The First Vicious Cycle: “The Depression Cycle”
The First Vicious Cycle: “The Depression Cycle” That is to say an endless loop or a recurring pattern. As long as you have this unresolved conflict and you don’t have the proper resources to solve the problem, your brain is going to be busy trying to solve the problem using whatever resources it can, even if they aren’t the right ones. And as long as that’s happening, you’re going to feel depressed and experience most of the symptoms of depression if not all and it can get worse because as long as your mind is trying to solve the problem, you’ll keep experiencing the symptoms.
Now if we flip it and if we look at it from the bottom to the top, from the root cause to the symptoms of depression, you can expect to identify with and/or to experience any of the following:
It starts like this…
Something bad happened (a traumatic event or a series of traumatic events) and has created an unresolved conflict inside your mind. You don’t have the proper resources to solve it or figure it out in a way that stops it from bothering you. This will cause symptoms of depression to remain until the problem is solved. Your mind will continue to try to solve the problem. Your mind will use the available resources and most likely will try to find additional resources to assist it in its job (and that’s probably why you’re here now).
As your mind continues trying to solve the problem, you will most likely experience the following symptoms.
You might find yourself losing weight or your weight may fluctuate abnormally. Your appetite may decrease. You may find yourself craving things.
You might have a hard time sleeping and if you wake up during the night, you might have a hard time falling back asleep.
You might find yourself waking up earlier than usual.
You might find yourself feeling tired during the day.
You might feel like you don’t have any energy.
You might find yourself having a low or reduced level of sexual interest or desire.
You might find that you have a hard time thinking, focusing or concentrating.
You might feel indecisive.
You might find yourself having unexplained reactions that link back to what your thinking or what you’ve experienced that’s bothering you – flashbacks.
You might find yourself feeling worthless or guilty.
You might feel sick or have aches and pains for no apparent reason.
You might feel depressed or cranky or irritable. You might not feel like doing things you used to enjoy.
You might not feel interested in most things.
You might have a hard time feeling pleasure.
You might be feeling distressed or impaired in important areas of life. You might be considering suicide.
You might even be planning suicide.
You might have even planned suicide already. You might have already tried suicide.
All of this is the result of an unresolved conflict in your mind, which underlies and leads to the symptoms of “Depression” and has been caused by a “Traumatic Event.”
Imagine what life was like with out this problem and how good things could be. Imagine what it could be without this problem, how much freedom you can have.
Imagine having someone you dearly love standing in front of you right now. Imagine seeing them going through all of the bad stuff listed in the sections above, now that you are becoming more aware of what’s really happening.
Now, as you look at that person that you really care for and want the best for, knowing what you know now, and seeing them going through all of these troubling thoughts and trying desperately to solve this problem without the right tools. As you realize that there’s no escape doing it the way they are doing it.
What would it take for you to take action and help that person? How fast would you get completely motivated, or more motivated than you’ve ever been before and decide to take action now and get help for that person?
Now imagine that person is you and you’ve been standing in front of a mirror all this time, seeing what’s really going on. Now as you step back in to yourself and turn around to go about your day having these new understandings inside your mind.
As you keep reading, ask yourself what’s your next step? What are you willing to invest in yourself to solve this problem? How quickly are you willing to invest in yourself to solve this problem? How committed are you to getting the outcome you want?
When it comes to Depression, Drugs Only Mask The Symptoms.
Consider the following excerpt from an article in Mental Health News by Sunny Wiseman entitled “Antidepressant Use May Not Prevent Depression Relapse”:
“A growing concern about relapse of depression symptoms has sparked recent controversy. Recently, a study analyzed statistics of depression relapse in patients who stopped taking antidepressant medications, and it was discovered that at least two-thirds of patients who will relapse would do so in the first six months of stopping medication for depression. The study was undertaken to determine the role that antidepressant medication plays in the depression relapse after remission of symptoms and ways to help prevent future episodes of depression.
The study, led by Brian Briscoe, M.D. of the University of Louisville, Kentucky, analyzed research from 16 studies on antidepressants and prevention of depression in order to ascertain an understanding of medication’s effect on depression relapse. It also aimed to address the growing controversy about the effectiveness of long-term use of antidepressants in preventing future bouts of depression. The studies used in this project focused on patients who were treated for at least three bouts of major depression and successfully attained remission of all symptoms for at least four weeks after the last episode. Patients were then assigned to take either an antidepressant medication or a placebo.
After eighteen months of antidepressant or placebo treatment, relapse rates were analyzed and it was determined that 10% to 30% of patients on the antidepressant medication relapsed, while 25% to 80% of patients taking the placebo relapsed.
Overall, patients on the placebo regimen worsened in terms of depression relapse, but the rate of relapse in those study participants taking an antidepressant was significantly high, as well, indicating that relapse is likely despite medicinal assistance.
Overall, the study determined that 67% to 85% of patients on the placebo relapsed within six months, with most of the relapse episodes occurring within the first month of stopping regular treatment with an antidepressant medication. Dr. Briscoe, summarizing the study’s findings stated, “If you don’t get depressed within the first six months after coming off the medication, you may not be at any higher risk of being depressed than any other patient.”
