Love this and totally agree, our idea of "normal" is not normal. We need to embrace life's up and downs and realize this is part of life. I have suffered major depression in the past, which is much different than just being down, but people treat it as the same and medication seems to be prescribed for both. And I'm with ya on the pharmaceutical industry. They are absolutely profiting off people being sick.

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

These days I feel like everyone is depressed, and it undermines the people who, like you, have suffered from true depression. I think that is a big issue. Really the same with stress. Everybody keeps confusing being busy with the actual illness "stress". Glad you liked the video

Completely agree that we have medicalized normal sadness in a way that is totally unacceptable and ultimately a ridiculous excuse to enrich drug companies. HOWEVER, if you look at the studies, there is always a consistent cohort of people for whom antidepressants work, and placebos do not. The percentage is small, but those are (in my opinion) the only people for whom a depression diagnosis is legitimate, and antidepressants might save their lives. I am pretty much the textbook case of legit, inherited, major depressive disorder (not to diminish the suffering of people who are deeply sad, but there is a difference). I suffered my most extreme episode a few years ago. My life was PERFECT. I literally had everything I had ever dreamed of. Honestly, if you had waved a magic wand and asked me if there was anything in my life I would change, the answer was quite literally NOTHING. But I was incapable of experiencing any emotion - positive or negative. I would look at my beautiful children and know that I wanted to feel love and closeness to the people closest to me and I could feel nothing. I was never happy, but I was really never said, either. I just felt completely empty inside. The only feelings I could have were intense anxiety attacks that made me unable to breathe, and I saw the doctor thinking I might have a serious heart problem (I would get so hot that I couldn't bear being in a room, and I did actually faint a few times). I had some medical tests done, and nothing was wrong with me. My doctor asked me to see a psychiatrist, and I did. I explained my experience, and he asked me many questions about my "mental health hygiene" (did I use positive self talk, etc.). I'm a very positive person, but if you wake up every day unable to feel a single emotion, it wears on you quickly. Imagine if you never knew if you could experience happiness ever again, even for a moment? If your life was absolutely perfect and you could only smile when you were trying to pretend you were normal? Fortunately the psychiatrist understood, put me on a true SSRI (cipralex, which like you say, is a placebo unless you actually suffer from MDD). At first I felt worse. But after about a month, I was able to feel emotions again. I am so grateful to that doctor. Honestly, I do know I wouldn't have survived without that help. I guess you'd have to know me to understand, but I am an exceptionally mentally strong survivor, and I have been through some pretty horrible things, but not being able to feel emotions (in psych speak, anhedonia) is the worst thing I have experienced in my life. It often drives people to suicide, and I absolutely understand why. These subjects are always touchy, and I know this video was well intentioned and will likely be very helpful for 99% of people who see it. But for the 1% that know they are suffering from something that goes far beyond the realms of normal sadness, I just want you to know that there is hope, and that some psychiatric drugs can be life saving, and it's worth seeing someone who understands what's going on and can help. And finally, I apologize for leaving a novel-length comment on this video, but it's something I feel rather strongly about. I always appreciate your candour, and I guess I felt I had to respond in like fashion. Have a beautiful day 😊☮🌱❤

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

The percentage is so low. And I can't help but think about the very largest percentage who have no effect but many side effects (and risk their health and well being). I have a hard time accepting that we help so few people at the cost of so many. Your story is very moving. Having watched your videos before and now reading your story gives me a small understanding of how invalidating it must have been to go through that. So glad you shared. I hope the 1% will take their time to read you comment, move over to your channel, and leave this video with some encouragement and feeling slightly less hopeless. Any day is a good day to leave a novel-length comment on a channel like mine with less than 50 subs ;p You are awesome! I really appreciate the support.

@Modvegan

7 жыл бұрын

Yes - I think a large part of the problem is that when pharmaceutical companies do research, the only way they can profit from their findings is to sell drugs to the largest market possible, with next to no effort made to ensure that the drugs wind up in the hands of those who will benefit from them (they'd sell antidepressants to the most happy person on earth if they could get them to buy it). The result is an approach that fails everyone. I'm not sure what could be done to reform the pharmaceutical industry, but it's definitely something that needs to be done asap! I wish they could turn it into a not-for-profit industry. It seems totally antithetical to the whole mission of medicine. So sad.

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

I hope so deeply that we will see big change in the future of medicine

Good video, agree with a lot of what you say, society puts a lot of pressure on people. There should also be a balance of diagnosis, but also the mental health system can be abused to be a money making system.

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks :) Yeah, as soon as something becomes a money making system we really should re-evaluate how we run it imo.

@CaringMind

7 жыл бұрын

Did some mental health awareness raising off my channel, feel free to look sometime

Great vid! I highly recommend the podcast Invisibilia and especially the episode: "The problem with the solution".

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks so much for the suggestion - I'll be sure to check it out! :)

I think its true that people feel like they must improve their mental health before they can talk to people. I have been able to at least notice that human interaction is simply valuable enough to be worth just about anything, to me and to most others.

Just a couple of things that I wanted to address about your statements. As far as talking to people you know and people around you about your mental health, while being open and sharing is beneficial, the reason why therapist are needed is 1) they are professionals and will likely have a better understanding of what someone is going through and ways to help them and 2) it is hard for people who know you and care about you to remain objective when trying to help you which can worsen the problems you may be having. Also depending on one person to sort of "fix" you can be exhausting for that person. I've been in a situation where I was supporting someone emotionally and after a certain amount of time dealing with that it becomes emotionally draining and unhealthy. As far as over diagnosis goes, I agree with what you said, but part of the reason for new diagnosis being made is because when we define a problem, we can find a solution to that problem and then that solution can be used to help people that are having a similar problem when they are diagnosed with it. Just like how cancer and diabetes are two medical diagnosis because they have different characteristics and methods of treatment. With the issue of corrupt drug companies, I agree that it is inherently wrong for people to profit off of someone else's pain and suffering and it will cause those companies to not put people's health at the forefront of their policies when they are making new drugs, however many people that have mental issues not a a reaction to their environment, but rather because of a chemical imbalance can benefit from drugs formulated to fix that. For example SSRI drugs that are used to treat depression help raise and regulate your serotonin levels. Anyway, this was an interesting video and it's clear you put a lot of thought into it but I hope you consider the points I brought up. :)

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

I do agree that it is very draining to be that "one person" - and in that sense I wish that nobody would only have one person. In an ideal world we would all have plenty different people to talk to and many different ways to help each other. And I completely agree that therapists are awesome and can really change peoples lives. Their objectiveness can especially be beneficial in matters where issues are caused by problems in the family - and talking to them will only make it worse. I have had therapy myself when I was younger and really liked how it helped me, since I def. couldn't use my family for healing. I can hear that we do not have the same understanding of SSRI's and chemical imbalances in the brain. Nice to disagree sometimes. It is my understanding that the whole "imbalance in the brain" is a major hoax, and that we have no idea what other consequences follows when we artificially raise serotonin levels of the brains. The book I am referring to in the video is really a piece of work to widen ones perspective of what we have always been told about mental illness. Thanks so much for your comment

@dandeliondunmer3637

7 жыл бұрын

I may read the book you mentioned. Thank you for making me think about things in a different way :)

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

Off all the forums, discussions etc I have been - youtube is by far the least retarded :D

I could listen to your voice all day.

@lifeofwife5069

7 жыл бұрын

Oh so sweet, thank you so much.