Need Alternatives to pills

[mikalalnr]

I'm 38 and have been depressed my entire adult life. Clinical for a while. I've been on every pill under the sun and nothing seems to cure it. Currently on a high dose, but my I still hit a low that puts me in bed for days. I want to try electro-therapy or something else and get off the daily pill popping. Last time I tried to quit my anti-depressant I was nearly hospitalized. I'm running low. My life and all the success I've created for myself will not last much longer. I've isolated family and friends cause they don't get it, or I let them down. I've heard micro-dosing LSD or Psilocybin will cause neurons to fire? I'm done with pills, nothing can help me.

[Scott1951]

I looked into options for drug-resistant depression and was told that there are three: transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and ketamine treatments. I only have personal experience with TMS. TMS makes use of a high-powered magnet to stimulate neurons in the part of the brain that controls mood. It is completely non-invasive and has little or no side effects. It requires 36 treatments over a period of 8 or more weeks. It is not cheap ($300-$400 per treatment) but my Medicare and supplemental insurance covered the entire cost. I found it helpful. It took away the heaviness of my depression. How long this effect will last, I don't know. Whatever you decide, be sure to do your homework. I didn't look into LSD or psilocybin but I did consider ayahusca (a Amazonian plant medicine) and even put a down payment on a trip to Peru. I decided psychiatric treatments were dangerous enough without going the completely unregulated route of psychedelics!

[Gaylehh in reply to Scott1951]

Glad to hear about TMS. I’ll look into. Glad to hear that Medicare and supplemental insurance covered it. I think I’d be nervous about taking LSD - no way of controlling the effects. I also take anti-depressants and anti-anxiety and think they’ve really helped me. With Electric shock treatments, could you have short-term memory losses? Haven’t looked into so I may be completely wrong.

[Scott1951 in reply to Gaylehh]

Yes, I have read that short-term memory loss can be a side effect of ECT. And Ketamine therapy is very expensive. TMS seemed the best option to me of the three. The only side effect of TMS for me was a slight irritation on my scalp where they placed the magnet that went away when the treatment stopped. TMS, though, doesn't work for everyone. The success rate of ECT is supposed to be higher than TMS but ECT is a much more invasive procedure. Be sure to do your own research before you say "yes" to anything.

[KatarinaWajda]

Hi there, I did not have the exact same experience as you, but years into taking pills I did realize that they weren't enough. I was still fundamentally depressed. I truly believe that antidepressants and other mental health drugs are not a cure-all for what ails us. Once I realized that pills weren't going to "cure" me, I started doing my own research and experiments to help myself. It was through my own self-help that I was able to overcome depression and anxiety. Let me know if you want to talk about some ideas further.

[mikalalnr]

It's incredible that I can have so much and be so thankless. It's truly a pitiful thing. Thanks for the replies. Praying is my attempt to manifest thankfulness - to create joy.