What this really means is that the people who relapsed still have the underlying unresolved conflict from the traumatic event. As long as the conflict continues to exist, they will continue to relapse. It’s an endless cycle.
The Second Vicious Cycle: “The Prescription Medication Cycle”
And this introduces The Second Vicious Cycle: “The Prescription Medication Cycle.” As long as the unresolved conflict exists, if you’re on drugs, you’re going to have to stay on the drugs because if you get off the drugs, you’re going to get depressed again over and over until the unresolved conflict is properly resolved. The Drug companies hope that you never resolve the conflict because it’s how they make money on a recurring basis with everyone.
Consider this: the average duration of the course in taking prescription meds according to NAMI is 5.5 years, which equates to and average of $113.80 monthly and adds up to $7,499.42 over 5.5 years in out of pocket expenses per person.
That was back in 2006, costs only rise with inflation.
Now consider what you could have if you didn’t have to spend that money on meds and you could have invested it. $113.63 invested monthly with 10% compound interest over 5.5 years would yield an additional $2,532.14 in revenue for a total investment value of $10,045.94 in your pocket rather than loosing $7,499.42 in prescription medication costs, and that doesn’t include whatever interest you’re paying out if you put that on a line of credit of any kind. (That’s a difference of $17,545.36.)
The Third Vicious Cycle: “The Ineffective Therapy Cycle”
During the course of the administration of the drugs, they recommend things like depression therapy. The problem with depression therapy i.e. talk therapy is that it rarely ever works because there is no reliable system or methodology to verify or guarantee the result; the desired result being the removal of the conflict. It’s a subjective experience. If the counselor is good and you are a willing participant who will work hard to deal with the trauma causing the depression, you might get good results. If the counselor is bad, well I’m sure you can figure out what happens in that case… when you use rotten eggs to make egg salad, you get rotten egg salad, no secret there…
Further to that most of the therapists will ask you to tell them what happened and to be honest with you, if you’re feeling guilty or yucky about the whole thing, you probably don’t want to talk about it. So long story short you have a situation where, you, the client doesn’t want to talk about the problem and you have a counselor trying to help by using an ineffective therapy model which requires you to talk about the problem. So you end up with the same problem you had before which is an unresolved conflict. You keep doing this once a week or so until finally, you may get tired of seeing the counselor and look for a better option.
The average duration of the course in talk therapy according to NAMI is 5.8 years, which equates to an average of $7,371.00 in out of pocket expenses per person.
Now consider what you could have if you didn’t have to spend that money on therapy and you could have invested it. $105.30 invested monthly with 10% compound interest over 5.8 years would yield an additional $2,747.95 in revenue for a total investment value of $10,224.25 in your pocket rather than loosing $7,371.00 in therapy, and that doesn’t include whatever interest you’re paying out if you put that on a line of credit of any kind. (That’s a difference of $17,595.25.)
Look at the statistics above and it’s pretty clear that one could extrapolate that most of the counselors out there using things like talk therapy aren’t really all that effective, if at all.
Moreover, if you do decide to talk about it, you end up reliving the experience that caused the problem in the first place which inherently has the ability and/or side effect of making things worse for some people. It’s like breaking an arm, then watching it heal a bit and then breaking it again, over and over and over… it sounds, looks and feels like a bad idea because it is a bad idea.
You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t with an ineffective therapy model. If you’ve been through it, you probably know what I’m talking about.
And that’s The Third Vicious Cycle: “Ineffective Therapy Cycle”, because both of those paths lead to the same or worse unresolved conflict and you have to relive the traumatic experience over and over, again and again, – with an ineffective treatment model, this can go on forever. And therapists love this because it brings them continuous streams of income, one for each client they have. Some of them don’t really want you to get better because it’s bad business for them.
The Fourth Vicious Cycle: “The Substance Abuse Cycle”
Alcohol and Drugs
You might even find yourself using alcohol and drugs to turn your brain off or calm your mind. The first part of the brain that shuts off when people drink is the conscious process; that is the part of your mind that reasons things out and of which you’re primarily aware. People do this because they can’t cope with the feelings that the unresolved conflict generates as a result of the traumatic event. It’s quite common, in fact according to NAMI 17% of people who have depression have consumed alcohol excessively. And that’s not all; there are add-on risks to drinking alcohol excessively.
And this introduces The Fourth Vicious Cycle: “The Substance Abuse Cycle”. Alcohol is a depressant in almost every case. What this means is that if you’re already feeling depressed and you drink alcohol, you’re likely to get even more depressed as you find your way going down the downward spiral of depression and this cycle can continue endlessly. If you’re not aware, that it is indeed a cycle, you might be well on your way to experiencing a very dangerous cycle of addiction.
