[InfiniteSadness]

I read somewhere mental illness is caused by brain damage.
Or that the meds cause brain damage.
I really hope not.

I believe that mental illness can be caused by damage to the brain and nervous system. My psychiatrist practices 'neuralpsychiatry' and his clinic includes patients with brain injuries. He deals with clients who have birth injuries like CP to those having traumatic damage.

An acquaintance who suffered a horrible injury to his head has bipolar.

[Shazerac]

What I’ve read is the untreated mental illness can cause brain damage. My brother has a traumatic brain injury and he’s definately not playing with a full deck. However he was not right in the head and was an alcoholic before he damaged his brain so it’s hard to tell.

[Aviza]

I was in a car accident and hit my head prior to losing my mind. I'm certain with no family history of this illness that is what caused it.

[InfiniteSadness]

I also read depression can cause brain cell deterioration.

[Emotionally Dead]

I would assume it could be, sure. I definitely don't believe that that is always the case, though.

[cool09]

In the hospital there were people in our group who had traumatic brain injury and had symptoms similar to BPD. Not sure if meds can cause brain damage, I doubt it. They wouldn't be marketed if they did.

[*Laurie*]

Brain damage (head trauma) can cause mental illness. But mental illness certainly does not always come from brain damage.

Untreated mental illness can definitely do damage to the brain.

No one at this time knows whether psych meds cause brain damage or not.

[eskielover]

I was very lucky that the OD'S i did didn't cause any brain damage though I never had migraines or even headaches before that....thkugh my neuroligist at that time (late 90's) thoughtbfore sure the migraines came from a neck injury years before but made it necessary to have neck fusion.

My major depression got better when I left the bad marriage environment I had lived in for 33 years. It was amazing because without living in the stressful environments, my brain could remember more, learn more & converse better & even realize the emotional connections that had been missing all my life. It was like starting life completely over at the age of 54.....

So what I realized in my situation was that living surrounded by stress all my life was the cause of my problems even though I got my degree & had a computer engineering career for 15 years before the breakdown....it had beem building up to that point all my life. Being free from that environment let the internal me out to be free to be what I always thought life should be like.

[InfiniteSadness]

Originally Posted by cool09

In the hospital there were people in our group who had traumatic brain injury and had symptoms similar to BPD. Not sure if meds can cause brain damage, I doubt it. They wouldn't be marketed if they did.

what is Bpd?

[downandlonely]

BPD is borderline personality disorder.

I think that traumatic brain injury can cause mental illness, but it certainly isn't the only cause. I'm pretty sure the depression is genetic for me.

[*Laurie*]

Originally Posted by InfiniteSadness

what is Bpd?

Borderline Personality Disorder.

[still_crazy]

hi. meds -can- cause brain damage. im not saying that to scare you, its just...it can happen. tardive dyskinesia, the tics and such that come from long term tranquilizer/antipsychotic treatment, is one obvious example.

some people w/ brain damage end up w/ various mental illness labels. others do not. some people benefit greatly from psych drugs, others end up w/ adverse effects and few, if any, major benefits.

i wish i could give you better information or...answers, lol. sorry. it is known that some people on high dose, long term antipsychotics/tranquilizers develop "tardive dementia." its a loss of IQ points, overall functioning, etc., clearly caused by "Treatment." It may be more from the heavy-handed doses used up until the 90s or so (20 grams of Haldol per day was once standard...kind of ridiculous...), but its possible that the newer drugs can cause problems, too.

I'm not trying to scare you or anything, its just...there's a whole lot of unknowns in the world of mental health, in part because...very few (important) people feel like asking basic questions.

[eskielover]

The problem also is that each perdon reacts to drugs based on their own personal body chemistry & make up so it is difficult to say what effect one person has will be the same as others.

I don't know what psych drug my pdoc gave me in i
The hospital one time at night but I woke up the next morning unable to move any of my joints or sit up in bed. That was the beginning of realizing that I had bad reactions to any chemicals put into my body....you just never know & my pdoc had never seen that reaction before.

[marvin_pa]

I have it on good authority that life, stressful situations & watching reality TV can be major causes of brain damage!

Seriously though, whilst i've read of studies where sustained MI led to reduced cell development in the brain, those studies also indicated recovery from the MI also allowed recovery of cell growth - the brain is a complex & impressive piece of kit, but that complexity also makes it prone to issues where it's chemistry & programming can go out of whack. Meds are a rudimentary way to try to tweak that situation, but as with any external intervention, can sometimes have unintended/undesired consequences. In the greater scheme of things, being able to function on a daily basis is worth more to me than any long term risks that the meds may entail.

[InfiniteSadness]

Originally Posted by still_crazy

hi. meds -can- cause brain damage. im not saying that to scare you, its just...it can happen. tardive dyskinesia, the tics and such that come from long term tranquilizer/antipsychotic treatment, is one obvious example.

some people w/ brain damage end up w/ various mental illness labels. others do not. some people benefit greatly from psych drugs, others end up w/ adverse effects and few, if any, major benefits.

i wish i could give you better information or...answers, lol. sorry. it is known that some people on high dose, long term antipsychotics/tranquilizers develop "tardive dementia." its a loss of IQ points, overall functioning, etc., clearly caused by "Treatment." It may be more from the heavy-handed doses used up until the 90s or so (20 grams of Haldol per day was once standard...kind of ridiculous...), but its possible that the newer drugs can cause problems, too.

