Mental Disorders

[Yoko]

I’ve been debating on making this an Intellectual Discussion for a while. After looking through the ID section and doing a forum search and coming back inconclusive, I thought I might as well make a thread. The main reason being is that it is probably one of the most controversial topics I can actually talk about, and it is one of those things that people tend to avoid. This topic is about Mental Disorders. More specifically, anxiety, as it is the basis for most Mental Disorders.

Is it real? Do you guys believe it exists? Is this really ‘Mind over Matter’ as they say? I would like to hear your opinions.

I personally have had symptoms of Anxiety and Depression. After a significant amount of stressful situations add up, there is a moment in my life where I experience textbook symptoms of these disorders, take a step back from life and regroup. I’m sure many of you have had experiences like these as well. I’m not looking for facts to this. I have researched and read them all. I would like to know what you believe.

[GypsyElder]

Ti's funny that this is brought up now.

Let me just give a few of my general beliefs on this.

The first, is that almost anyone can experience the main symptoms of any of these common disorders. Also, online or (most research for that matter) that can be conducted on these disorders can make any person believe that they suffer from everything. I've researched a bit myself since, since the end of 2010, I thought I might have GAD (Generalized Anxiety ) and, for the most part, descriptions are extremely broad and can apply to f*cking sea anemones.

Anyway...I think that if there is a problem with either, there shouldn't be question about it. When you start shaking, sweating and frantically freaking out on a regular basis for no apparent reason to the point of feeling doomed and can't go anywhere because of it, there's definitely an issue, because it completely halts your ability to go about daily life.

For depression, the problem with diagnosing it is that every person seems to experience their own highs and lows. What people don't realize, I think, is that that "severe" depression and or to be legitimately diagnosed with it goes far beyond what most people might think is their lowest low. Basically a person shouldn't be concerned about having a depression related disorder unless it literally inhibits their ability to function and or [thoughts of self harm (<--this is debatable)]. Also, I think being able to measure the severity of depression a person experiences is almost impossible without some kind of concrete side effect to base it on.

Do they exist? yes. Does everyone who is diagnosed with one really have one? hell no.

[NikkiLinkle]

When it comes to depression and anxiety, I believe that nearly everyone will experience it at some point in their life, whether it be mild or severe. Depression doesn't have to make you not want to get out of bed, in order for it to be depression. You can still function in society and have depression.

I don't have much intellectual things to say, but I'll put in my two cents.

I myself was diagnosed with mild depression when I was 16, I went to the doctor, the first thing they did was prescribe medication and I also went to a psychologist. At the time I didn't want to take medication and the psychologist was good in a way, but it didn't cure me of my issues. I also tried cognitive brain therapy, which in theory makes sense. You have to try and retrain yourself to react to situations that upset you differently. Like, I fail at everything. Why do you fail at everything? Have you tried everything? No. Well how can you be a failure at EVERYTHING if you haven't even tried everything. It's basically trying to convince yourself that you are just being overdramatic.

I'm 24 now, and while I'm ok to a point, I still struggle with a few things. Mostly my appearance and my lack of desire and I'm currently struggling with finding a meaning for myself. I find myself caught in this bubble, that takes me a while to get myself out of. I usually have to have a sleep in order to reset myself to a normal state of mind. But lately I've been really considering trying medication.

Can anyone tell me if it works? I've always been wary of anti-depressants. But I actually feel like I may have a chemical imbalance. Which is another point to think about, what are mental disorders caused by? Is it a chemical imbalance, is it a situational thing or is it just a part of being human, or is it just a way to cop out of life for a few years and hide behind? I know of people who use their mental disorders to check out of life. Not willingly I hope. But their are people who find it hard to function. I do feel for them. A lot of people might shrug those people off, but it's such a complex thing.

[GypsyElder]

@ Nilkki
When I say it interrupts a persons ability to function it does not have to be physical. Obviously for depression, not every person is gonna go out and cut themselves or become a house hermit, since just as depression has its lowest low which is severe, there is a highest high which would probably be mania, so yeah there are ranges. ( ex. Bipolar, which includes both extremes or just one etc.) that's why it's so complicated.

