I feel like writing Dr. Oz a letter!!!

[jule1]

Did anyone see his show on depression today??

He talks about how depression is a "chemical imbalance" and how if you are depressed for two weeks you have depression!!!

And OF COURSE they are promoting medication!!!

This kind of misinformation just infuriates me!!!

And EVERY symptom they describe as depression (i.e. sleeping 14 hours a day) I NEVER experienced until 2 years ON Effexor!

I'd like to put him in the "truth tube"!!

[Aeroman]

Oz is a hack.

[jule1]

OH AND...he says that medication is pointless unless you are doing the exercise and getting the support. Okay tell me if I am wrong here. The exercise WON'T matter if you are on an ad!!!

NO amount of exercise I ever did on Effexor helped in any way and I was always an avid runner and in shape preEffexor!

[jule1]

Originally Posted by Aeroman

Oz is a hack.

I'm beginning to agree! I am losing respect for him fast! I've written to his show (numerous times) before about addressing ad withdrawal but never heard back.

[jule1]

He's supposed to have some brain smoothie on here or something but haven't seen it yet.

[carolyn]

Originally Posted by jule1

The exercise WON'T matter if you are on an ad!!!

I disagree with this. I think that exercise (mental and physical) is always useful for heath, regardless if one is currently on meds.

[jule1]

Originally Posted by carolyn

I disagree with this. I think that exercise (mental and physical) is always useful for heath, regardless if one is currently on meds.

Carolyn,

I'm saying that when I was on Effexor doing 45 minutes of cardio and 45 minutes of strength training 3-5 times/week I was DEVELOPING heath problems like weight gain, cardiac arrythmias, etc.

I know plenty of people on these meds that exercise their heart out and still cannot lose weight or get their health under control.

The healthiest option for your body and brain I am saying is exercise without the meds. Of course I am not talking about people that are tapering if that's what you're implying.

[carolyn]

No, I'm implying (well, I'm not actually implying, I'm flat-out saying) that I think exercise is good for anyone, regardless of whether they're on ADs or not.

Obviously the drugs can cause weight gain, palpitations, etc, but I firmly believe that doing even mild exercise is good for overall health.

If the choice is "I'm on meds and am exercising" vs "I'm on meds and am not exercising," I think the former is healthier.

[Norma]

Hey, maybe he is really the wizard of Oz...



You know, the guy that pretends he is big and powerful that hides behind the curtain. He is really just a small guy that doesn't know much.

Norma

[Junior]

Originally Posted by jule1

Did anyone see his show on depression today??

He talks about how depression is a "chemical imbalance" and how if you are depressed for two weeks you have depression!!!

And OF COURSE they are promoting medication!!!

This kind of misinformation just infuriates me!!!

And EVERY symptom they describe as depression (i.e. sleeping 14 hours a day) I NEVER experienced until 2 years ON Effexor!

I'd like to put him in the "truth tube"!!

Low mood for at least two weeks IS a symptom of depression. As are changes in one's sleeping pattern. Some people over sleep..some can't sleep. So, according to DSM criteria, he is right.

As to whether medication can help.... that is the debatable bit. It has certainly helped me.

If you didn't suffer any of the symptoms they described before going on Effexor, then you obviously weren't suffering depression. I can't remember, is that why you were put on it?

[scotia21]

However, they never seem to address the fact that most people suffering from depression have situational depression due to life circumstances. Taking a pill isn't going to change life. People who have lost loved ones have the right to grieve and be depressed for ever how long it takes them to heal. People who have lost jobs or money have the right to feel bad about it and they may feel bad for much longer than two weeks. Life is messy sometimes and telling people that they shouldn't feel bad when bad stuff happens doesn't help the human race at all. We were given emotions for a reason. Being human is NOT a disease !

[jule1]

Originally Posted by scotia21

However, they never seem to address the fact that most people suffering from depression have situational depression due to life circumstances. Taking a pill isn't going to change life. People who have lost loved ones have the right to grieve and be depressed for ever how long it takes them to heal. People who have lost jobs or money have the right to feel bad about it and they may feel bad for much longer than two weeks. Life is messy sometimes and telling people that they shouldn't feel bad when bad stuff happens doesn't help the human race at all. We were given emotions for a reason. Being human is NOT a disease !

Well said! I agree completely!

