Posted by cubbybear on October 8, 2003, at 2:14:02
In reply to Re: depression relapse, posted by truman on October 7, 2003, at 20:31:47
I've read in many places that the odds of a relapse increase substantially with each succeeding relapse. That's certainly been the case with me. After my initial depressive episode in 1984, I tried an AD "holiday" "but relapsed after a few months. I tried one or two more times to live without the AD (Parnate), but there was always a relapse--triggered by stress surrounding a negative event at work, with family or in my social life. If two or more stressors occurred together or back to back while I was on a drug holiay, it became a near certainty that I'd drop down into the black hole again. I've come to realize after 20 years that this is a chronic, lifetime condition. No more drug holidays. I take the Parnate every day and accept my fate as a neurological or chemical imbalance, analogous to diabetes or a hormonal abnormality. It's nice to try and be a hero, but we also have to be realistic about our imperfections.
poster:cubbybear
thread:266086
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031004/msgs/266648.html