People use alcohol and drugs in an effort to self medicate but these substances cause significantly more harm than good, and some substances which are highly addictive can carry additional risks. A lot of this is seen in depressed people prior to treatment… Here is some information from NMHA’s Campaign for America’s Mental Health:
“When people are depressed, they may experience other health or mental health problems. To relieve the misery of depression, some people turn to drugs or alcohol. Likewise, when people abuse alcohol and/or drugs, depression can develop. On the surface, it may seem like a good idea – to get high, to have fun, to relax, and to escape – but the consequences of alcohol and drug abuse soon become apparent in your life. Like depression, alcohol and drug abuse is serious. Fortunately, it is also treatable and the key to treatment is to recognize the symptoms and to get help. Take a look at this basic information about the connection between alcohol and/or drug abuse and depression.
The Basics
Alcohol abuse does lasting damage. One night of heavy drinking can impair your ability to think well for up to 30 days. Tens of thousands of today’s college students will eventually die of alcohol-related causes, such as accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, heart disease and other diseases. Women are also more likely to develop alcohol-related organ damage, developing liver disease sooner than men, and perhaps increasing the risk for breast cancer.
Behavioral changes and consequences of drug abuse may include changes in overall personality, depression, declining grades, loss of interest in family and friends, over-sensitivity, moodiness, nervousness, paranoia, secretive or suspicious behavior, and excessive talkativeness. Often people also experience difficulty in paying attention, and a general lack of motivation and energy, sometimes characterized by a “who cares” attitude.
Physical changes associated with drug abuse are often changes in eating habits, lack of physical coordination, puffy face, hyperactivity, tremors, excessive sweating, runny nose or hacking cough.
Alcohol abuse can compromise your personal safety. As many as 70% of college students admit to having engaged in sexual activity as a result of alcohol influence, and 90% of all campus rapes occur when alcohol has been used by either the victim or the assailant.
Alcohol lowers inhibitions, and can make people more vulnerable to troublesome situations. When women drink alcohol they are more easily impaired than men, because of the way their body absorbs the alcohol. People’s perceptions of potentially dangerous situations often change when alcohol or drugs are involved.“
Moving forward, alcohol and drugs cost a considerable amount of money. If you’re using them, you know what I mean. It’s a constant drain on your bank account that you could be investing somewhere else not to mention what they do to your health and fitness.
According to NAMI’s report on the cost of depression; 17 % of people dealing with depression have consumed alcohol excessively, 22% of people have taken up smoking or increased the amount of cigarette’s they smoke due to depression and 8% have used illegal drugs or have used drugs recreationally due to depression. According to NAMI’s report the average cumulative cost of these negative experiences is $8,065.80.
What does that really look like on a personal level? Here are a few scenarios…
If you drink a case of beer a week in Canada, that’s $39.50 for Miller Genuine Draft, multiply that by 52 weeks and you’re looking at $2,054.00 yearly. If you’re drinking two cases a week then it’s $4,108.00 yearly. If you’re going through three cases a week then it’s $6,162.00 a year. I’ve seen some clients go through two or three bottles of wine a night, let’s say the average bottle is worth $15.00, that’s $30.00 to $45.00 per night so it’s between $10,950.00 and $16,425.00 per year. A bottle of Vodka (26oz) is $25.95; say you have one of those every couple of days, that’s about $4,735.88 a year in alcohol costs. The costs add up fast… This should help to clarify the impact of using alcohol; I won’t even bother covering the cost of drugs… as outlined above there are significant “Add-On” costs involved in being depressed. And that’s not all…
It Gets Even Worse, Here’s The Real Shot In The Gut!
And it’s a sneaky one…
The Fifth Vicious Cycle: “The Victim of Abuse Cycle”
This isn’t just about getting rid of depression; this is about protecting yourself against other traumatic events that can happen as a result of being depressed. And that’s The Fifth Vicious Cycle: “The Victim of Abuse Cycle”. As long as you’re depressed, you’re an open target for predators and abusers. You’ll attract them like a magnet without even being aware of it. Are you attracting the wrong kind of people in to your life? Those type of people look for people with low self-esteem and to be perfectly honest, substance abuse issues just make it easier for them. As mentioned above, drugs and alcohol just lower your inhibitions. In other words you’re practically defenseless.
If they get to you, and you fall prey to them, you’ll have the makings of another traumatic event on your hands and then things just get a lot worse. They compound.
What this means effectively is that as long as you’re showing symptoms of depression, you’re broadcasting the following message to other people: “I’m a victim and I haven’t done anything about it. Therefore, it’s ok to victimize me!” – And they will. This phenomenon is similar to the law of attraction. It’s like having an antenna mounted on your head attracting more and more bad things to yourself and your loved ones (We’ll explain this shortly in the next section, This isn’t just costing you. It’s also costing your family if you have one). Until you fix the problem; you’re like a deer in headlights…
According to NAMI’s report on the cost of depression; 4 % of people dealing with depression have had encounters with the law due to depression, 6% of people have had fights due to depression.
For all of these reasons (vicious cycles), some people think that depression is impossible to conquer.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” – Albert Einstein
The simple truth is…
Depression is the result of an unresolved conflict inside your mind.
The unresolved conflict is the result of a traumatic event.
If you want to get rid of depression / traumatic memories quickly and easily, just fill out our form below and we’ll set up a call and help you get the results you want for your self:
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