PBS's Depression Special

This program (link to the site) has been pushed by a number of different organizations over the last couple of weeks and it finally aired last night. I will always support programs such as these that promote more awareness about mental illness but to say it was worth the hype would be a lie.

One of the doctors summed up part of my concern when he said "Depression is used to describe a little boy on a rainy day and an adult who has been stricken to the point where he is unable to do the simplest of things (not an exact quote but you get the idea). The thing is to me is there is a difference between depression and major depressive disorder which this program could have done a great service by separating the two which would have gone a long way of reducing the stigma attached to this condition. To me it is very simple depression can cost you a box of Kleenex where as Major Depressive Disorder can cost you your life. The people showcased on this program suffer from Major Depressive Disorder and the difficulty of their struggles showed through pretty clearly which at times made it difficult for me to watch as I have been done the same path once to often.

When it came to treatment the program did a good job by showing a wide variety of options with the warning that not all methods work for everyone. For awhile when they were discussing the various medications a part of me was beginning to wonder which pharmaceutical company was sponsoring the program but PBS did a good job talking about the length of time it takes for an antidepressant to work plus the difficulty of finding the right med. Part of me smiled when the doctor said prescribing the right med is basically like flipping a coin for if you have been through the trials of finding that right drug will swear that is what the doctor is doing.

The two other treatments that came up were Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT) and Deep Brain Stimulation (DBT). ECT has been around for a long time and yes it is a lot safer then what it use to be and no longer completely resembles the scene from One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest the program put too nice of a shine on it. I believe they used the stat that eighty percent of people will have positive results from the treatment is no where near the actual results. They mentioned the main side effect of ECT is possible short term memory loss but they failed to bring up the other side effects that the hospital will have you sign a waiver on to clear their legal responsibility such as broken bones, chipped teeth and of course death. Those who have been following my blog for a while can probably recall where I stopped breathing after my last and final session of ECT which is not exactly a common occurrence but it does happen. Deep Brain Stimulation has been on the outside looking in for a number of years now and even though the show does admit it is highly experimental they seemed to push it a little bit too hard for my liking. DBS is still in the testing face and depending on where you live is probably a least a decade away if it is ever fully approved. To be honest I would volunteer for this procedure after watching the program but there are also days when I believe a lobotomy is a viable option.

A strange part of this program is they kept repeating how talk therapy is a key to a lot of peoples success but other then showing clips of the participants in treatment really did not devote much time to why it works or the number of available therapies out there. I would imagine if you look at the numbers talk therapy success numbers are higher then medication, ECT and DBT. Medication does not cure people but it may put them in the place where talk therapy is possible and even if ECT or DBT is effective if the way the brain handles thoughts is not corrected your just asking for a relapse but that is just my opinion.

Anyway this show was okay and it did a good job of showing the power of depression, the many ways people are effected, the difficulty of finding the right treatment and the potential options that are out there. Take care.

An Explanation

Over the course of this blog I have been "tagged" by other sites where basically someone asks five questions then answers them and then lists off five other blogs to continue this activity. Basically the electronic version of a chain letter. When this type of post does show up in my email I tend to hit delete rather quickly and I am going to try and explain why:

1. The purpose of untreatableonline was to be a voice from the darkness that speaks out on various aspects of mental health not to be a personal blog. It is a fine line between the two but it is a boundary I am very much aware of.

2. See "Reasons why I am untreatableonline"

3. The reason I maintain a blogroll is to share the sites that I visit on a very regular basis and that I believe offer something towards the battle of mental illness. I plan to steal the idea from Cracked Head Blog an offer a brief summation of each but for whatever the reason I have not got around to it yet.

I do appreciate that this blog is being mentioned by other writers but when comes to memes I will not participate. I am not doing a very good job of explaining myself here but I hope you will understand. Take care.

Music And Mental Illness

(this started as a so called ten list post but I have decided to expand it farther)
Chances are if I am at the computer there is music playing. For whatever the reason I always seem to need something playing in the background in order to concentrate. Anyway I have decided to compose a list of music videos that are tied into some aspect of mental illness. YouTube has been weird lately and I keep running into the message "This video is unavailable in your country" which I am guessing has to do with copyright laws but like I said I am guessing. Anyway on with the list.

Aerosmith - Janie's Got A Gun



Alice In Chains - Brother



Alice In Chains - Down In A Hole



Billy Talent - Nothing to lose



Black Crowes - She Talks To Angels



Blind Melon - No Rain



Blue October - Hate Me



Bruce Springsteen - Terry's Song



Counting Crows - Round here



Goo Goo Dolls - Iris



Johnny Cash/Nine Inch Nails - Hurt
- This piece is a Nine Inch Nails song that Johnny Cash redid wonderfully.



Kelly Clarkson - Irvine



Lifehouse - Sick Cycle Carousel



Limp Bizkit - Behind Blue Eyes
- A great cover of The Who's classic



Matchbox 20 - Unwell



Metallica - One



Nirvana - Lithium



Pearl Jam/Alice In Chains/Downface/? - Alone
- All sorts of theories on who sings it but none the less it is a great song



Pearl Jam - Black



REM - Everyone Hurts



Silverchair - Ana's Song (Open Fire)







Well there is a partial list of songs that have a connection to mental illness in some form. With this list it is pretty easy to see which way my music preferences lie. Any songs that strike a chord with you make sure to leave a comment. Take care