Tag: Moods

Antidepressants And Their Side Effects

Antidepressant medications can often help depression sufferers. However, they do have side effects and some can be dangerous. Before starting any antidepressant medication, it is a good idea to consult with your doctor so you can weigh the benefits and the risks. Sometimes antidepressant meds are not the solution because of the side effects.

Depression is most often caused by lower levels of serotonin in the brain. Antidepressants raise these levels back to their state of normalcy. While it is true that there are many studies that contradict the theory of depression being caused by a chemical imbalance, they have yet to figure out exactly what is the cause.

Serotonin levels cannot be measured, so researchers do not know what a normal level is. All they know is that something causes the serotonin levels to decrease and there are drugs to reverse this. Some studies have shown that moods and depression do not always worsen when the individuals serotonin levels are reduced. Also in question is the fact that antidepressants take several weeks to start having an effect, yet it only takes a few hours for the same medications to raise serotonin levels. It would make sense that a depressed person should feel better in a few hours, not a few weeks.

Researchers are starting to realize that depression involves more than a chemical imbalance in the brain. While lower serotonin levels appear to be one of the causes, they are also finding that elevated stress levels, inflammation, nutritional deficiencies, shrinking brain cells, suppressing immune systems and abnormal activity in the brain are surfacing as causes. There are also many psychological and social factors that have an effect as well.

Antidepressant medication has proven to be effective when treating depression. It has also shown to cause side effects in approximately 50% of the people that take them. Medication should only be prescrib3ed when the symptoms of depression are severe. In most cases of mild depression, exercise, changes to diet, and therapy can work just as effectively.

The most prescribed types of antidepressants are called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). These medications are commonly known as Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Celexa, Luvox, and Lexapro. SSRIs are responsible for increasing serotonin levels in the brain.

Serotonin is responsible for regulating mood and helps with pain, sleep, digestion, and mental clarity. Due to these roles, SSRIs come with a large range of side effects such as nausea, anxiety, insomnia, decreased sex drive, sweating, sleepiness, dizziness, dry mouth, headaches, and weight gain/loss. The most common of these side effects are lowered sex drive, sleepiness, insomnia, and nausea. These side effects usually go away within a few weeks. Sometimes though, they remain and even can get worse.

Some of the newer drugs on the market such as Wellbutrin and Effexor are called atypical antidepressants because they affect other neurotransmitters as well as serotonin. The side effects of these drugs are less severe and include nausea, fatigue, weight gain, nervousness, and dry mouth.

Regardless of which medication path the doctor prescribes, always weigh the benefits against the risks to make sure the chosen medication is right for you.

By Experiencing New Things in your Life your Brain will

By Experiencing New Things in your Life your Brain will be Healthier

Most people feel very comfortable with their daily routine. They know what will be taking place for the most part because it is so similar day after day. While it can feel comfortable to live like that your brain may be on auto pilot for much of it. If you want your brain to be healthier then you need to start experiencing new things. It can be as simple as taking a different route to get to work in the morning than you have for the past 7 years.

If you always read romance novels, pick up a good mystery and see how well you like it. You just might find that you have found a passion for something like this that you didnt even know existed before. Turn your favorite radio station to a channel that plays another type of music for a week. In that span of time you may have a new found appreciation for it. You may have learned the lyrics to some top hits as well that are in heavy rotation on that radio station channel.

A chemical called dopamine is produced in the brain. This is a natural substance that helps with moods. The more dopamine you produce the happier you will be. Research has shown that when the brain is exposed to new images and new experiences that it will begin to make more dopamine. As a result the ability to retain information about such events both in the short term memory and the long term memory are improved upon.

You can offer yourself some new challenges as well. For example instead of renting the newest movie on the top ten list rent a documentary on a subject you arent familiar with. There will likely be a great deal of learning by the time you are done viewing it. You may have some questions as well that trigger your desire to find out more information about the subject.

New social experiences are a good idea too if you want a healthier brain. For example if you usually go to casual restaurants get dressed up and go out to one that is fancy. If you usually drive in the city take a cab or ride the bus. Allow your mind and your eyes to take in everything around you including the people and the scenery. Since you wont have to keep your eyes on the road the brain is going to be more receptive to things you likely overlooked on that same commute before.

As we experience new things our brain is learning and it is processing. This awakens a part of it that may have been dormant for a long time based on your same old routine. You will also find that you look forward to each new day when you have some adventure to look towards. You can experience new things on a small scale at first to get yourself comfortable with it. Then you can move on to larger ones like traveling to a foreign country or learning a new language.

The fact that your brain can continue to change and to build new neurological paths is very interesting. Dont waste the ability you have though to allow it to experience more than it has. Life is really too short to spend it doing the same things day after day. You will find you are happier overall when you add some adventures to your life.

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Lifestyle Habits that will Assist you with Maintaining a Healthy

Lifestyle Habits that will Assist you with Maintaining a Healthy Mind

Taking care of our body is important because we want to have a long and happy life. Taking care of the mind is equally important and that is why you will find so many messages out there about brain exercises and finding new ways to think. In order to gain the most from these forms of activities though you need to take a close look at your lifestyle habits. If you take part in those that are preventing your brain from being as healthy as possible then now is the time to stop.

