Public lecture focuses on depression, how to fight it

By Tatsuya Tsujimura

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kirakira25 at 10:21 PM JST - 7th September

Yes Dolphingirl, I picked up on that too - "relaxation and drugs" - and this from a professor at a Japanese medical university, which pretty much says it all really.

A lot depends on the trigger - if it is a life-changing event like a bereavement or a divorce - drugs will help and the patient should make a full recovery with time.

If the problem is trauma, learned behaviour from childhood, or a disposition towards depression, then the problem becomes a lot more complex, and coping mechanisms need to be learned in order to change reponses to stressors, through therapy in addition to medication. CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) has made some significant inroads in certain types of disorder, but the solutions are as complex and individual as the patients themselves, and unlike pathological disease, what works for one may not work for another.

WMD - sadly, I think you are absolutely right. Japans coping mechanisms of the past just dont seem to work anymore in today`s world but they seem unwilling and/or unable to adapt and as you say 30,000+ is the result.
Triple888 at 12:40 AM JST - 8th September

If the economy is in good shape who on earth would waste time on being depressed. The best cure is not from doctors but from the government.
scubajim at 04:07 AM JST - 8th September

I think prozac is illegial in Japan.
kirakira25 at 07:35 AM JST - 8th September

It is not prescribed but you can bring it into the country as a prescription medication if you get it from a doctor outside Japan. The rules are technically 2 months worth of prescription only, but I think for long-term meds prescribed by a physician they are reasonably fair about it.
kirakira25 at 07:36 AM JST - 8th September

If the economy is in good shape who on earth would waste time on being depressed

Because for the majority of people depression is not driven by the state of the economy. If it was, there wouldn`t be such a huge problem in Sweden.
bluesbrother at 11:18 AM JST - 8th September

I see several posters here claiming that SSRIs like prozac is not available here in Japan. This is plain wrong. My psychiatrist have many different types of antidepressants available. I initially got a SSRI prescribed, but it had a bad effect on me, so I switched to a tricyclic antidepressant which took away my depressive symptoms within a month. I continued the treatment for another couple of months. Unfortunately the symptoms returned a while after I cut the medicines. My doctor's solution: more medicines. So, while I have only exprience with one doctor, and no experience with treatment in the west, it seems to me, too, that Japan is lagging behind on psychotherapy. From what I read, CBT is becoming state-of-the-art treatment in the west, while my doctor hasn't even mentioned the possibility. AFAIK, the national health insurance only covers medicine, not psychotherapy, thus it is a fairly expensive option. But educating myself helped my quite a bit. As opposed to the old freudian therapeutic methods, CBT is pretty straightforward and intuitive. A book is not a substitue for therapy with a professional, but it is certainly a lot better than nothing.
womanforwomen at 12:51 PM JST - 8th September

bluesbrother wow, you had to go through so much. As other posters have pointed out, just drugs and therapy alone is not good enough. Sometimes lifestyle changes are needed. Family support a must. This is from my own experience.
NeoJamal at 05:09 PM JST - 8th September

Just like obesity, it's a disease of affluence and idleness.
illsayit at 06:00 AM JST - 9th September

What a load of hogwash; affluence and idleness? Its calling it a disease that is the problem. Though saying to be at dis-ease would be right. It gives all the so-called educated lot a pole to judge you by. Yepp, youve reached the 2 week mark-you are definitely depressed. Take 2 of these and youll be happy? Pay me, and I will judge you Ok enough to not be depressed.
DeepAir65 at 07:27 AM JST - 9th September

kirakira25 makes some excellent points.

I was/am convinced my wife has post-partum depression but the attitude I got when I suggested it and let's go get some help was that I wanted to lock her up in a mental institution and take her son away.

Needless to say I was gobsmacked! Nothing could have been further from the truth.

Japan HAS to change it's attitude to depression and understand what it is
bluesbrother at 08:02 AM JST - 9th September

DeepAir65, please bear in mind that your wife's reaction is likely due to the depression itself, not (solely) due to society attitudes. Surely it hurts to be accused of what you were accused of, but I hope you can bear with it. As womanforwomen points out: Family support is a must. Is there a doctor she already knows and feels confortable talking to? Is there someone at the birth clinic who can educate her on post-partum depression? If she still refuses to go, is there a chance you could go there yourself and get her some leaflets on the subject?
kirakira25 at 08:32 AM JST - 10th September

I see several posters here claiming that SSRIs like prozac is not available here in Japan

SSRIs ARE available - Luvox and Paxil are both SSRIs. Prozac is NOT licensed in Japan BUT you may be able to get it privately through an american licensed doctor, and you can bring it into Japan on prescription.

DeepAir65 - so sorry to hear what you and your family are going through. It is very hard to even recognise in yourself at first, and a lot of women - wherever they are from - delay getting help because they think they are just tired/it will get better/there`s nothing wrong with them. But there are some significant differences between post-birth blues and post-natal depression (or PN "Illness" as some dippy westerners like to call it now to "avoid the stigma").

Keep supporting her, chat about it generally and gently push her in the direction of help over time if you think she needs it. Seems to me that she is very lucky to have a husband like you! She will feel a million times better with the right help and it is often once you are feeling better that you can then look back and see how bad it actually was!
Justuju at 02:49 PM JST - 12th September

Modern depression is a product of Conumerism too. Too many things to choose from,versus very limited resources to obtain them. This is one of the areas that the researchers need to look in to.
Justuju at 02:50 PM JST - 12th September

Modern depression is a product of Consumerism too. Too many things to choose from,versus very limited resources to obtain them. This is one of the areas that the researchers need to look in to.
Weasel at 04:13 PM JST - 12th September

The two basic treatments for depression are relaxation and drugs

Sounds like living a college kid's lifestyle