Dr. Jan Fawcett

Stress is a condition of life. Being able to cope with stress is a skill that one learns in life. Not coping with stress can lead to worsening of medical conditions and behaviors. Coping with stress can be learned though work with a good mental; health professional.

See a well-trained mental health professional for psychotherapy. This can make the difference between happiness and failure.

Jan Fawcett, MD

Hi,

Postpartum blues is a common condition. It is usually time limited (a few months). Sometimes it is severe - then, we call it a postpartum depression. Then, it leads to fears that you may hurt the baby. In this case, a diagnosis and treatment are indicated. It is time limited, but your mothering is impaired and you need treatment. The cause is considered to be a reaction to hormones which can get out of whack after pregnancy for a time. If you have enough negative feelings to complain, I would recommend that you see a mental health professional - a psychologist or psychiatrist. The advantage of a psychiatrist is the option of medication treatment if necessary. You might talk with your OB/GYN doctor about it.

Jan Fawcett, MD

If a person is constantly fearful that they have some terrible disease, they do not usually enjoy life, which, in my book, is the purpose of life - to be creative and help others to be creative. I would suggest an investment of time and some money in cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy from a therapist that is highly trained in this skill.

JAN FAWCETT, MD

Your sister sounds depressed but I can't make a diagnosis without a chance to examine her. I would suggest that she see a psychiatrist who does psychopharmacology or cognitive psychotherapy, who is capable of making a diagnosis and a treatment plan.

It would help to know what medication you are taking at what dosage. There are basically two type of medication available: There are a number of SSRI's given for OCD --- Luvox, Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, to name a few. Then there is a tricyclic clomipramine - that has more side effects, but is more effective.

Panic attacks can run in families. How often does your friend have them? How severe are they? Does your friend take medication for them? If they are severe enough or often enough, your friend should probably see a psychiatrist who does psychopharmacology.

You should consult a mental health practitioner (psychologist, psychiatrist, or social worker) who is trained in handling OCD.

I would suggest that you see a trained psychotherapist in the area of cognitive psychotherapy.

This is a good question. I would go along with your psychiatrist's opinion and rationale. After all, he/she has provided you with effective treatment.

If he won't accept medical advice - why? He must do this or else he may become more ill. He is probably fearful of what he will have found wrong - he must be confronted about his fear. His chances are much improved if he will see a caring internal medicine provider or a family practitioner.

Physical symptoms are common in depression. Loss of appetite and weight loss are common in more severe forms of depression. Other common physical symptoms are poor memory, and inability to enjoy oneself. many different treatable medical illnesses may need to be ruled out by various tests. Suicidal thoughts or doubts about the value of life may occur. Usually these symptoms occur in more severe depressions. For these reasons one should consult a medically trained doctor (psychiatrist) who can either run certain tests or make a referral to an appropriate medical specialist to be sure that the correct diagnosis is established treated, antidepressant medication can be started if the symptoms are severe and especially if the individual has suicidal thoughts or impulses. PET Scans of the brain show changes when a patient is depressed that revert to normal when depression is successfully treated with medication. (Fawcett et al, "New Hope for People With Bipolar Disorder") Pain is another symptom that can be aggravated by depression. It is especially important to seek treatment if you have suicidal thoughts or impulses along with other symptoms.

It really depends on how severe the "blahs" . How much are you bothered?
There is a condition called a seasonal depression that is treated with bright lights. On the other hand , it is not uncommon for people to feel less happy during times when there is less sun. Based on your description, I might try therapeutic lights. aYou can go on line for a more detailed description. If the blahs include suicidal thoughts you should definitely consult a mental health professional for an evaluation.

A family history of bipolar disorder is associated with it's onset. Situational factors include loss of sleep, severe life stress, too much alcohol or marijuana use can precipitate an initial episode.

Certain antidepressants can cause excessive sleepiness in certain people. I would talk with your prescribing physician and ask if some other antidepressant with a different mechanism of action might help.

You may have seasonal affective disorder. This often responds to therapeutic lights. You should see a mental health professional who is familiar with seasonal affective disorder, to establish a diagnosis.

There are too many factors determining sex drive to give a simple yes or no answer. If your need is causing stress in your marriage, then I would talk with a marriage counselor.

Go to AA meetings - you will learn how to deal with an alcoholic spouse there. I always tell partners in such relationships to get control of the financial assets.

YOU ARE CORRECT - YOU CAN'T FORCE COUNSELING ON A PERSON. It sounds like a good idea give the history you provided. There is a type ion interviewing that asks a person whether not doing any therapy leads to symptoms - trying to force a person into therapy has the opposite result and almost guarantees a poor result.

5 mg is a pretty high dose of Lorazepam. It could cause sleepiness.