Too much stress is very damaging to the brain as a whole. When you are under too much stress you arent going to be able to focus you attention where it needs to be. You will also not be in the best of moods to encourage your mind to develop positive memories from various situations. When you have too much stress your brain produces large amounts of cortisol as well. This can make you feel very sluggish and it can cloud your judgment.

Getting adequate rest is another area where may people dont make the grade. It can be hard to get everything done in a single day that we need to. People tend to take on more and more these days. Yet you do have to take care of your basic needs properly if you want to accomplish anything the next day. A healthy mind starts with getting enough sleep each night. Try to get into a routine of going to sleep at the same time and waking up at the same time each day. This will help your mind to be well rested for what it needs to process when you are awake.

Making a commitment to exercise at least 30 minutes each day is also important. You want to do this for your physical health. However, it is also going to impact your brain and your mental well being. Dont make excuses that you cant find the time to do it. Make sure you know your own fitness level and that you dont go beyond that.

When you take part in physical exercise more oxygen gets to the brain. This will create chemicals that protect the brain cells. As a result you will be less likely to suffer from mental health problems and memory loss. You will also have a better attitude and more energy.

Avoid common harmful activities such as consuming alcohol and smoking cigarettes. Both of them will reduce the amount of oxygen that gets to the brain. As you make a commitment to eliminate such lifestyle choices from your daily routine you will find that your efforts to maintain a healthy mind are going in the right direction.

Take a close and personal assessment of your own habits and lifestyle. Make those changes that need to be in place so that you are going to live a long and healthy life. Too many people dont think these aspects of their live really matter but they definitely do. There is plenty of scientific evidence to show that when these elements arent in place it is harder to maintain a healthy mind. You may be trying your best in some areas but without all of them there will be key pieces of the puzzle missing.

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Acquainting Yourself with Bipolar Disorder

This interesting article addresses some of the key issues regarding bipolar. A careful reading of this material could make a big difference in how you think about bipolar.

A person with bipolar disorder experiences the best and worst of both worlds. Like two – face from Batman. It can be a psychological disorder that progress without warning.

Imagine being confronted by a person with the happiest personality and then suddenly, without any reason, he diminishes to a lower aura and starts to cry.

The extremes that are associated with someone who is bipolar are ranging from an attitude of recklessness to listlessness. This kind of instability of moods can grow into a poker-faced problem that greatly affects the person who has the disorder and the people around him as well.

Other terms for this lucidity boggling disease are manic – depressive or manic – depression illness. Both extremes are experienced and exhibited by the person suffering from it.

Mood swings that are caused by this disorder can last for a couple of weeks or even months if not sold care of. This big of behavior can cause monster disturbance to the lives of friends, family and whoever is close to the person.

According to researches, there is a major occurrence of this uncontrolled behavior across variety of symptoms and can affect almost everyone in the group.

Sadly, this disease is not diagnosed accordingly which is not very helpful and most often, people misconstrued this kind of behavior as somewhat ordinary. Untreated, this attitude complication worsens and results to high tendencies of suicidal rates.

Although, if diagnosed and treated at an early stage, people who suffers from this disease can enjoy a life worth living.

What is the create of bipolar disorder?

Nowadays, the exact cause of the mood disorder is unknown. Although there are beliefs that it can be connected within the family down from their bloodline.

Usually, people who are diagnosed with the sickness tends to have a relative who further suffers from it as well or somewhat complementary conditions. Voguish science believes that other probable causes that can enter on someone to experience the disorder are:

Environmental effects. In some way, the persons environment can take the blame for suffering the psychological disease. Factors may include severe problems with peers, family, and the conforming; other elaborates the stressful situations that are surrounding the person. A loss of a loved one can also be unequaled of the environmental causes.

Chemical effects. Studies have shown the indications of chemical within the body made the power function differently. Significant changes may still be uncertain but in an final process, may help in pinpointing the causes. Hormonal imbalances and neurotransmitters are also being accepted as one of the chemical causes.

Based on statistical findings, there are about three million Americans who suffer from this psychological disorder. Individuals who experience this illness will experience humour swings that are extreme joined with multiple behaviors and symptoms. Mood swings are oftentimes categorized as depressive episodes, manic episodes and mixed episodes.

Depressive episode symptoms are:

Extreme feeling of sadness or emptiness Lack of cardinal energy Lack of interest in important things Decreased concentration Imaginary thoughts about suicide or dying

Manic episode symptoms are:

Elevation of extreme mood swings Extreme anxiousness and irritability Talking in a fastmanner Unusual energy increase with a reduced need to sleep

Mixed episode symptoms are basically the combination of the depressive and manic episode symptoms.

Bipolar disorder can be evident in teenagers although, licensed are studies showing cases prevalent in children and adults.
The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about bipolar.