The Gary Null Blog

By Gary Null

"20% of adults in the U.S. experience one or more depressive episodesVirginia Woolf, Ernest Hemingway, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Gustav Mahler. What did they have in common, other than their great talents? They all suffered from what author Andrew Solomon very appropriately call “The Noon-Day Demon” : Depression. Dr. Jay Lombard, Board Certified Neurologist and former Chief of Neurology at Westchester Square Medical Center, author of “The Brain Wellness Plan,” puts depression at the top of the list of modern epidemics. According to Dr. Lombard, 20% of adults in the U.S. experience one or more depressive episodes, while 5% receive a diagnosis of clinical depression. Of the latter group 15% of the cases end in suicide. An especially alarming trend is the increase of incidence of depression among teens and young adults, and even children. Statistics show that an average of 14 teens kill themselves every day. That’s 5,000 kids a year. It is estimated that 5% of American teenagers currently suffer from depression severe enough to warrant medical treatment, but these numbers may not reflect a much more alarming reality. It is no surprise, given these statistics, that pharmaceutical companies are so eager to fund research aimed at finding effective relief for this life threatening condition. And yet, current drug treatment seems to fall short of expectations. It works sometimes, for some people, but for many it becomes a frustrating juggling act from one drug to another, waiting for as elusive relief that never seems to come, or never seems to stay. And while the initial lessening of symptoms offered by antidepressants is desirable and necessary, it carries the potential for serious, long-term, undesirable side effects such as tardive diskenesia, paranoid and psychotic reactions, and liver malfunctions, among others.