You know what? I went back and read the original posters question and you are correct. He left the question open for you to respond the way you did. I initially read it as a plea for help dealing with it and that made you look like a complete douchapotamus... but he was asking for opinions about it and not actually suffering from it. My bad yo, I should take time to read thoroughly before setting phasers to kill. I still disagree with your opinions on depression though :grin:
He asked for opinions and he got one. No need for flogging. Some people just like screaming and are more apt to do it if publicly acceptable, much less encouraged.
Man the cutting thing really worries me. Usually that is associated with emotional, physical, and sexual abuse. And yes people who have been emotionally, physically, and sexually abused can have depression from dealing with the things that people have done to them. I haven't read the thread cause of swolys trolling, but that is my 2 cents.
I don't get why a topic like this needs to seem complicated and have only polar views. I liken depression to obesity. 1. There is a percentage of the population genetically born to the above as a disease, of whom require treatment in the form of actual medical intervention. 2. Your body can develop the disease through conditioned reinforcement overtime, like having a certain diet or habitually having conscious anxiety ridden reactions. At this point, chemical/hormonal becomes the mechanical norm and you require medical intervention. 3. For the majority of cases, 2 is most common but hasn't reached that degree yet. In this sense, I agree with Slowly. If you take the majority of people suffering with depression, put them in a highly socialized community, give them socioeconomic pressures and change their cultural perspectives, most wouldn't have time or means to aggravate their growing disease. Take the obese or depressed in America and throw them into a SE Asian community for 5 years without much cash. My opinion - after five years, the majority of them would be completely "cured."
The severity of the cuts and the age of the person involved weren't mentioned from what I saw. That said it's something that people do when they are under extreme emotional stress. There is something else that is clearly going on with this person and it's not just some sort of simple chemical imbalance.
Its funny Swoly can get all butthurt over racist words but can't even man up over his mistake with a real issue affecting millions of people. You're not fooling anybody good senior amigo senior. This topic has gone wayyy left field. The answer to questions regarding depression:get professional help. Stay skeptical and do your research. Its usually better finding people in your condition who want to get better than solely relying on a man who can write pills.
I'll ignore all the idiocy in this thread (swoly) and just offer this: I was a counselor in an inpatient psych hospital for several years. Now I'm an RN at an inpatient psych hospital. I've seen plenty of psych patients when I worked ER and ICU as well....people who've opened veins, cut their own throats, overdosed, comatose and brain-dead after a hanging attempt, jaundiced so badly they look like Oompa-Loompas after a Tylenol/acetaminophen overdose as they die there (painfully) from liver failure, you name it and I've seen it and I've worked with it. I've worked with hundreds of people suffering from varying degrees of various mental illnesses. And depression is real. Period. The self-harm is symptomatic, and it is serious. If you love your cousin, OP, be supportive and help him help himself. When the seriousness of such things is disregarded, the mentally ill person feels that, and it proves all of their already-negative self-thought to be correct in their minds. In other words, they already feel helpless and hopeless, and their familial support system minimizing both them and their condition exacerbates the condition. Best of luck to you and yours.
first off...moestavern19, you are not dealing with this without drugs. You are self-medicating. Which is fine. mar1juana is a fine drug for this. Just don't say you chose to not use drugs. I was also going to say to Batman Jones that while I am in 100% agree with you, you seem on a crusade that you can't win. Don't bother trying to convince people. Then I read this... I don't know. I don't know what to say...and I've somewhat given up. My role is not to convince anyone of anything. This thread isn't about us, it's about the OP's cousin and helping the OP. Lynus302 just said it perfectly "If you love your cousin, OP, be supportive and help him help himself. " But my sister would chime in on that, for sure. "He needs to help himself at some point." Batman Jones does have a point that sometimes to help in the grand scheme you have to expose falsehoods. He also exposes himself and tells his own truth. That is the best we can do. Then you decide. Batman Jones is such an inspirational guy, that I'll tell my story and you decide. I'll keep it short. maybe... In a family of 8, with a child molester dad to my sisters, you can say the major depression that took over one of my brothers (as a witness) was genetic or nature. I can also tell you that we all looked at him as being a loser, when growing up, because we all didn't talk about it, because my dad was a doctor in a small town and one of the most influential assholes around. We held onto the notion that it was a chemical imbalance...looking for a reason. In reality, he was the only one to manifest like that life long, while my sisters hid it, yet went through it. We held onto to that notion that he was just a chemical imbalance person, so we didn't have to face it ourselves. I took at job in the '90s at an Mental Healthcare HMO, as programmer, I don't even know why except I really liked the CEO and the head nurse. At that point I was dating a woman with a major depressive sister, which affected our relationship. I read the DSM IV like a bible, and had many case workers to explain cases to me. I feel Lynus302 and Batman Jones know more about this than me... Please understand if someone is diagnosed as "Major Depression" this is not depression. That is why the DSM IV adds "Major" to it. One thing I learned about drugs from my brother explaining it over the years and nurses and my oldest sister (who devotes her life to it) is often they don't know your diagnosis until they see how you respond to different drugs. For instance, paranoid schizo and Bi-polar can be nearly indistinguishable until the MD sees your response to opposite drugs. He was diagnosed as both at different times with "Major Depression" episodes as well. And of course, my brother went in and out of drugs because he hated it and self-medicated on pot for many years. Which is fine. But not sustainable, in my experience listening to him. I think my family represents the Nature argument in some way and the Nuture argument in another... But I would never say to any of my sisters or brothers or cousins to go "buck it up." I actually fear many times that I am denial of treatment. Because I'm scared. Back to the OP...don't judge your cousin, that is not your job as cousin.
