Comments on: This will ruffle feathers

By: jemimaaslana

jemimaaslana — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 15:26:43 +0000

Hi Chloë, it’s no use to feed trolls The schmuck clearly knows nothing of depression, diagnosis and treatment – just like those ignoramuses you wrote about. I recently wrote a post about depression and the same kind of “get yourself together and you won’t suffer from it”-attitude.

Nice blog btw, methinks I shall add you to my blogrol – your writings are definitely worth a visit here.

By: Chloë

Chloë — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 13:07:34 +0000

Man up men; are you a psychiatrist or medical professional? Do you have any personal expiernce of the matter?
I can tell you from experience, in the UK at least, one does not simply go an see psychiatrist and get treatment. You have to be refferred by a GP and undergo a a long consultation, or two, or three and treatment is decided upon (eventually) and consistently monitored and refined.
Yes G.P’s may over-prescribe anti depressants but that is nothing to do with the illness, it is an unfortunate side effect of an underfunded medical system and lack of available resources, especially in the area of ‘talking therapies’ where the waiting list is gargantuan.
If you wish to continue this debate please provide some actual evidence and refrain from reactionary knee jerk opinion/hearsay masquerading as fact or you WILL be regarded as even more of a troll than I already regard you as.

and ‘nothing like a set of diagnostic criteria?’, if you care to enightend yourself on the subject so wikis on teh Beck depression inventroy, International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems and the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beck_Depression_Inventory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diagnostic_and_Statistical_Manual_of_Mental_Disorders
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICD

and a bit on clinical assment:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinical_depression#Clinical_assessment

I can also add my personal experince that I have not simply gone into a Dr and been instantly diagnosed and sent on my way and I have spent hours in detailed assessments and discussion.

If you STILL want to argue with the weight of the majority of the medical community then I don’t have anything more to say, so consider this ‘debate’ over.

By: manupmen

manupmen — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 01:45:54 +0000

Diagnosis of depression is not rigorous, nor is it standardized. In practice, if someone says they are “depressed,” a psychiatrist prescribes.

There is nothing scientific about the process, and there is nothing like a set of diagnostic criteria.

By: Chloë

Chloë — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:50:23 +0000

While there may be no magical serotonin test there are thorough clinical diagnostic criteria, so whilst depression cannot be diagnosed by a simple blood test or similar it can be accurately diagnosed by consultation with medical professionals and there are many diagnositc criteria. (http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/depression/classification_000001.htm)
Thus ’snap out of it’ is NOT an appropriate prescription for someone diagnosed with depression.

By: manupmen

manupmen — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:14:53 +0000

Since there is no test to determine serotonin and dopamine levels in an individual, there is no way to determine if an individual has a disease called depression.

Therefore, “snap out of it” may be the appropriate prescription.

By: Fay

Fay — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 04:46:46 +0000

Hello Chloe. A very strong and powerful blog, your off to a wonderful start. Reach around and pat yourself on the back for the work accomplished so far.

I would like to take the time to thank you for submitting “Diary of a Nobody” to the Blogging Women directory. I have finished my review of your blog and I’m very happy to let you know that “Diary of a Nobody” will appear on the Blogging Women directory.

It’s a pleasure to add another quality women’s blog to our directory.

Wishing you continued success!

By: Chloë

Chloë — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 21:57:44 +0000

AWw thanks for the comment! My first here!
You and Barry must come over sometime, it’s been too long!
I think it’s pretty easy to get to mine from Bootle way…

By: Nat-chan

Nat-chan — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 21:53:01 +0000

Ruffle as many feathers as you like. I can completely understand where you are coming from, Lovely.

It’s the same with any illness where the symptoms are not in-your-face obvious. People just don’t seem to grasp the idea that someone could suffer from something like this, at the severity which you do, because they have nothing in their lives to relate it to. Being depressed and clinical depression are two COMPLETELY different things. That is one particular concept that never seems to stick. Even the fact that Barry is on medication for his, and that the lack of medication can had adverse affects, doesn’t seem to deter poeple from the “snap out of it” routine. You treat depression with medication for a reason, BECAUSE it’s an illness.

I also completely get what you mean about stereotypes concerning mental illness. There seems to be no shades of grey where this is concerned. I think it’s very sad that people are like that in this day and age. No wonder people who actually ARE mentally ill are so adverse to mentioning it.

As long as you have friends to help you though who needs all that bullshit. They can keep it.