I'm not trying to scare you or anything, its just...there's a whole lot of unknowns in the world of mental health, in part because...very few (important) people feel like asking basic questions.

whats the solution then?. ive been going in and out of hospitals recently.

[Shazerac]

Originally Posted by InfiniteSadness

whats the solution then?. ive been going in and out of hospitals recently.

What are your doctors telling you? I think it’s more important to get treatment then to try to figure whether or not brain injury causes illness, or if Meds damage the brain. There is no definite answer. Of course we all want answers but they just aren’t always there. The important thing is to get help! Be it Meds, therapy or whatever works for you.

[InfiniteSadness]

i read something about anti psychotics or psych meds shrinking the brain...
Now I'm paranoid.

Originally Posted by Shazerac

What are your doctors telling you? I think it’s more important to get treatment then to try to figure whether or not brain injury causes illness, or if Meds damage the brain. There is no definite answer. Of course we all want answers but they just aren’t always there. The important thing is to get help! Be it Meds, therapy or whatever works for you.

Thank you for this. This thread had me worried bc I take meds. My best advice too, is to talk to your doctor. My doctor is awesome, ethical, and super intelligent, and I know will tell me what she knows.

[eskielover]

Honestly....meds will do more damage to the body than to the brain. The excessive weight gain some meds cause is totally unacceptable IMO. the drug companies developing the drugs should work on solutions to this. I iften wonded when taking ond drug ends up causing disbetes. Diabetes is known as the silent killer.

More proven negative physical effects to meds than anything relsted to possible brain damage. I often wonder if drug companies plan it this way....more meds needed for the rest of one's life treating a new ailment that wouldn't have existed if the other drug wasn't needed.

[Unbrokensoulgeron]

Originally Posted by eskielover

I was very lucky that the OD'S i did didn't cause any brain damage though I never had migraines or even headaches before that....thkugh my neuroligist at that time (late 90's) thoughtbfore sure the migraines came from a neck injury years before but made it necessary to have neck fusion.

My major depression got better when I left the bad marriage environment I had lived in for 33 years. It was amazing because without living in the stressful environments, my brain could remember more, learn more & converse better & even realize the emotional connections that had been missing all my life. It was like starting life completely over at the age of 54.....

So what I realized in my situation was that living surrounded by stress all my life was the cause of my problems even though I got my degree & had a computer engineering career for 15 years before the breakdown....it had beem building up to that point all my life. Being free from that environment let the internal me out to be free to be what I always thought life should be like.

I was engaged to be married after six years together. But fortune favours the brave and after a culmination of events I had an epiphany.
There was nothing to look forward to. I didn't want to be one of those mum's who lived their lives through their kids transferring my failures onto their successes. Then they would hate me and wonder why I popped pills and what was wrong with me.
I was going to be like the women at my work who said they wished they had lived their lives before settling down.
His mum would say we would one day get bored with each other and get broody. But with my medication the scientists don't recommend pregnancy. I was in a quandary. Torn between my wishes to have a normal 2.4 children and dog and a "real" job battling against my free spirited desire to see the world and feel like I was really living. In our relationship I felt like I was on the outside looking in. I felt haunted by ghosts of the past that he would never let me get over or forget.
I would have killed myself if I had stayed.

[eskielover]

Torn between my wishes to have a normal 2.4 children and dog

I understand how you felt. I actually had one child. I would NOT compromise beyond that (&I love her & glad I did have her).....but I love my dogs & my 4 legged 3 kid family I have now. I can handle dogs.....not kids

[IrisBloom]

Millions of people take psych meds every day and live full lives. I'm sure there are some who have been damaged further by meds, as well as those who thrive on them. I've been on and off several meds for 30 years and if I have brain damage, well, no one has mentioned it. I was...rather "unique" before too, so...

You need to weigh the potential positive effects vs possible negative effects. Thoroughly research any med you are considering taking. Look on forums like this one to get other's opinions on meds. Definitely discuss the pros and cons with your doc.

I hope you find answers and get the help that is most beneficial to you.

[InfiniteSadness]

Originally Posted by IrisBloom

Millions of people take psych meds every day and live full lives. I'm sure there are some who have been damaged further by meds, as well as those who thrive on them. I've been on and off several meds for 30 years and if I have brain damage, well, no one has mentioned it. I was...rather "unique" before too, so...

You need to weigh the potential positive effects vs possible negative effects. Thoroughly research any med you are considering taking. Look on forums like this one to get other's opinions on meds. Definitely discuss the pros and cons with your doc.

I hope you find answers and get the help that is most beneficial to you.

I guess i could have damage then.
I've tried so many different meds, stopped and then restarted them.
I read certain meds are more potent and therefore more long term effects or side effects.

[eskielover]

What is making you think you have damage from the meds. Exactly what are you experiencing that is making you think this?