Open Forum #2

Welcome to my second experiment. The last one worked out pretty well. Of course, the forum wasn't supposed to last all week long. Hmm, let's see if I can remember to post that new article I've been working on BEFORE next weekend.

In the meantime, I was recently asked for suggestions on herbal remedies for Depression. The only one I could think of was St. John's Wort, but it does tricksy things to modern medicines. Apparently, meds like birth control pills have their period of efficacy accelerated when taken with St. John's Wort. I can see how that'd be a bad thing. What remedies have you heard of? Or chat about anything that comes to your mind, provided it fits within the theme we have going here on this blog. Also, feel free to pitch in and give fellow readers advice or just chat amongst yourselves.

Update 1/14/08 4:17:47 PM: In the future, I'll refer to this forum as "The Splintered Chat". Thanks for participating. Comments closed.

Comments

D.R. Cootey said…
I bet this experiment isn't going to work well this weekend. I posted it too late and messed up the RSS feed for a bit. It's been a day late, a dollar short sort of week for me. But I made great progress with my ear wax cleaning project. My wife has requested I NOT blog about that particular project however. Shame. I have plenty of pictures. ;)
January 12, 2008 4:30 PM
Claire said…
My husband's psychiatrist recommended amino acid supplements, including L-Taurine and L-Tyrosine. There is another, as well, but I'm not at home to check the bottle! I can post again later, if I remember. I found this blog today. Have you been there, yet?
http://pillsdontteachskills.com/

PS- the late posting doesn't affect me. You're on my home page!


:)
January 12, 2008 6:08 PM
D.R. Cootey said…
Yes, I'm familiar with that blog. Jeff and Pete are trying to pitch a book called Pills Don't Teach Skills around. I wish them luck. Pete also has a site: http://adultaddstrengths.com/

They are both excellent resources.

Hey, did you hear that guy's reply to my Utterz? I was mildy irked, but overall just puzzled. If I wasn't so under the weather I might have laughed about it, but instead I just thought "Wha?" and jotted off a reply. I do forget that I need to pitch my message so that newcomers can feel it is accessible. I suppose I appreciated the reminder, even if the messenger was rude. ;)
January 12, 2008 6:31 PM
Claire said…
I didn't listen to it until you mentioned it. My guess would be that he isn't ADHD himself, nor depressed. Probably isn't married/significant other to one, either. Although, he seems to be wanting to be entertained, and that has some ADHD in it. It is more likely that he a part of the generation that believes entertainment and personal enjoyment via technology is more important than other people. My brother is one of those. He doesn't get mental illness either, despite marrying a woman who suffers from depression.

Considering there are five appreciative replies, and only one negative, I think you can effectively blow him off!!

:)

PS- Fish Oil was the other supplement recommended for my husband. The concurrent conditions he was being treated for were:

ADHD-combined type
Depression
Anxiety Disorder
Sleep Disorder-NOS
Overweight

Which supplement/medication was for what, I couldn't tell you exactly. I have it written down in one of those piles I moved over to the new house and haven't unboxed yet (only ten boxes to go!! Yippee!!

PPS- We are now researching meds for my son. Despite having the two most accommodating teachers on the planet, he still isn't focusing and his impulses are still out of line with more "typical" 7 yr old boys. Last year, we pinned a lot of the behavior on the teacher, and this year we can't. He's SO much better than he was last year, but still very impulsive in comparison to other boys his age.

PPPS- Why aren't follow up comments e-mails working? Grrrrr.
January 12, 2008 8:10 PM
D.R. Cootey said…
Thank you, Claire. I forgot about fish oil. I find that eating fish helps restore my mind to functional order again, especially when I'm ticking. I tried fish oil pills as an experiment but couldn't stand the burpy aftertaste that followed me throughout the day. Need to sample some odorless fish oil pills. It hadn't occurred to me that fish oil might help depression. I'm depressed today. Burps be darned, I'll go experiment and post back here with the results.

I was going to reply to each of your comments but I'm too floored at the moment, even though I appreciate them. I wasn't aware that there were so many replies to my Utterz. There are now much more than five, and all except for Brady very positive. That's nice feedback to receive, but most importantly, a man by the name of Robert utilized my Utterz in his own and has left me speechless with his eloquent reply.

As bloggers, podcasters, and partakers of new media, we send our thoughts out into the void and hope to receive a ping back. Something, anything, that let's us know we matter. That we are alive. I know that's what I want. This is why commenters such as yourself are so important to me. I don't write to hear my own voice. I write to connect with others. My Utterz may not do much here but they seem to connect over there.

Please take a moment to listen to Robert's reply. It is so beautifully spoken I am almost intimidated to reply back. http://www.utterz.com/~u-NTAxMjY3OA/utt.php Unlike what I wrote above, I posted that Utterz for myself. I didn't dream it could touch others. I am honestly humbled.

Thanks for caring. Good luck with your boy. With patience you can find the key to unlock his mind for him and guide him into a happy adulthood.

~Douglas
January 13, 2008 3:05 AM
Claire said…
God seems to take what little we think we have to offer, and makes it into something bigger than ourselves (like the little boy with five loaves and two fishes).

I am a connection craver as well. Perhaps that's why being married to a depressive is so hard for me. I have had to build a network of people I can talk to and communicate with for when he has his bad days (weeks, months . . .).

Today he got lost on the way to church, and never made it to the service (I had to go early to play piano). He and the kids ended up thirty miles away from where they needed to be, and he didn't notice he was going the wrong way for about ten miles. He said he was just oblivious to the surroundings (which scares the heck out of me considering both kids were in the car). Last time he drove "oblivious" (in December), he totaled our van (more than $10,000) in damage.

I know that some day he'll get better, and I know that God has life in control. I just wish some day things would settle down.

Blessings to you, my blog-friend. Thanks for being there when I need someone to listen.

:)
January 13, 2008 2:29 PM
D.R. Cootey said…
My heart goes out to you, Claire. I wish your husband had a better self-image and believed he could improve. Keep working on him!
January 14, 2008 2:43 AM
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