Octafish (1000+ posts) Wed Jul-07-10 04:23 PM
Original message
Poll question: Are You on Anti-Depressants?
In metro Detroit, most everyone I know in the 40-60 demo is taking some form of medication.
Those who are married, working and with health insurance, have been prescribed anti-depressants.
Some, particularly those without jobs, are self-medicating with alcohol and marijuana.
Me, I'm so broke all I can afford to do are keep the blinds down and my eyes wide shut...our poor dog.
Not trying to share misery, I simply would like to know if mind medication is a national phenomenon. How are things for you?
Poll result (120 votes)
Do not take any Anti-Depressant medicine or chemical (58 votes, 48%)
Prescribed Anti-Depressants (41 votes, 34%)
Self-Medicating for Depression (15 votes, 13%)
Everything's great for me, but I know someone who is on Meds (5 votes, 4%)
Everything's great for me, but I know someone who Self-Medicates (1 votes, 1%)
Octafish (1000+ posts) Wed Jul-07-10 04:23 PMWell then, eat your dog!
Original message
Poll question: Are You on Anti-Depressants?
In metro Detroit, most everyone I know in the 40-60 demo is taking some form of medication.
Those who are married, working and with health insurance, have been prescribed anti-depressants.
Some, particularly those without jobs, are self-medicating with alcohol and marijuana.
Me, I'm so broke all I can afford to do are keep the blinds down and my eyes wide shut...our poor dog.
Not trying to share misery, I simply would like to know if mind medication is a national phenomenon. How are things for you?
Are drug addled people liberals or does being liberal force one to be drug addicted? A corollary to the great question of whether one must first be mentally ill to be liberal or does the conflict reality of liberalism make one mentally ill.
Are drug addled people liberals or does being liberal force one to be drug addicted? A corollary to the great question of whether one must first be mentally ill to be liberal or does the conflict reality of liberalism make one mentally ill.
Which came first . . . the chicken or the egg?
AR, there's small pockets of us in those states, too. Hell, there's a good percentage of us in the NYS agency I work for, too. ETA: We don't need no stinkin' meds, either!
mike_c (1000+ posts) Wed Jul-07-10 01:42 PM
Response to Reply #7
29. I'm currently staring at the bottom of a bag of pure sativa...
...that is the best pot I've smoked in years-- best in the sense of matching my body chemistry, as you suggested. It's a great body stone-- not monster THC but very nice and stony-- but it leaves me utterly clear headed and energized. One of my former grad students gifted it to me-- he's a 215 provider for several folks here. He calls it his "working pot" because he smokes it all day while he works on his successful small scale organic farm.
I'm gonna be so bummed when that bag is finished (and it certainly won't last the rest of the week).
Over the years I've come to understand that the inherent variability in Cannabis strains is one of the best things about marijuana. If you're willing to experiment and try lots of different clones, you'll usually find one that is well matched for your body and mind. There is no "one-size-fits-all" marijuana.
Poll result (169 votes)
Do not take any Anti-Depressant medicine or chemical (80 votes, 47%) Vote
Prescribed Anti-Depressants (59 votes, 35%) Vote
Self-Medicating for Depression (22 votes, 13%) Vote
Everything's great for me, but I know someone who is on Meds (7 votes, 4%) Vote
Everything's great for me, but I know someone who Self-Medicates (1 votes, 1%)
Umm, is a message board allowed to keep posts of people admitting that they're engaging in illegal activity? and these are the people teaching our kids?
This SOB needs to be hunted down and immediately givin' a drug test! If he's a damn teacher, he should be in the unemployment line no later than tomorrow!
He's a tenured professor, that has locked horns with Tx.
You mean to tell me, if you're tenured, you're above the law? Never thought I'd see that in TX!
I mean TxRadioGuy . . .
. . . but it's difficult to get a tenured prof removed from his teaching position.
Are drug addled people liberals or does being liberal force one to be drug addicted? A corollary to the great question of whether one must first be mentally ill to be liberal or does the conflict reality of liberalism make one mentally ill.
