Posted by Bruce on August 25, 1999, at 6:56:04
After reading books, articles, etc., I am still confused as to how inhibiting reuptake of a neurotransmitter actually increases the signal strength of that neurotransmitter, the method by which Antidepressants presumably work.
You start off with very little transmitter in the synaptic clef, and a bunch of sensitive receptors. You add the drug, and the amount of transmitter increases (due to reuptake inhibition), but the recptors downregulate (decrease in number). So, it looks like wash to me: the signal strength stays about the same. So how do you get better?
Since ADs do work, I must be missing a piece of the whole story. If anyone out there can point me to a web article or a book, or answer in this forum, I'd love to hear from you.
Thanks,
Bruce
poster:Bruce
thread:10655
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/19990814/msgs/10655.html