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Comment by LatteLazy | Hacker News Reader

I think I'm going to sign up for one of these, or just start trying things (I heard ketamine is also effective) in March.

I've had severe clinical depression on and off for 12 years now. I've had all the SSRIs, none worked. I've tried the SNRIs and they worked a bit 8 years ago, but aren't working at all now. I started lithium a week ago, that's not having much effect so far (dose should be reviewed next week). I think the latest term in the US is Major Mood Disorder.

Only around 30% of people with depression ever find an antidepressant that works for them. So for all the SSRIs, SNRIs, Tricyclics and other, the SUM effectiveness is 30%.

There's really very little left on the menu and I have no expectation it will work.

So, anyone got any experience with self treatment?

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There are less known causes of depression, where medications won't help - for example, if I ask you did you ever have ear infections as a child and were any of them painful - if your answer is yes, then I'd direct you to a specific therapy and a book that explains how that can lead to blocks in development and a depressed nervous system.

Ayahuasca has helped me, MDMA as well, and a sound therapy I did in my early 20s dramatically shifted my life - as to what I'm referring to in my previous paragraph; prior to the sound therapy, which you can actually do a diagnostic audiogram to check for imbalances in hearing to confirm an issue, I would have been considered to have Aspergers - though never formally diagnosed, after the sound therapy I connected to emotion and my body again that I didn't know I was partially to fully disconnected/blocked from, which had an effect of hypersensitivities as well.

I’ve actually struggled a lot with depression and had many many painful ear infections as a child. Do you mind sharing that information on the book and therapy with me? Thanks!

The book is called "Hearing Equals Behaviour: Updated and Expanded" - can be found on Amazon - and the sound therapy is called Berard AIT or Auditory Integration Training; unfortunately there are people who claim to offer it, or have "at home" sessions they'll sell you where you rent equipment - however it's not the same high-end equipment that should be used, so "buyer beware." There are other sound therapies on the market that are reaching mainstream via well-written books, however the actual products they released don't seem to actually follow the AIT protocol and logically they shouldn't have anywhere near the same level of efficacy due to a few factors. I do know of a gentle old man in Montreal, Quebec, who was trained directly by Dr. Berard.

Thanks. I didn't really have any ear infections as a child. It's useful for me to know there are still things to try that worked for others.

Painful ear infections is one hypothetical source of disruption to the nervous system, it's possible, probably, that other extremely painful experiences during childhood - when there's rapid nervous system development - could also impact/block development - cause development delays or reduction in capability or hyper/hypo-sensitivities. But yes, it can be comforting to know there are more options out there to explore.

I'm in the same boat as I went through multiple antidepressants with nothing to show for taking them over the last few years.

The way I turned it around was self medication with microdosing THC. Not sure where you are but where I live weed edibles are legal and I can ensure that I always take the same dose. Depending on how I feel I consume 2.5 mg of THC every other day and occasionally do a weekend blast with 10mg. Since I do that no more than once per week I can still get high on mere as little as 7.5mg and it gives me a mood boost for a couple of days and if I hit the funk I'll microdose with 2.5mg once per day. Been doing this for a few months and it's working like a charm. I hope I don't build up tolerance and lose the effect over time.

I tried like 8 antidepressants and never found one that helped me. I also tried psychedelics and they didn't help me, though the dose probably wasn't high enough.

What helped was intensive daily group therapy and behavioural modifications, as well as becoming more social.

Depression has many causes. Good luck finding yours.

Thanks, I am glad you seem on the right path!

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