I'm bipolar with OCD and general anxiety disorder. My medicine chest probably looks much like the DUmmies. However, I don't wear it as a badge of honor or wallow in it. Whether it's nature or nurture or a combination I don't know. I just take my meds and live my life but without them my life is a pain in the ass.
Cindie
I'm bipolar with OCD and general anxiety disorder. My medicine chest probably looks much like the DUmmies. However, I don't wear it as a badge of honor or wallow in it. Whether it's nature or nurture or a combination I don't know. I just take my meds and live my life but without them my life is a pain in the ass.
Cindie
I'm bipolar with OCD and general anxiety disorder. My medicine chest probably looks much like the DUmmies.QuoteHowever, I don't wear it as a badge of honor or wallow in it.Whether it's nature or nurture or a combination I don't know. I just take my meds and live my life but without them my life is a pain in the ass.
Cindie
Not sure if these people are aware of this, but if someone has a mental condition or something like anxiety, pot smoking can actually make the disorders worse.
Wow, I didn't know that. I haven't smoked since I was in my early 20's and both my sons were athletes and were too busy for that (though my oldest went to parties in high school so who knows). My youngest son made a mental note about the kind of things his brother got in trouble for and avoided them. I don't really think about it but it makes sense. I never really liked it anyway, just made me sleepy and it stank.
Cindie
I'm bipolar with OCD and general anxiety disorder. My medicine chest probably looks much like the DUmmies. However, I don't wear it as a badge of honor or wallow in it. Whether it's nature or nurture or a combination I don't know. I just take my meds and live my life but without them my life is a pain in the ass.I drink alcohol and brew beer.
Cindie
Here's some info on it:Obvious RW propaganda to prop-up a failed drug war used to oppress inner city minorities.
Marijuana and Mental Health
A number of studies have shown an association between chronic marijuana use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and schizophrenia. Some of these studies have shown age at first use to be a factor, where early use is a marker of vulnerability to later problems. However, at this time, it is not clear whether marijuana use causes mental problems, exacerbates them, or is used in attempt to self-medicate symptoms already in existence. Chronic marijuana use, especially in a very young person, may also be a marker of risk for mental illnesses, including addiction, stemming from genetic or environmental vulnerabilities, such as early exposure to stress or violence. At the present time, the strongest evidence links marijuana use and schizophrenia and/or related disorders. High doses of marijuana can produce an acute psychotic reaction; in addition, use of the drug may trigger the onset or relapse of schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals.
http://www.nida.nih.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html
Cindie, one of my sisters is bipolar with depression, other sister and brother are treated for depression, as was our mother. HER father, his two brothers, and both of their parents all commited suicide. Obviously mental health issues run deeply in my family, although my children have been spared thus far. I've been diagnosed with GAD, OCD and panic attacks and have to take SSRI's or suffer grave consequences. Taking meds for people like us is necessary, but people who use them for recreational purposes give us all a bad reputation, IMO.
Don't know what it is about depression, but it's in my family too. My dad, my half-sister, one of her daughter's, myself, my daughter, and I think my son has some of it too...though he won't admit to it. 3 cousins do, and they are all my dad's sister's children, don't know about their children who are all adults, though I would suspect some have some degree of it. Alcoholism is on both my dad's side and my ex's (where there have also been depression issues)....have to wonder if depression and alchololism aren't somehow connected.
I think the other difference between "us" and "them", is that we will tend to wait and wait, before we reach the point where we have no choice but to take the medications.....where as the "them" will pop anything without the need...just the urge.
Here's an excerpt from another interesting article talking about the possible correlation between pot smoking and mental health issues:
http://www.thesite.org/drinkanddrugs/drugsafety/drugsandyourbody/cannabisandmentalhealth
There's increasing evidence to suggest that long-term use of cannabis can lead to the development of psychosis, particularly among those who start using it in their teens. A study in New Zealand found that those who had used cannabis three times or more before the age of 15 were much more likely to experience symptoms of schizophrenia by the time they were 26. The research team concluded that there's a vulnerable minority of teenagers for whom cannabis is harmful, but added that, "We're not saying that cannabis is the major cause of schizophrenia, but it's a risk factor."
