I’m not sure when pharmaceutical companies started marketing that a “chemical imbalance” is the cause of depression. Either way, this is a great marketing ploy that really gets people to believe that if they are feeling “depressed,” it must be a result of a natural chemical imbalance. In reality, most people do not likely have …
There is a newer class of antidepressant drugs called Triple Reuptake Inhibitors (TRI’s or SNDRI drugs) being developed that target all major neurotransmitters involved in depression: serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine. The thought process behind the creation of this new class of triple reuptake inhibitors is that they will target all three major neurotransmitters that are thought …
Norepinephrine also sometimes referred to as “noradrenaline” works as both a hormone and neurotransmitter. It helps promote vigilant concentration and is different from dopamine in the fact that dopamine has a greater influence on cognition. When you become stressed, norepinephrine is secreted by the sympathetic nervous system which leads to an increased amount of heart …
Most people that are depressed end up trying antidepressants. One major problem associated with these medications is that while they may alleviate depression, they can cause people to gain a significant amount of weight. Due to the weight gain associated with SSRIs, people are searching for alternatives so that they don’t become fat from taking …
Approximately 1 out of 4 people that take antidepressants experience weight gain as a side effect. The weight gain may be minor, but over time, gaining a pound here and there all adds up. Many people have reported that there’s nothing they can really do to control the weight that they gain while on an …
Many people that take antidepressants, specifically SSRI’s (selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors), find out that they have abnormally low testosterone. So what does this all mean? Did the initial low testosterone lead the individual to become depressed and go on an antidepressant? Or did the treatment with an antidepressant actually slowly reduce the individual’s natural ability to …
Based on the symptoms experienced as a result of lower levels of dopamine, it is thought that dopamine plays just as big of a role as serotonin in treating depression. Why then are medications used to treat depression primarily dealing with targeting serotonin only? Because people have been brainwashed by pharmaceutical companies? Maybe. It could …