DEPRESSION

Robert LopesTakane MiyashitaKathryn ClaitorBinjie Huang

Causes of DepressionGenetic: risk increases with heredityBiochemical: Too little or too much of a brain chemical affecting mood and sleep.Environmental: Significant loss, difficult relationships, financial problems, drugs, or a major change in a life pattern.Psychosocial: Persons with certain traits. Pessimistic thinking, low self-esteem, a sense of having little control over life.

Diagnosing DepressionYou are depressed sad, blue, tearfulLost interest in things you previously likedAppetite increases or decreases; significant weight gain or lossTrouble sleeping or too much sleepingPeople notice your agitated, restless, or have slowed downFeelings of worthlessness and guilt

CausesTrouble concentrating, thinking clearly, or making decisionsYou feel you would be better off dead or have thoughts about killing yourself.

American Psychiatric AssociationMajor Depressive Disorder

StatisticsOne in ten adults suffer depression each yearTreatment can alleviate the symptoms in 80%Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder

Women experience depression at twice the rate of menElderly white males are highest at risk74% of people seeking help go to their primary doctor and 50% are misdiagnosed of those cases

Caution“There is a distinct difference between feeling “depressed” and having a depressive illness. If you have low spirits for a while, don’t be concerned. However, if you feel you can’t lift yourself out of your misery, you should seek professional help.

All information gathered from www.holisticonline.com

Online Depression Screening Test

What causes depression?http://www.abc.net.au/health/depression/cause.htm

At the most basic level, nobody really knows what causes depression. The dominant theory is that it is a result of low levels of certain neurotransmitters (messenger chemicals that carry signals from one nerve cell to the next) in the

brain. This is called the 'monoamine theory' of depression — monoamines

being the group of chemicals that these neurotransmitters belong to.

Sleep apnea can cause depression

on this web-site, you can take a sleep disorder quiz to see if…

“Obstructive sleep apnea is an illness characterized by snoring, partial or complete cessation of breathing during sleep, reductions in blood oxygen levels, severe sleep

fragmentation, and excessive daytime sleepiness…

The syndrome strikes both sexes and all races, ages, socioeconomic strata, and ethnic groups, though it is less common in women prior to menopause, and may be more common in blacks than in whites."

(NCSDR)

Brain Chemistry of Depression

Link Found Between Serotonin Transporter Gene And BPAD

(Bipolar affective disorder) is a complex genetic disorder

Depression in Chinese Medicine

--three types of depression: earth-, water-, and wood-type

•As with all disease, we need an accurate diagnosis before we can begin treatment. Depression has many causes. Not all of them will be

helped by antidepressants. If your self-esteem is intact, your mood does not vary during the day, and you are not impaired socially, your

depression may have a physical cause. •Some physical/biomedical causes of depression are: chronic pain, chronic fatigue, normal grief, vitamin B12 deficiency anemia, folate

deficiency anemia, viral disease, connective tissue/collagen disorders (arthritis), an organic brain disorder, drug side-effects, cancer, and

endocrine abnormalities. Chinese Medicine can enhance the health of anyone with any of these conditions.

What depression can induce?

How can you determine if an illness is causing depression or depression is

causing an illness?

•Illnesses that can lead to depression are usually major, chronic, and/or terminal. When an illness is causing depression, there is often long-term

pain present or there is a sudden change in lifestyle.

•Depression causes illness in a different way. Like psychological stress, it can weaken the immune system (cells involved in fighting disease and

keeping you healthy) allowing a person to get more colds or the flu. There is often a notable presence of "aches and pains" with no particular cause. Having depression may also cause an illness to last longer and intensify its symptoms, but the true relationship of depression-induced illness, in

terms of major disease, has not been thoroughly defined.

BIPOLAR DISORDER

What is it?

Bipolar Disorder, also known as manic depression, an illness characterized by mood

swings from depression to mania. The diagnostic criteria for bipolar depression is the same as for major depression, but bipolar patients tend to

have atypical features.

Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder

Enormous, frequent mood swings, resulting in these symptoms during an

episode of depression or maniaIncreased energy, no energy at allRestlessness or irritabilityExtreme irritabilityDistractibilityLittle sleep neededThoughts of death or suicideDenial that anything is wrongFeelings of hopelessness

Spending spreesLasting periods of unusual behaviorAbuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol and sleeping medicationProvocative, intrusive, or aggressive behaviorChronic pain, fatigue

Bipolar DisorderBipolar disorder is a lifetime illness, ongoing treatment plans are necessary

Bipolar patients who rapid cycle can be up and down in a matter of minutes, and in mixed states, depression and mania are present at once.

