Posted by TamaraJ on May 26, 2005, at 14:43:45
In reply to I only believe I suffer from depression because., posted by Denise1966 on May 26, 2005, at 7:32:41
Hi,
Well, I am certainly no expert, but I would think that if you took an antidepressant a long time ago and it took all the symptoms (of depression I assume) away, then you probably had a chemical imbalance which caused a depression. Some people experience recurrent depressive episodes, but I don't think a recurrence is the result of past antidepressant use. My older brother used an antidepressant many years ago, but has never experienced another depression since stopping the AD.
As for stigma, sadly, yes, I think there will always, to some degree, be a stigma associated with depression and mental illness. Education and advocacy, I think, is, and will continue to be, important to reducing and eliminating the stigma. That being said, I think there are many compassionate people who recognize that depression is not the sign of a weak person. I experienced my first depression 9 years ago, and my boss at the time said something to me that surprised me. He said (not exact words obviously) something like "depression is an illness, a medical condition, caused by a chemical imbalance. You have not control over it, and there is no more reason to be embarrassed or ashamed than if you had something like cancer.". I know I was fortunate to have such an open-minded and understanding boss. I also work with people who have been through, and continue to struggle with, mental illness, including depression. Even before I experienced my first depression (I was in my mid-30s at the time), I never thought any of my friends or colleagues who had suffered from depression were weak and looking for an easy choice.
Tamara
> I only believe I suffer from depression because once a long time ago I took a so called antidepressant and it took all the symtoms away that had been bugging me for years. That's it.
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> Who's to say I suffer from a chemical inbalance or anybody else on this board, when are we going to start seeing some proof, some evidence because as long as there istn't any there will always be a stigma associated with depression. And there will always be that niggling doubt that maybe I'm just a weak person who opted for the easy choice.
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> Denise
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poster:TamaraJ
thread:503089
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050521/msgs/503222.html