There are many people that suffer of depression and stress. It seems it’s a deficit of the brain cells to cause them. Let’s see together what happens to our brain when the anxiety and the depression arrive.
Deficit and depression
In the brain of people with severe forms of depression, the number of astrocytes, an important population of cells that support the neurons, is less than usual.
The discovery of the anomaly of these brain cells confirme the results obtained in a past study about the mental deficits.
Now though there is a new analysis of samples post mortem that gave a new element: some threatments can be useful to solve these deficits and so the anxiety and the depression problems of many people.
Brain and mental deficits
The brain is made by billion of cells, which are called neurons, that communicated between them through electrical pulses and chemical messages. They are sent through the release of some substances, the neurotransmitters, thanks to which the nerve cells “talk” between each other.
The passage of informations between two neurons start with the “release” of the neurotransmitters in the synaptic space by the “transmitter” neuron. The passage of the information happens when the mediators are captured by the receptors of the “receiver” neuron.
After that the mediators are freed by the connections with the receptors of the receiving neuron. Some of them are “destroyed” by the enzyme dall’enzima monoamine oxidase. Others instead went back to the “transmitter” neuron that released them.
Some of these neurotransmitters are connected to the release of substances that push the emotions of the person. An example are the dopamine, the norepinephrine and the serotonin that regulate the tone of humor.
If a person suffers of depression, his brain might have several problems of mental deficit connected to an imbalance between the release and the capturing of these substances.
Neurotransmitters and behaviour
About the role that the neurotransmitters have on the behavour we can say that the serotonin mainly control the impulsiveness. Between the others it’s the protagonist of the suicide thought, of the humor, the hunger and the sleep. Therefore, it regulates the cognitive functions and the sexuality.
That’s mean that the alteration of the levels of serotonin creates problems of humor, sleep, feed and sexual. Basically a deficit of the brain cells of the neurotransmitters affect the behaviour.
Another example? the norepinephrine and the dopamine that mainly control the focusing, the attention, the euphoria, the psychomotor activity, the energy, the motivation and the cognitive functions.
The lack of these neurotransmitters causes a reduction of the psychomotor activity and of the phychic energy, with the consequence lack of interest and the reduction of the working ability. A depressed person has all of these lacks.
The environmental element in the deficit of the brain cells
Unless what we said, it’s good to remember that every person is different.
Even if there is a close connection between the action of the neurotransmitters and the mental deficit that bring to depression, the role made by the organism is always assisted by the one made by the environment.
Temporary alterations of the chemical mediators can be caused by constitutional factors, environmental or the long exposure to stressing situations.
For this reason it’s good to remember that mind and body work together and that even if the medicine threatment can help to increase the release of these neurotransmitters, for the cure of a depressed person affected by mental deficit, it’s always good to study even alternative therapies.
Neurotransmitters and antidepressants
Lastely, after years of study, neurologists, psychiatrist and psychotherapists were able to find the meeting point for the cure of depression and anxiety.
Many times the right compromise is a combined therapy that use both antidepressants and cognitive psychotherapy.
Let’s firstly talk about the antidepressants. We can say that they started to have a medical value around the ’50s. Back in that time the IMAO, inhibitors of the inibitori of the monoamine oxidase were the key element for the cure of the post traumatic stress disorder.
The monoamine oxidase is an enzyme that, after the transmission of the nerve message, “destroyes” serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine in the synaptic space. In this way it increase the focus and the availability of the neurotransmitters in the synaptical space, which allows these IMAO to do an antidepressant action.
Unfortunatelly with the time they discovered that these inhibitors are even toxic especially for the liver and often they are incompatible with the usage of other medicine.
That’s why ywith the time they arrived the TACs, which are the tricyclic antidepressants. They have an antidepressant action mae by the increasing of concentration of the brain neurotransmitters in synaptical space, which solve the depressive symptoms.
Even if they are better toleared by the organism, even these medicines have collateral effects and they aren’t suggested to who suffers of prostatic hypertrophy and severe heart diseases. For this reason in the ’80s they started to use inhibitors of the reuptake of the serotonin, which are perfect for anxiety, dysthymia, eating disorders and obviusly cronic depression.
Therefore, they are the best one if used together with the psycotherapeutic therapy because they stimulate the psychic energy.
Neurotransmitters and psychic energy
The psychic energy is a real energy that makes a vital impetus that pushes us to reach the purposes and the realization of our wishes.
Each one of us has, since our birth, a quantity that change from person to person. This means that there are people that have a higher energy quantity than others.
By using the metaphor of the bank account, someone are born richer and other not. Sure no one has an unlimited quantity so it’s important to keep track of the exit and the entry of this energy.
If a person is exposed, for too much time, to stressing situations that require a release of this energy and these “exits” aren’t balanced with “entries”, it can happen deficit of psychic energy and, coming back to the just mentioned metaphor, the “bank account” brokes.
When this happens, there will appear the typical symptoms of the depression and of the anxiety.
That’s the connection between the medicines, which act biochemical, and the psycotherapy, that mainly acts about the recharge of this psychic energy, which becomes essential to solve the deficit of the brain cells that bring to depression.
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