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Chronically Depressed? What to Do When Antidepressants Don't Work

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i have been depressed pretty much all my life, but got really sick in 2000 and ended up in the hosiptal. then i started overdoses on my medications, going back to the hosptial by ambulance drinking the black chulch, tube down my nose, ect. kept trying to comitt suicide numerouse times after that. paxil, mood stabilizers worked for a little while, but after 10 years i'm still depressed and think about suicide. i just sit and stare at the ground sometimes and i can't snap out of it unless i hear a noise or something. i'm afraid of ECT. don't know what to do.

stephanie of CA 12:53PM February 07, 2010

I have major depressive disorder, antidepressants, antiseizure meds, anti psychotic meds have not worked. I have had 12 ect treatments that did not work, I lost 2 years of my memory. I currently see a CBT therapist which is somewhat helpful but the depression is always there. What other treatments are left?

Chloe of FL 5:38PM January 14, 2010

Your comment just sounds like the same old "snap out of it" that people who have no clue what it is like to chronically depressed spout off. The things you suggest are helpful coping mechanisms, sure, but they are not all the answer. And your "if all else fails get out the sig" is heartless and ignorant.

yzetta of WV 5:23PM December 04, 2009

Hi, I am going through a depression I have never experienced before. I am on medications and seeing people in a mental health place but I am not getting any better.
I am going through a divorce and while I do that I am living with someone who I would rather not live with. I can not afford to live by myself due to being hurt at work and my husband not helping me. I am sad all the time and my stomach hurts bad. I miss my family but they hate me. My husband was abusive and he gets to continue to do so through the court system. I owe people a lot of money plus I am in debt for other reasons. I dont know what to do. I keep thinking about ways to die or get killed the only thing I would regret leaving is my cat.
My family wouldn't care at all.

LorrieAnne (Dayna) of UT 12:50AM November 30, 2009

Put ECT on your resume and watch the reaction...LoL, now that is depressing in itself...
CBT is good but expensive...
Exercise is a good option but not for the obese or physically challenged.
A good dose of NObama would cheer me right up...
Good luck out there..it only gets better with time...(and a few pharmo')

Tom in San Diego of CA 3:36PM November 15, 2009

People, defending their faith, often say they NEED to have their "sin-sick souls" fixed. They say "they can't stop themselves from sinning" because the Bible says everyone is guilty of "Original Sin." So they sin, repent, are forgiven, & the cycle repeats. They say they "NEED to be fed with the blood and flesh of Christ on a regular basis," in the rite of communion. Believers undeniably spend lots of money "to practice their faith." Recently, a celebrity described her years of costly psychiatric treatment. Her doctor said patients seem to feel good that they can AFFORD to pay lots of money for treatment. Maybe preachers are like psychiatrists. Believers go to church & feel good that pew mates see how much they can AFFORD to give to the church. When a person gives millions for a new cathedral, he may be given a big church title, for people who do great benefit to his church. Believers are not happy 'in this vale of tears." They want to go back to their comforting Heavenly Father. They like God to lug them over hard spots. Yes, it does look a lot like psychiatry-by-preacher.

aura dawn veirs of CA 4:37PM November 08, 2009

Traumatic Incident Reduction (TIR) has been shown to be effective in treating depression in a relatively brief period. It's a one-on-one person-centered therapy: the goals are your goals not the therapists goals of how your life "should" look. Curious? visit the TIR.ORG site or look up the book I've edited on the subject at Amazon.

Victor R. Volkman of MI 8:15AM November 08, 2009

old stuff... CBT is not better than the other forms of psychotherapy. Multiple meta-analyses have shown that other forms of psychotherapy (like person-centered) work as well or even sometimes better than CBT. So if you want to have chronically depressed people, you have to give them all CBT. Because a lot of people aren't helped with CBT, but will be helped with other forms of psychotherapy. The question is NOT: did you have CBT or not! The question is: is it better for you to get CBT or is it better to have another form of psychotherapy (like person-centered). And, by the way, about 40 -50% of the people who got CBT, will have a new depression within 2 years. And after that another one... Great work of CBT!!!

Miek 7:52PM November 07, 2009

Drugs When missed used by the Health industry cause mental retardation by the fact that people look at there doctors like gods and many doctors themselves believe that they are gods and use there subjects like test rats. I have been diagnosed with epilepsy but as I grew up and ended up on the streets I could no longer Afford there drugs and after about six months I did not want there drugs anymore because I started doing much better. I went from 4 or 5 seizers a month to 1 seizer a year and now none.
You can have your phony gods but I would rather have my health.
If you are depressed change your environment until you find an environment that is compatible with you and your loved ones. If your loved ones are the problem take a break and bring back what you learned from your separation and and work it out but drugs are only going to prolong your depression and you will need higher and higher doses and stronger drugs which will put you at mercy to your gods I mean doctors.
Don D. Brock

Don D. Brock of AZ 10:08AM November 07, 2009

The most published researcher on ECT ever, Harold Sackeim, gave testimony under oath that he polled 200 ECT practitioners at a conference and that two thirds of them believed that ECT can lead to permanent cognitive impairment. And those were just the ones being honest. You can find that clip on youtube by typing in the following: Harold Sackeim awakening. In another video clip under oath, Sackeim states that some of the most well-known people in the field have been dishonest about the adverse effects of ECT. He mentions specifically Richard Abrams, a man who writes textbooks on ECT for doctors. You can pull up that particular video clip by going to youtube and typing in the following words: Harold Sackeim Abrams. A 2004 study in the Journal of Mental Health found that 42% of ECT patients reported that ECT resulted in loss of intelligence, and even more importantly it found that, "There is no overlap between clinical and consumer studies on the question of benefit." In other words, it casts doubt on the honesty of pro-ECT researchers. They make money from this, folks.

Researcher of IL 3:25PM November 06, 2009