I think a good amount of depression/ anxiety disorders are chemical imbalances, but luckily you can just get checked for that without having to play the guessing game.

I noticed that antidepressants are diagnosed for a ton of stuff now. I don't think it will hurt to try it and see if it makes a noticeable difference.BUT, Imo, if you think you have an issue, you should go and see if you qualify for referral. Any general practitioner can just throw out some antidepressants, but if there's a real problem there, you might need an actual psychologist.

My one and a half cent (s).

[Quistis]

I've had two bouts of what I can officially call depression in my life so far. I did not seek a doctor for them though but I know that if I did, I would be prescribed something.

I've had thoughts of suicide on the first one (bad breakup), I dunno what prevented me from doing it, must be my own faith and just the overall realization that my family needs me to support them. It went on months of me just being a zombie. The depression lasted prolly a year but it gradually died off as I just mindlessly went through the day and deliberately obssessed myself with trivial things (gaming).

The latter one was me not being motivated to do anything. I dont like anything and although there are no suicidal feelings, waking up and facing the next day felt like a chore (like asking yourself 'Why oh why did I wake up?'). At the same time, there was nothing particularly depressing in my life so that one boggled me. You've heard of me talk about this in the last couple of months which I thought was a seasonal disorder.

On both occasions, I got better on my own but this doesn't mean to say that I am shunning those who seek medication/treatment. The thing is, people have different pain tresholds and situations in life. I was lucky enough to have the support group around me on the second one and the fact that I cared for my family enough to not take away my own life on the first one.

My opinion is that. Yes, depression can go away overtime on its own but some people are in danger to harming themselves before that time passes that they need the extra help to get through it.

I hope that makes sense.

[Unknown Entity]

They definitely exist, but not everyone who is diagnosed with one actually has one. What you have to remember is that metal illness isn't fully understood and I highly doubt anyone will be able to come to solid conclusions from studying it because everyone is different (not saying it's a pointless study at all, just I doubt that there will be any conclusions any time soon).

I've had friends and family members who have been diagnosed with depression. That makes me no expert on them whatsoever, but through observation it was not made better with medication. I believe was medication that led them deeper into depression - I think it's the last straw for people, and the very fact that they need pills to enhance or numb human emotion is even more depressing. My step dad tried to kill himself last year after months of taking anti-depressants which just seemed to turn him into a zombie, completely void of emotion. When he came out of hospital, he stopped taking them and eventually came to smile without effort at a joke we'd make.

My theory was that he wasn't even suffering from depression in the first place, but was depressed about something in his life at the time that made him think that way. He saw the tablets as his last piece of string to cling onto life, but all they did was numb him into thinking he may as well be dead.

I know there's lack of motivation associated with depression, but no one really tries to pull themselves out of the void. That's the one thing about it that frustrates me. It's procrastination - the longer you leave something, the worse it gets. Saying "Ah, fack it," to the dishes one day leads to you having more dishes in a few days. I think it's the same with emotion. The longer you feel depressed, the more depressed and bitter you become about everything. It happens with every foul mood, and it is hard to come back from, but there is a damn point when you can slap yourself out of it and move on. It's usually as simple as asking for help, but by the time you realise, you've lost all motivation to try and ask.

Jeese, depressing bunch we are lol. Depression isn't the only mental disorder. /jest. Seriously. I'll come back with more next time it's not 4:30am.

[Heartless Angel]

There are definitely real cases of depression which could actually be considered a Disorder rather than simply being unhappy with good reason. But these days, you can walk into a doctor's office, tell him you're depressed and he;ll toss you a scrip for some antidepressants. It's usually not LITERALLY that bad, but damn near. Especially here in the U.S, the solution to EVERYTHING is some kinda damn pill.