A study of 2,500 14 to 24 year-olds in Munich, Germany, found that among those who had no vulnerability to psychosis, cannabis use moderately raised the risk of developing signs of psychosis later on, from 16% to 25%. But for those who were considered vulnerable to psychosis (who had shown psychotic symptoms by the age of 11), scientists found a stronger link. For these people, cannabis use almost doubled their chance of developing psychosis, from 25% to 50%. Also, the risks increased with the more cannabis they smoked, and the earlier they smoked it.
Meanwhile, a team from Bristol and Cardiff Universities published a paper that claims cannabis users are 40% more likely to suffer a psychotic illness than non users. The research suggests that although the risk of getting a psychotic illness like schizophrenia remained low, it could be a factor in 14% of psychotic problems in young adults in the UK. The researchers looked at 35 studies on cannabis and its link to mental health.
I have a great doctor who specializes in brain chemistry and alcoholism is connected to depression in many people. One of the first questions he asked me was whether there was any alcoholism in my family. It was a manic day and I was talking a mile a minute so I'm surprised he could understand me. Practically everyone on my mother's side was an alcoholic. My mother self-medicated until the booze finally killed her. The thing is, you feel good for a while but it increases depression when you sober up. I was paranoid to even have alcohol in my house for a long time. Now I can have beer or wine (and I make killer margaritas) without panicking. We have addiction issues in my family, knowing this I just turned it into a positive and made working out my addiction. Still, I panic if I don't get to work out for a couple of days. But I figure that's probably better than spending my days with a vodka bottle in my hand.
Cindie
Surprisingly, since my father was an alcoholic....when I got married to a guy who was going to start his General Surgery internship in a month....he made me promise that whatever else...that I would never drink alcohol alone.
That was in 1977.
I bet I haven't poured myself a drink, when alone, 10 times in 33 years. Even when I did, I rarely finished them.
I know I have an addictive personality. My total points on Pogo.com reflect that... :uhsure:
If it wasn't for the facts that too much alcohol will really trash my intestional tract, I don't like beer or wine and I HATE to be out of control....I am sure that over the years, for a variety of reasons....I could easily have become an alcoholic. I have rarely become sick to my stomach, even nauseated..when I drank too much and outside of the trashed intestional tract, I don't have hangovers per se. I have frequently thanked God, for making sure that too much trashes my IT....have often wondered if He made sure that I would have those effects to keep me from making some really bad decisions.
I have a great doctor who specializes in brain chemistry and alcoholism is connected to depression in many people. One of the first questions he asked me was whether there was any alcoholism in my family. It was a manic day and I was talking a mile a minute so I'm surprised he could understand me. Practically everyone on my mother's side was an alcoholic. My mother self-medicated until the booze finally killed her. The thing is, you feel good for a while but it increases depression when you sober up. I was paranoid to even have alcohol in my house for a long time. Now I can have beer or wine (and I make killer margaritas) without panicking. We have addiction issues in my family, knowing this I just turned it into a positive and made working out my addiction. Still, I panic if I don't get to work out for a couple of days. But I figure that's probably better than spending my days with a vodka bottle in my hand.
Cindie
Holy shit!
Lots of alcoholics in my mom's family AND my dad's. Her side had the mental health issues, and his didn't, or at least they weren't diagnosed as such. I got diagnosed shortly after my father's death in 2000 when DH dragged me to the ER because I was on my hands and knees gasping for air and sure I was gonna die. I'd had panic attacks in the past but not to that scale. I often wish someone would have found out my anxiety issues in my 20's in steadof when I hit 40. That was the same year I discovered I had diabetes, hypertension, Barrett's esophagus and IBS. Talk about a crappy year. Sheesh.
Holy shit!
My cat scratched my leg.....
Are drug addled people liberals or does being liberal force one to be drug addicted? A corollary to the great question of whether one must first be mentally ill to be liberal or does the conflict reality of liberalism make one mentally ill.Liberalism is a mental disorder.
I give people mental disorders, heart attacks, and ulcers, I don't get them.Well then...carry on! :-)
:evillaugh: