I'm just curious, is there any science to support these claims?

All I can say is that what the commentator wrote fits my 24 year old daughter to a tee. With a gene pool on the both sides of her family tree that includes schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, OCD, major depression and anxiety disorders, she remembers as early as 4th grade feeling worthless and suicidal, unbeknowst to me and her late father.

She was a much loved and wanted child who had an extremely stable/normal childhood. From day one, though, her father and I knew she was "wired" differently and because of disabling, irrational fears, hyper-reactivity and sensitivity, she/we saw a family therapist & a renowned child psychologist at 3 different times in her childhood. No drugs, just talk therapy. It helped a bit but she still struggled with anxiety & over-reactivity. We went to parenting classes, read books about "the difficult child, the underachiever and the tempermental child" and yet nothing seemed to change to help her with low self esteem and anxiety issues.

She was/is a wonderful, creative and intelligent human being, who despite our love and acceptance, didn't feel that she was a "good daughter." When her beloved Dad died suddenly & unexpectedly, she was a fragile 14 and his death was the kindling that plunged her into what first appeared to be a major depression/grief reaction, with suicide attempts, self-injury, etc. Our genetic/family history wasn't as obvious then as it is now and when she was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder several months later, we were all shocked. High school was hell, even with meds, but she graduated and went off to a local university and eventually discontinued all meds, w/o my knowledge.

She dropped out of school, made some extremely bad lifestyle choices that still affect her health today----she even did sword swallowing in a local anarchist show. The daughter who used to be terrified of weapons, knives, risk of any kind was engaged in self-destructive behavior I never could have imagined. Alcohol and pot became her meds of choice and after a couple of awful years for her and for me (I was doing this all alone,while grieving the loss of my husband, parenting partner and soulmate and being scared beyond words that I'd lose her, too), she found herself in an ER, depressed and drunk after a plunge from a manic high.

It proved to be an opportunity for her to 1) accept that her brain needed some sort of prescribed mood stabilizer and 2) work with a great psychiatrist who listened to her and very slowly and with great caution, started one med at a time. She has been alcohol and pot-free for 18 months and is currently on Lamictal and a tiny dose (2mg) of Abilify.She states that this is the most stable she's EVER felt, even going back to childhood. She advocates for herself and says "No" to her doctor if she doesn't agree with his suggestions. She is fully aware of the short-term and long-term risks of the meds she is on. She still wishes that she didn't have to take them ---she has had to deal with weight gain, acne and other body issues that would be difficult for any woman in our culture. But she knows that w/o them, her life would deteriorate again. She is even more accepting of this than me!I grieve for all she's lost. I wish she didn't have to be on meds---period.

She takes vitamins, fish oil and other supplements; she doesn't have a car and walks everywhere; she eats well and makes sure she gets enough sleep.

Working with our state's department of vocational rehab, she recently participated in the META peer support training program, got certification and will actually begin a part-time job next week in the mental wellness field. Her intelligence, empathy, personal experiences & training should be huge assets in this position.

After a decade of loss and numerous crises, our relationship is stronger than ever and I am so proud of her courage and resilience. She is wise beyond her years and is more hopeful than ever. I am, too.

Dear Sally,

“I'm just curious, is there any science to support these claims?” --- Sally

For someone like yourself who seemingly does not suffer from what these various patients and support people like I acknowledge why bother us with what you allege and declare as you’ve done elsewhere that we suffer from, “delusions.”

Do you have any words of wisdom or science to share with me to cure me and others of our similar “delusions”? “I'm just curious, is there any science to support these claims?”

Warmly,
Herb
VNSdepression.com

One thing I've noticed is that people tend to generalize about what others should do based upon their own personal experiences. Those who have found meds to be helpful, think everyone with their illness should take meds. Those who have found treatment to be ineffective or even harmful certainly see a different side. What gets lost in the debate is the individual. I was told that I would have to take meds the rest of my life, because I had a chronic disease "just like diabetes." Actually, that was not true. I'm better off meds. We need to be better about respecting each other's personal choices. There is no one size fits all answer here.

Going off my meds has always been a poor choice. I worry when there are angry posts about toxic meds but know also that some people, who if they are in the right place and have the diposition for it can make an informed choice and go med free. By far the majority, though of people I've known who have done it put themselves at risk and I speak from 30 years of experience. I am still on meds and credit them with my recovery.

I am the original author of the post that is being quoted. I certainly cannot speak for every person on whether meds are needed or not. The message that I was trying to get across was the need for treatment. Treatment does not always mean meds. Each person who is bipolar needs to be educated on all the available treatment methods. And, so do their friends and family. To med or not to med is an individual choice. I can only speak for myself about taking psych medications. I've been down the road of no-meds and it was a total nightmare not only for me but for my family.
And, in my case, I have no health insurance. Millions of Americans do not have health insurance. We are desperate to control our manic and depressed episodes. So, like dogs begging for bones, we are willing to take the scraps aka the samples that are doctors can provide. We cannot afford a lot of psych medications so we are willing to "cut the orange one in half" if it will relieve us of even one quarter of the bipolar monkey on our backs. The monkey that is a real part of us. It cannot be removed, cut out, zapped, or ignored to make it go away.
Thank you, Liz, for reading and writing about my post in our blog. More education and awareness is needed about bipolar illness as well as other mental illnesses. The TMZ/Inside Edition, etc television reports on celebs entering rehab and coming out "cured" is all that some people know about mental illnesses. These stories are not about the real people...the everyday people, like your teacher, your neighbor, your pastor, your store clerks, etc. that suffer each and every day of their lives with bipolar disorder. They suffer in silence, either too ashamed or financially unable to seek treatment. We will never even see inside the lobby of these expensive
Terry is right. There are some very toxic medications. Some that have not been properly researched or maybe, being prescribed in the wrong dosage or even by the wrong health care provider. Some health care providers do not even have the proper knowledge of how these drugs work psychologically or physically.
Sorry, didn't mean to get on my soapbox again. But, darn it, somebody has to.