I've been 'diagnosed' with antisocial peronsality disorder myself, I put that in gigantic air quotes when I say it, because as Gypsy pointed out, pretty much EVERYONE has at some point satisifed all the conditions for an overwhelming majority of personality orders listed in the DSM-IV. By the same standards, I can 'diagnose' my dogs with the same antisocial personality disorder. I do believe I'm a sociopath, doctors have agreed with this, but again, I could make the same diagnosis for my dogs.

[Pete]

I think that they definitely exist, but I also think that a lot of people also kind of ham it up for either attention or just your typical "I'm sad, so I'm so morbidly depressed" types.

For sure, there are several instances where people are actually depressed, in that zombie like state that Quistis brought up. That happens and it's very real. That is the state where your mind and body collectively say **** it, and you mope around, struggling to get out of bed and really do anything. It's not just someone being sad for a day or two, and it's not that typical human feeling of being sad or disappointed when something bad happens. Those reactions are perfectly normal and acceptable.

There's really so many different directions to go in with something like this, but I suppose I'll answer the main question given. I think that it can really go both ways, when it comes to a mind over matter situation. Yes, there are situations where you can just occupy your mind and kind of power through a shitty situation by keeping your mind occupied and not entirely dealing with it. But, by doing that you're not really experiencing the thing that is the cause of everything. It's also kind of a backwards way to deal with things; like "I'll ignore anything that negatively affects me." I feel like by doing that you really negate your own human element from your experiences.

I also think that too many people are too quick to judge themselves as depressed. Sometimes things happen in life that do indeed make you sad. Being sad about something is a normal reaction to something that would make you sad. Now, if you cry because they ran out of frappuccino mix at Starbucks, then there's a problem. That's either a show of real immaturity or perhaps some real crazy, like final straw depression.

Other things like SAD, to me are bullshit. Yes, it sucks in the winter. It's cold out, you can't really do a lot, there's not a lot of sun, you can't go to the beach and all of that fun summer stuff, but that's a natural occurrence. Everyone hates the winter; the drug companies just made up a disorder for it to pump lemmings full of happy pills.

I think I'm gonna stop now before I go off on any more tangents. Long story short, yes depression is real, but at the same time, I don't think a lot of people are clinically depressed. They might be bummed out about any number of things. Depression is ultimately a feeling of hopelessness, worthlessness and despair. Being sad is just a little more than a feeling of "something bad happened and now I don't feel happy." Being sad is where you don't wanna get out of bed, where depression is being unable to will your body to get out of bed, because "what's the point?"

[Clint]

Anxiety is not an actual mental disorder. Its a behavioral condition. The thing about this disorder is that there's nothing actually wrong with you. If you're stressed or worried for prolonged periods of time, you unconsciously train your brain to respond to stimuli with an immense level of anxiety.

Although anxiety isn't an actual mental disorder, it is a mental and physical disability. In regards to mental disorder, anxiety is more often then not a symptom of various illnesses. It causes your entire body to dramatically overreact. Anxiety can get so bad that it can cause mental disorder. If your heart rate is elevated due to anxiety, it will cause some form of insomnia. Lack of sleep over an extended period of time has a very, very negative influence on the brain. It can cause things like hallucinations, temporary schizophrenia, and depression.

Why anxiety is not a mental disorder is because it doesn't need to be cured through clinical means. It'll go away on its own as soon as you reset your mind to behave normally again. Usually that involves just getting rid of stimuli that influences stress.

Depression is a mental disorder, unlike anxiety. Depression, if bad enough, can actually shut your body down and kill you. Anxiety will just get you sick and make you go insane. The mental disorder anxiety causes is the real problem.

Though it seems that any mental disorder stemming from the root of anxiety are all natural symptoms of stress. Anxiety is considered a mental disorder by the DSM and ICD, even though it's more of a symptom of a bigger issue, so that makes me wonder why stress, and it's various categories, aren't considered mental disorders as well.

People focus too much on the condition, like depression or anxiety, and not enough on the actual cause. Anxiety is a symptom of most mental disorders, yet stress is the main cause and symptom of all anxiety disorders. Stress is the true killer.