What If Everything We Know About Treating Depression Is Wrong?

[AceWheeler]

11. It's complicated

As a trained clinical psychologist and retired college professor, I can tell you that all so-called "mental disorders" are complex interactions between the individual and his, or her environment. And most "causal" models do NOT rely on single cause-and-effect relationships, such as a lack of serotonin.

Given this, all studies, particularly those with non-humans, are at best suggestive. Researchers attempt to objectify "depression," for example, but they don't really know what a "depressed" mouse looks like. The fact that the mice became aggressive may simply be a sign of what is called "agitated" depression in humans.

SSRs do not work for all people, and I don't know any mental health folks who think serotonin is, in and of itself, the issue. It may be a contributing factor for some, but not everyone.

I think this is an important study, but multivariate analysis using multiple variables correlating with observed and self-reported "depression" in humans will have the best potential predictive validity and guide toward treatment.

Having good heuristics helps the practitioner, but each person must be understood and treated within the context of what and how he, or she, alone thinks and feels and behaves.