Depression Expert Deborah Gray shares Depression management news and commentary at MyDepressionConnection.com. The HealthCentral Network, Inc. (www.HealthCentral.com) is one of the top health destinations on the Web, with more than 35 condition-specific, wellness and general health Web properties. http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18 http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/rss self application/xml en-us 15 120 19 http://www.healthcentral.com/images/hc_logo_sm.gif http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18 http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/32682/natural-depression Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:20:00 -0400 Deborah Gray Since I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, several people have suggested bee stings as an alternative treatment to the interferon beta shot I do once a week. The first time a helpful soul suggested it, I was stupefied for a minute. I mean, honestly. How is being stung by bees preferable in any way to medication? Granted, my interferon medicine does have side effects, but what would make anyone think bee stings are free from side... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/32682/natural-depression http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/30606/antidepressant Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:39:00 -0400 Deborah Gray Yay! I think we may have solved the problem with my new antidepressant and gaining weight. A couple of weeks ago, I made the connection between starting Lamictal about three months ago and my recent weight gain. The purpose of the Lamictal is to augment the Wellbutrin I'm taking for my unipolar depression. It has been successful in that respect. However, despite exercising a lot more in the past three months, I've gained eight pounds. This... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/30606/antidepressant http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/29074/causing-depression Tue, 27 May 2008 16:50:00 -0400 Deborah Gray Unless we're independently wealthy, most of us spend a large part of our waking hours at work. Our "second homes" can contribute positively or negatively to our well-being. If you're suffering from depression, it's worth asking yourself if your job could be a factor, or even the sole cause. Perhaps your job isn't a good fit with your personality. I found over the years that, probably because of my Attention Deficit Hyperactivity... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/29074/causing-depression http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/28943/abusive-mental Mon, 26 May 2008 15:21:00 -0400 Deborah Gray As I've discussed previously, the work environment can cause or exacerbate depression. While factors such as abusive co-workers, a work environment that don't fit your personality or the type of work you're doing can make affect your mental health, in my mind, no one aspect of the workplace can put more stress on your day to day work existence than an abusive boss. I've had my share of mediocre and/or unpleasant bosses over the years,... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/28943/abusive-mental http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/28814/antidepressants Sat, 24 May 2008 22:09:00 -0400 Deborah Gray I was really skinny as a child, all the way through high school, until I went on the pill. In those days, the hormone mix for the Pill was pretty crude, and I gained a lot of weight, which I fortunately lost when I went off of it. But before the pill, I was scrawny, although my appetite was normal. I even tried downing milkshakes with raw eggs to gain weight, but I was still stick thin.Once I hit 30, my metabolism slowed down, but I still... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/28814/antidepressants http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/26942/kitchen-curtains Sun, 04 May 2008 19:32:00 -0400 Deborah Gray One corner of the kitchen in our 1950s ranch is all windows. Ceiling to hip height three-foot wide windows that let in the incredibly strong California sun. When we first moved here a little over two years ago, I had no idea how strong that sun was, and I made simple short cafe curtain ruffles just to decorate the tops of the windows. I didn't want to block the view of the back yard. That summer I found out just how relentless the sun can... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/26942/kitchen-curtains http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/25943/health-care Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:29:00 -0400 Deborah Gray I think I've come up with a great way to save money on medical bills. Let's face it, they can be ridiculously high, and not everything is covered by insurance. Even though I have good medical insurance from UC Berkeley, we still get billed $50 for emergency room visits, $35 higher than the copay at the doctor's office.   I can only assume the higher copay for the emergency room is to discourage you from going there. Because, you... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/25943/health-care http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/25051/child-bullied Sun, 13 Apr 2008 21:49:00 -0400 Deborah Gray I described in my last SharePost how I had been bullied for years during my childhood, both physically and emotionally. As you can imagine, it's painful to dredge these memories up, although to be honest, I wonder if they ever really went too far under the surface. I think that this is the real danger of bullying. Even if the child makes it through a bullied childhood physically intact, there is no way that he or she is not affected... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/25051/child-bullied http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/24848/bullying Thu, 10 Apr 2008 17:37:00 -0400 Deborah Gray         I was bullied through much of my childhood, beginning when I was seven years old, which was when we moved from New Jersey to a wealthy town in Connecticut in which sports were worshipped. I was, to put it mildly, not very good at sports. Not only was I somewhat uncoordinated, but my Attention Deficit Disorder (or complete lack of interest) caused me to space out when the phys-ed teacher was explaining... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/24848/bullying http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/22771/rates-spring Mon, 24 Mar 2008 21:06:00 -0400 Deborah Gray We often hear that suicide rates are highest during the holidays. I even heard a character in a Christmas TV movie warn about the risk during the last holiday season. Seems to make sense, in a way. After all, the holiday season even has its own syndrome - the holiday blues. Many people are stressed out, and for anyone who's alone and depressed, the contrast between the ideal of the holidays and reality can be hard to take. Here's the... http://www.healthcentral.com/depression/c/18/22771/rates-spring