hi heyp, I think I should clarify I don't mean those with genetic dispositions or those already clinically verified as having these diseases. I mean two things - one is that there are societies and cultures where obesity and depression are not as incubated due to their approach to diet and socioeconomic differences. The second is that there is a host of Americans, not yet at clinical obesity or depression, quick to point fingers to causes beyond their control so they feel catharsis of taking responsibility to change their lives (and clinics will reinforce this for sake of monetization). I post very infrequently on clutch, but several of my past posts have been about depression. I went/go through it, and I know of others that have strong forms of it, even taking medication; I do not harbor any bias against those suffering true or perceived forms of the disease. But I have also lived a good percentage of my life in various countries outside the US to know that while obesity and depression are sure to exist around the world, the degree and frequency has high variation, and is usually correlated with lifestyle, clinical imposition and social culture rather than genetic disposition. Like I said, these diseases can be created through reinforcement of certain habits, and in some countries where it hasn't been verified as clinical or genetic depression, it just doesn't happen as frequently. I feel like pointing to something like Lost in Translation as a bad example. Anyways, I'd like to hear a rebuttal why you are against my comment rather than just a quote and severe distaste for it. I personally think you read my comments and generalized for all those diagnosed with depression, but that it not the case. I'd like to know if I am misunderstanding so. I do agree however, my post isn't about the OP topic and we should focus on the original issue at hand.
I wont go into reasons but I got really depressed once upon a time and started cutting my arm, it was a release, a sort of high, it was like a drug. I really don't know why it was but it only lasted a week until i was like...wtf am i doing? Then what i did was basically say, in my case, depression is just some sort of anger, its part of life and you just have to control it. Quarantine it is what i call it. It's a, i know im depressed for whatever reason but im just gonna put that off to the side and not let those negative emotions guide my decisions. I rarely get depressed anymore since that one week, some people cant control it like that though. It was a logical approach for me that worked, some people need medication though. No matter what, Depression can be a serious issue. I went and got sleeved up to cover the scars a year after so all in all, it worked out perfect lol
I have not dealt with depression personally, but I guess my maternal grandfather had it (hard to know since he dealt with his issues in a different time but I do know he was given shock therapy and those kinds of things). I am volatile but I guess never had real depression. A different matter. I did want to say that I had a non-mental medical issue once where the doctor prescribed me an anti-depressant (Elavil) to try to "reboot" some of my nerves. It was a really low dose and only once before bed but man I hated taking it. It is not one of the SSRI's so I guess not as problematic so I can only imagine if I had to take a full dose of the stronger stuff.
I guess I was confused by your comment. I was like, but that's "crossover" we usually agree (I think.) Anyhow, yeah you don't post enough. But when you do, you drink XX's and have something to say. I probably shouldn't try to respond and just absorb your two posts above. sorry for singling out your quote. I should Swoly-Ds, but I wanted to be different. or sumpin. cheers.
Wrong again. OP: Your doctor is right to be very concerned about this. If your cousin is a teen or something, he may be acting out. But why? This is not common at all. I went to an arts high school where cutting was very rare. Those that did it are all in very rotten shape now. It is a sign of self-loathing or trauma or needing attention he is not properly receiving from friends and family.
I said in that exact post that I was preparing the vacation home for my girlfriend and that I may not be back that day. I also said I may be back and just didn't know. Same post you keep poking me for, dorkiest man alive.
