Reply #73: May I humbly suggest

[Jackpine Radical]

that the medico/pharmacological establishment assumes that medications are always the best treatment for conditions such as depression, but that for many people, there are a number of equally effective alternatives, such as

Herbal remedies. Hypericum (St. Johns Wort) has proved as effective as prescription antidepressant in clinical trials, with fewer side effects.

Psychotherapy. For some types of depression, psychotherapy is more effective than meds, and results in a long-term resolution. In other cases, psychotherapy is best combined with medications in the early phases, with the meds benig tapered off.

Exercise. Physical exercise is one of the most effective ways to accomplish short-term improvements in mood.

Neurotherapy. There are now several approaches to treating depression by means of brainwave biofeedback. In one of these, the training works to rectify an imbalance in neuronal activation in the frontal lobes of depressed people. Although no large controlled studies have yet been done, initial work suggests that the approach produces long-term remediation.

Pleast take note that the big drug companies and organized psychiatry do not want to see any of these alternatives to succeed. There are few if any federal funds available for research of this sort.