Posted by med_empowered on September 1, 2005, at 3:44:57 [reposted on September 3, 2005, at 3:18:12 | original URL]
In reply to Can you make change to nuerotransmitters by act?, posted by rjlockhart98 on August 31, 2005, at 15:55:27
Hi! There's some data that indicates that therapy--these days, therapy usually means Cognitive Behavioral Therapy--can be just as useful as antidepressants for depression and some types of anxiety, sometimes more so...the downside is that therapy takes longer to work and is more expensive. The upside is that there are fewer relapse problems following therapy than following antidepressant/benzo treatment, so the effects seem to be more profound in the sense that the patient has new skills and what not. From a more sociological point of view, there's evidence that mental illness is strongly affected by external factors--social class, job status, level of social integration, etc. So, the conclusion I've come to is that while drugs do help, there are *lots* of ways to deal with emotional issues. I was reading recently on cnn.com or something that researchers are using a modified kind of cognitive behavioral therapy for schizophrenia. THe patient they interviewed still hears voices, but he isn't impaired by them; as a result, he's been able to marry, work full time, have children, etc. Plus, this doesn't have to be power of thought vs. drugs; if you work with an informed, caring professional, I'm sure you can find a way to integrate self-help, talk therapy, and any medication(s) that might help...the plus side would be that, from this perspective, medication wouldn't have to be a long-term or lifelong arrangement unless you found it necessary or desirable to continue medication. I dont mean to put down anyone who focuses on medication for their issues, I just think that its always good to explore options and pursue what looks best for the individual. As for changing brain structure with thought...the old idea of the brain, which was that the brain didn't grow cells or change much, is pretty much over. Long-term meditation can change brain structure, as can learning new things, such as practicing the violin. This doesn't mean that meds aren't useful or that some people won't do just fine by simply adding meds to their current lifestyle, but it does mean that there are lots of options when it comes to improving ones life and dealing with any problems you may experience. I think you should definitely try to work on your thinking patterns, if you think that will make your life better...whether you should do this to the exclusion of professional talk therapy and/or medications is entirely up to you. Whatever you decide, please keep us all posted, and I wish you the best of luck.
poster:med_empowered
thread:550197
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20050901/msgs/550203.html