Yeah depression has been shown to increase in winter months in areas with less light. The further from the equator, the more the cases seem to increase. There was a good article in the either the last Scientific American or New Scientist, but i cant remember which one.

You've got you're regular low-sunlight increase in depressive behavior, then you have SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) that seems to be based almost solely on the sunlight thing. I often wonder how much of this they're just making up (not really, but it seems that way) as opposed to what they can really treat. Put it this way for me, my Xanax treats my PD symptoms much more effectively than my Prozac treats my depression symptoms. It chips into it, and, basically, I'm tired of trial and error and the haunting of my dick in the process as a side effect. Plus Wellbutrin f'ed me up pretty well.

Yeh, dem Laplanders are a fucking mess, I tell ya.

Cure: Introduce them to the ray of funshine that is Ish.

Dude, suicide rates in Northern Europe are significantly higher than in other parts of the world. I'll find some research.

I should say 'stats' here

northern canada beats that easily. (not that this is a contest or anything)



source


more info here

yeah, that furthers my point. not a European, but latitude thing.

If penguins and polar bears could hold pistols, they'd be extinct.

What a depressing conversation.

Perhaps she should try Panexa. (Make sure and read the fine print.)

But if that were the only thing, Eskimos would have finished themselves off eons ago. Latitude is definitely a factor, but I think there's a Western culture mandate to have the same level productivity throughout the year even though the rest of the natural world doesn't work that way.

Sorry about your friend, TT. I really can't suggest anything more than what's already been listed.

Deep rest is the only cure for the depressed.

I've battled depression for the last 17 years. I refused to take anti-depressants for several years at first. My triggers were (are) alcohol (if too much) and sickness, or anything that lowered my mental capacities. I would get stuck every time I dipped low.

In college, I found that talking with a therapist did help me a lot, but I think that was because I just found the right therapist. I had tried it before and it didn't help before him. I started taking Prozac and it worked, but I kept thinking that I didn't need the drugs once I started feeling better. Prozac had too many side-effects for me, so I switched to Celexa. I am still on Celexa and it works extremely well for me. I just had to accept the fact that I need the medication to maintain the right chemical balance.

Also, the comments about exercise and diet being big contributors are right on.

I think Eskimos do have high suicide rates but ill have to check. I believe the only anomaly is Iceland, in fact.

Edit: It's people of Icelandic descent, not just living in Iceland -

" The authors report that people of wholly Icelandic descent living in Winnipeg, Manitoba, show significantly lower rates of seasonality than do residents of non-Icelandic decent" (from Canadian Psychiatry Association)

Edit 2:" In 2000, the suicide rate among Alaska Natives was roughly four times the national average, at 42.9 suicides per 100,000 people . For Alaska Native males, it was more than six times the national average, or 68.5 per 100,000 people" (from CNN.com)

Not to make light of a serious subject, but I got this in an email a few minutes ago...



www.fukitol.com

fp

I didn't realize Robin Williams came up with that. He knows a thing or two about mental instability.

"Depression" (NOT a good name for this condition): the most profound experience of my life.

At one point should one seek out therapy or drug treatment? That line has always been very undefined to me.

Much as I've ever learned about this in clincal classes, it's seems still a subjective point. The line likely varies, but at the point at which it is seriously interfering with one's day to day life (e.g. can no longer function on a job). Basically, when you're coping skills have been exhausted and the person's behaviour has become so maladaptive that interevention is necessary. Every time my mother has sought help, she's done so at the behest of the family. Sometimes when you down that far, you just can't see it.

I agree, you just kind of reach a point where you know your options are starting to dwindle, and you reach that fork as to which way you want to go and sometimes its your friends/family who push you (in a good way).