[jule1]

Originally Posted by Junior

Low mood for at least two weeks IS a symptom of depression. As are changes in one's sleeping pattern. Some people over sleep..some can't sleep. So, according to DSM criteria, he is right.

As to whether medication can help.... that is the debatable bit. It has certainly helped me.

If you didn't suffer any of the symptoms they described before going on Effexor, then you obviously weren't suffering depression. I can't remember, is that why you were put on it?

No junior I was not put on meds for depression. A gp handed it to me like candy for some sleep issues. And I don't believe in the DSM Junior since I know people who are six foot under thanks to it and withdrawal. These medications do not cure or help anyone IMO and should only be reserved for the most extreme cases. I don't understand the pro med thinking...that a pill will cure everything. I think that it's good ol support, exercise, diet, faith, etc. that help us through the toughest times in life.

[palm]

Originally Posted by scotia21

However, they never seem to address the fact that most people suffering from depression have situational depression due to life circumstances. Taking a pill isn't going to change life. People who have lost loved ones have the right to grieve and be depressed for ever how long it takes them to heal. People who have lost jobs or money have the right to feel bad about it and they may feel bad for much longer than two weeks. Life is messy sometimes and telling people that they shouldn't feel bad when bad stuff happens doesn't help the human race at all. We were given emotions for a reason. Being human is NOT a disease !

Thank you for saying what I wanted to articulate but couldn't.

Palm

[horizon]

Dr. Oz is an idiot

[Bina2008]

YES, he is an idiot. Everyone makes fun of him. Honestly, show me a good doctor who likes to show off on TV!! It's all about the $ and med firms...
Just DON't watch his show! Why would u wanna watch such a freak?? We have more knowledge than the idiot! I find all TV shows, are just advertising something. If it's not ADs, there is something else they wanna make $ from. How do u think all the marketing firms make that much $?! and of course the pharma companies. See how many advocates they have running around promoting some sort of poison.
To hell with all of them...

[Jess_Reyna]

Sorry to disagree, but I actually really like Dr. Oz.

Originally Posted by Junior

Low mood for at least two weeks IS a symptom of depression.

According to a show of hands at the APA. It's an arbitrarily defined criterion and could have just as easily been a week or 8 days or 714 seconds for that matter. Disease is not something defined by a consensus vote, not in the rest of medicine anyway but that's certainly what the APA would have people believe. And unfortunately those beliefs have profound implications, as can be seen here. We're living the consequences of those lies. There really isn't even a need to discuss whether the drugs are effective because if you look at the underlying assumptions that lead to them the whole paradigm of depression falls like a house of cards. Logically you can't measure whether they effectively treat a non-existent chemical imbalance. If we re-framed depression, or rather THEY since I don't have the power to define reality like the APA does nor am I guessing do you, what would the outcomes look like? It may sound like splitting hairs but it isn't--imagine if they called it "You lost your job" as opposed to depression? Would it not follow that you would go look for another job or try to get your old job back, instead of basically being told to have a few pills (or more like a lot of pills, even a lifetime of pills) and it will all be better? Or what if they called it "vit. D deficiency" or "side effect of muscle relaxant" or "existential crisis" or "abuse" or "lack of community"? Sorry Junior I'm not ranting at you, just thinking out loud. I sincerely hope you continue to feel better.

Jule, not everyone is going to listen to Dr. Oz. I found TV shows often were major triggers--all they had to do was mention a drug and I felt much worse. Eventually a friend who went through a really hard series of reactions told me that "the war can wait" and that I needed to focus on my recovery. Put your health first! Don't let Oz mess with you! :-) And sorry for hijacking.

[WhatIsNormal]

I hate Dr. Oz. And I don't need anymore "doctor shows" in my life either. My TV is generally tuned to NBC during the days when I am home out of habit rather I am paying attention to it or not, but with their Dr. Oz and the Doctors now I'm really gonna hafta find new background noise b/c as someone with health anxiety, do I really need anymore television programming to scare the sh*t outta me? I mean the nightly news does a good enough job lol

Dr. Oz totally disgusts me. I don't know why but he does. One reason is because one of his shows I saw he was talking about chemicals and such in water and basically how our water was going to kill us and he literally told all the mothers in the audience that it was THEIR responsibility to make sure their water wasn't poisoning their family. No, he didn't say parents, moms & dads, dads... he said "moms, this is your responsibility" and of course those poor women in the audience looked horrified.