Cutting

Cutting or self-injury is something that some teens (and even tweens) do as a coping mechanism. Usually, a teen is ashamed of this behavior and does everything that they can to hide it.

This form of self-abuse is a cry for help but one that is often not seen. A teen does this because the act of inflicting pain upon oneself releases endorphins in the brain that make you feel better.

Depression or anxiety issues are usually at the root of this kind of behavior. The teen doesn't feel comfortable enough to ask for help or feels so ashamed about what they are doing that they withdraw into their own world and keep this secret from family and friends.

A disturbing trend is beginning to happen however. Teens who do this self-injury are posting the videos of what they do and YouTube is finding that other teens are watching.

Self-injury videos on YouTube often have a message to other teens that makes these videos helpful. Many encourage teens to get help for this behavior. Some cutters will share why they cut themselves and offer up advice to other teens who may feel the need to hurt themselves.

Other videos seems to be a form of reality entertainment for some. That is disturbing that someone would tune in to see someone else perform a dangerous stunt or to view someone's scars from their self-mutilation.

Cutting and self-injury is a symptom of a troubled teen. Parents and other adults need to be aware of teens at risk for this kind of behavior. Even if your teen is not troubled, talking about this kind of behavior is important. We need to make our teens aware that cutting is not a way to solve problems.

Talk to the tweens and teens in your life about cutting, self-injury and what they like to watch on YouTube.
Open dialog can help.

Alternative Treatments for Depression

Depression treatment in the United States is usually a pharmaceutical anti-depressant and talk therapy. Many people who are being treated for depression forego the talk therapy and just rely on the drug to "cure" them.

Alternative medicine is not usually discussed by most primary care physicians or mental health professionals.

Why not?

Anti-depressants are good for side effects and it takes time to find the "right" medicine to help a patient. The dosage often needs to be adjusted and in the meantime, the person is still depressed. Often a doctor will prescribe an additional medication to go along with the anti-depressant. I call it a "booster" drug.

Why do they do this if the first drug is not working?

Perhaps taking a look at alternative medicine is the answer. Therapies like accupuncture can help to put the body back into balance. No drugs involved.

Vitamin supplements can cure depression because sometimes the true cause of a person's depression is a vitamin deficiency.

Just because you take a daily multi-vitamin supplement doesn't mean that your body still can't be suffering from a deficiency.

Your body needs certain vitamins and minerals in order to function properly. Many of us do not get these important nutrients from the food we eat.

Then there are the outside influences such as stress, pollution and too much "bad" foods like fast food, relying on caffeine to get us through our hectic days and it is easy to see how our bodies could be lacking.

If you have been diagnosed with depression, don't think that alternative medicine cannot help you. Many modalities have been around for centuries.

Pharmaceutical fixes are more profitable and that is one reason why they are more accepted.

There is nothing wrong with going this route but there are other options. Many people have found success through combining alternative therapies with newer treatments for depression.

Depression is a treatable mental illness. Don't give up hope that you will feel better soon but also realize that there is no "magic" pill that will make it go away.

Find a practioner who will explore why you are experiencing these symptoms. It could be as simple as a Vitamin B deficiency.

Antidepressant Danger

Let me first start out by saying that I am not "against" antidepressants, I am against doctors prescribing them too quickly.

In order to cure your depression , a doctor needs to first rule out other medical conditions.

When you go to your primary care doctor and complain of tiredness, not feeling yourself, aches and pains, no energy and other common symptoms of depression, ruling out an existing medical problem should be first on the doctor's list.

Everyone is different. Our individual pain thresholds are unique. A common cold can be an excuse for one person to stay home from work whereas another person could be walking around with a serious case of pneumonia without complaining much about it.

Even if you tell your doctor your symptoms, doctors are only human. They can misdiagnose. Primary care physicians often prescribe an antidepressant when a patient presents with what they feel are obvious symptoms of depression.

If you throw in that you have been having some personal obstacles in your life such as financial stress, the doctor will probably think that all the stress has caused you to be suffering from depression and may not look any further.

Coincidentally, you may have stress from obstacles in your personal life and also a serious medical condition brewing whose symptoms may mirror those of depression.

Recently, this happened to someone I know. She now is battling cancer. Although she declined taking an antidepressant when first diagnosed, her condition worsened because the doctor was not treating her for any other ailment.

Another "band-aid" was given to deal with her "aches and pains". Pain medication. Although she only was using it to try and get some sleep, the true source of her pain was not being investigated.

Hopefully it isn't too late to cure her. It is a frightening outcome to what can happen to a person who is not a complainer, who pushes on even though they are not feeling right and is having a tough time dealing with the every day pressures of life like many of us are.

How many of us have worries about our personal finances in this tough economy? How many of us deal with normal issues like aging parents, rebellious teenagers, adult children who are going through a hard time or cars that keep breaking down?

It is called life. Diagnosing mental illness is tough. It can take many sessions with a trained mental health professional in order to properly diagnose someone. The person who is suffering just wants relief.

Primary care doctors can help someone who is truly depressed by starting them off on an antidepressant and pointing the way to a psychiatrist who can better determine the depth of their illness. A primary care doctor should practice what they know.

Ruling out all other medical reasons why a patient is presenting with the symptoms that they are complaining about is the first thing that they should be doing.

I have had several primary care physicians who have helped me when I went through my own personal battle with depression. They helped me until I could see someone more qualified. Fortunately for me, they also investigated to make sure that depression was my only medical issue.

Antidepressants should never be seen as a magic pill to fix what is wrong. Even if you are only suffering from depression, antidepressants are only a part of the treatment.

Too many doctors don't look for the reasons why a patient has a complaint. They are too quick to put a "band-aid" on it and fail to investigate why a patient is "sick".

Mental illness treatment may involve medication but it also involves therapy. Treatment is never as simple as taking a pill.

The point of this post is that we need to learn how to listen to our own bodies. Doctors are only human after all and they make mistakes. Make yourself knowledgeable and ASK questions. It is your body and your life.