Beat Your Depression

If you owned an automobile that was low on engine oil each week when you checked the oil level what would you do about it?

Would you just keep on topping up the oil to the correct level each week? Or would you find out what was causing the level of engine oil to be low and take appropriate action to remedy the situation?

You may find that there is a leaking seal or gasket that is the cause of the engine oil disappearing. This could be easy to detect by looking at the pavement below the engine after the automobile has been parked there for a while. Or the engine may have worn piston rings that need to be replaced, along with other mechanical procedures. This can be usually very noticeable by the clouds of gray smoke that exude from the exhaust pipe.

Another way of looking at this is that you find that there is a lot of oil accumulating on the pavement beneath where you park your automobile. You then discover that the oil level is low and this leads you to take the vehicle to a mechanic who will invariably find and fix the leak.

In the second instance you notice clouds of smoke coming from your exhaust pipe. You then discover that the oil level is low and this leads you to take the vehicle to a mechanic who will invariably find and replace the worn parts.

In either case you can make an informed decision about how to treat the problem once you have found the root cause of the problem. Topping up the oil level is only a temporary measure at best.

Now let’s look at anti-depressants and their role.

It is the contemporary “establishment” belief that depression, and similar disorders, are caused by chemical imbalances in the brain. The chemical referred to is usually serotonin, a neurotransmitter, that aids in the transmission of certain signals between adjacent nerves. When the level of serotonin drops a person can display signs and have symptoms associated with depression. Thus the argument that depression is caused by chemical imbalances in the brain.

If this is true then it could also be argued that happiness is caused by chemical imbalances in the brain. This is because activities such as singing, dancing, listening to pleasant music, exercise, sex, being grateful for the good things that abound, and laughing can lead to an increase [imbalance] of the hormone beta-endorphin, the body’s natural opiate, that brings on feelings of happiness.

Could it possibly be that it is natural for the chemicals [hormones] in our brains to be in a state of flux, depending on the prevailing circumstances? I believe this to be the case as it is inappropriate to be happy, and natural to be sad, at the loss of a loved one through death or because of a breakdown in a relationship. Similarly, there are times, such as when at a celebration, when it is not appropriate to be sad.

Anyhow, let us go along with the “establishment” thinking that depression is caused by an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. Then would it not be wise to determine what causes the chemical imbalances and remedy the problem rather than treating the signs and symptoms? This makes sense to me.

However, the “establishment” view appears to be to prescribe anti-depressant medication alone in many cases without looking for alternate methods to resume normal behavior.

When we discontinue pursuits that cause us to be happy, we eventually return to a state of mind where we are close to being neither happy nor sad. Similarly, over time we will progress from being depressed to being neither happy nor sad, unless we continue doing things, or thinking things that lead us to being depressed. Being happy or being depressed are emotions and emotions are usually the result of how we think or our state of mind.

Therefore if we change our thinking, or state of mind, we can change our emotions! We can then choose to be happy or sad. A great book to read on this subject is the old masterpiece, “As a Man Thinketh.”

A collection of books that proved very useful to my recovery from depression is the “Total Success Library” where there are a number of books on various subjects that assist in the development of our self-esteem and outlook on the challenges that life puts forward. The price that I paid for this collection was far outweighed by the amount of money that I saved on anti-depressants.