Serotonin syndrome is the name for a condition when the body has too much serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that regulates many functions, including mood, appetite, and sensory perception. Serotonin syndrome typically occurs when you've taken ...  Read more... »

Sleep disturbances and depression are anything but strange bedfellows. Nearly all depressed individuals experience sleep problems. At least 80% complain of insomnia — difficulty falling or staying asleep. Indeed, early-morning awakening is a hallmark of ...  Read more... »

Depression is the most common mental disorder diagnosed. Two treatments are usually recommended for most people who are experiencing depression: psychotherapy and medication. Medication helps some of the symptoms of depression, while psychotherapy helps ...  Read more... »

The conclusions from the Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) study were published in the American Journal of Psychiatry on November 1, 2006. An overall assessment of the nation's largest real-world study of treatment-resistant ...  Read more... »

Psychiatric drugs, such as antidepressants and antipsychotics, are commonly prescribed to treat a wide variety of mental disorders, such as depression, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. One of the possible side effects of ...  Read more... »

Sexual side effects and one's libido are an important issue when it comes to antidepressant medications and depression itself. All too often, this issue is ignored when antidepressants are prescribed by a family physician or ...  Read more... »

It is estimated that millions of people in the U.S. suffer from imaginary illnesses, including a rise in recent years in food intolerances. Are we really a nation of hypochondriacs? The "worried well," it would ...  Read more... »

Depression in bipolar disorder is an important component of bipolar disorder. Yet most bipolar research prior to a few years ago focused more on the overall treatment of the disorder rather than treatments ...  Read more... »

Depression is not a one-size-fits-all condition. Mental health professionals have long recognized that patients tend to display reasonably distinct clusters of clinical symptoms, and they increasingly regard such clusters as subtypes of depression. The boundaries between ...  Read more... »

When stress builds up, there is the potential for it to develop into longer-term problems. Anxiety and depression both are extremely widespread in the modern world, so an awareness of the common symptoms may help ...  Read more... »

Antidepressants are medicines used to help people who have depression. With the help of these depression medications, most people can achieve significant recovery from depression. Antidepressant drugs are not happy pills, and they are not a ...  Read more... »

Most women have some symptoms, whether physical or emotional, related to their periods. Symptoms are present during the five days before a woman gets her period and then disappear within a day or two of ...  Read more... »

What is Effexor? Effexor's chemical structure is unlike any other antidepressant. It works to restore the balance of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters -- specifically serotonin and norepinephrine. Effexor is in a class of medicines ...  Read more... »

It's the quintessential human emotion, says New Brunswick, N.J., psychologist Michael Lewis, Ph.D., in his writings. All extravagant behaviors are reactions to it, says Philadelphia psychiatrist Donald I. Nathanson, M.D. It's the root of dysfunctions ...  Read more... »

The kind of depression that will most likely benefit from treatment with medications is more than just "the blues." It is a condition that is prolonged, lasting two weeks or more, and interferes with a ...  Read more... »