There are a few types of Bi-Polar Disorder ranging from “mild” and “extreme” mood swings to acute schizophrenia

BIPOLAR DISORDERNot just a mood swing depressionPatients also suffer from subtle cognitive deficits, between episodes which get worse over timeMany patients also suffer from at least one other mental illness, such as anxiety and panic, or alcohol and substance abuseOne major study found that 61% of bipolar patients had a lifetime substance dependence problem

Treatment for Bipolar Disorder

Psychological treatment is necessaryA person with bipolar disorder should be under the care of both a psychologist and a psychiatristMedication is required to help balance the mood swings and obtain substantial stabilization

Web Sites with information regarding Bipolar Disorder

www.psychologyinfo.com/depression/bipolar.htm

www.mcmanweb.com/index.html www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/bipolar.cfm#bp1

Depression in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

  

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is based on very different worldview than that Western medicine. In order to understand Chinese medical psychiatry, one must understand that no dualism between the mind and body exists in TCM. The body is the material basis for the mind, which is seen as the natural expression of the function of the body. Because of this non-duality between psyche and soma, physiological events within the body might result in mental-emotional sensations, experiences, and predispositions, while psychological events may have either a beneficial or deleterious effect on the body’s physiology. Therefore there is such a disease or simple category as “depression” in TCM. However there are certain “patterns” that are similar to what is called depression in western medicine.  

Acupuncture As An Treatment For “Depression”

 

There have been a number of Chinese studies done showing that acupuncture can be an effective treatment for mental-emotional disorders. Hiener Fruehauf stats “(For the treatment of mental-emotional diseases), the therapeutic focus tends to be on the restoration of uninhibited qi flow, since unbalanced emotions first affect the qi before they influence the physical structure of the body” and what acupuncture does first and foremost is disinhibit the flow of qi. (According to Ted J. Kaptchuk, OMD in his book, The Web That Has No Weaver, Qi is, in clinical sense, “the particular dynamic of engendering, movement, tension, and activation. “) Therefore acupuncture can be a very effective treatment for many kinds of mental-emotional disorders. In particular, acupuncture is very effective for promoting relaxation in cases of heightened excitation and restlessness. One of the most common responses to acupuncture is for patients to fall asleep on the treatment table.

Relaxation As A Basis For Mental Health 

TCM emphasizes on relaxation for the treatment of long-term psycho-emotional problems. It actually is more important than many people think. Relaxation results in freeing the flow of qi mechanism. For instance, liver depression qi stagnation sits squarely in the center of most of the disease mechanisms leading to mental-emotional disease. Therefore any therapy that has a disinhibiting and normalizing effect on the qi flow and, therefore, the qi mechanism will have a salutary effect on the mind and emotions. When one relaxes physically and mentally, whatever qi should be up borne is down borne. The psycho-physiological effects of simply letting go are immediate and automatic.

Qigong 

Qigong is a generic term covering a wide range of mental, movement, and respiratory regimes. This is very effective method for treating psycho-emotional problems.  

- Still Qigong & Active QigongIn general, there are two kinds of qigong, still qigong and active qigong. When qigong is advised to patients with mental-emotional diseases, it is mostly the still qigong. This consists of what West knows as progressive deep relaxation and certain kinds of biofeedback therapy. In this type of qigong, the patient uses their volition, imagination, and respiration to relax the entire body and mind.   

An Importance Of Treatment Schedule 

The other important thing in treating mental diseases with acupuncture is that treatment schedules have to be close enough together. Bob Flaws and James Lake, MD state in Chinese Medical Psychiatry that more serious psychological disease, more closely treatments should be scheduled. According to them, many of the failures some Western acupuncturists have experienced in treating these kinds of diseases may have been due to improperly spaced treatment regimes.

Web Sites- Acupuncture Today http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/ An article from a TCM journal “Acupuncture Today” on seasonal disorderhttp://www.acupuncturetoday.com/archives2003/apr/04abbate.html- American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine http://schools.naturalhealers.com/actcm<For general information regarding to TCM>- WEB MD http://aolsvc.health.webmd.aol.com/content/healthwise/109/27014?SRC=aolKW=acupuncture- Acupuncture Com. http://acupuncture.com/  

Also the book, “The Web That Has No Weaver” by Ted, J. Kaptchuk is highly recommended.