, people with extreme treatment resistant depression should not take their own life because they may sincerely believe that no happy ending is possible, and they could be wrong.

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