Pilots and depression: What to do?

[pilothouston123]

A friend told me that Depression was anger turned inward. Find out why you are angry and try to do something about it or let God handle it.

 

[Lrjtcaptain]

A friend told me that Depression was anger turned inward. Find out why you are angry and try to do something about it or let God handle it.

Let God handle it huh? are you preaching? Long long ago ,this big ball of gas and stuff exploded and created the planets and stars which are still expanding from this central area hence "BIG BANG" oh, and the majority of the stories in the bible are stolen from other stories from other religions.

 

[Lrjtcaptain]

okay, im done talking tonight, im pissed off about work tonight and im taking it out on here. I appologize about all my negative comments, im drunk and pissed and Im not making an excuse. Im appologizing. Fly safe, be nice to your controllers and life is grand. Peace.
MK

 

[Rally]

Depression can be physical and mental. You can have a physical genetic disease such as pyroluria. Basically under stress you piss zinc and b6 out in much much higher amounts then the normal people. End result is lower zinc, rising copper and depression, anxiety, schziophrenia, etc. B-6 drops which is directly responsible for making tryptophan->5HTP->and the serotonin. (feel good hormone). Liver problems can causes depression, according to chinese medicine liver is where the emotions are stored. Every hormone in the body is regulated in the end and disposed of by the liver. Stay away from junk and preservatives. I am speaking at a subclinical level on some of this. Look up many diseases or disorders, and all they are mostly is a body trying to cope with bullcrap, no exercise, what you eat, etc and most of them have depression as a buzz word or fatigue which is inherantly the same thing. Sometimes taking prozac or a drink for that matter is enough to just stop the emotions and reset the clock and let the body reset and get back in to homostsis albeit the wrong method probably. As far as mental, its really just a taxing of your body mainly your adrenal glands which handle stress. Excess stress, caffiene, staying up late, bad lifestyle can cause your adrenals to get tired then stop putting out. (the turn burnt out come from this) Its subclinically called adrenal fatigue. Thinking positively or turning a frown upside down helps so does one again lifestyle. Easier said then done.

I'd be interested to see the amount of pilots that are depressed. Even more interesting would be to see how many of you guys have had anxiety or even panic attacks. Not sure we'd get many to admit it but I bet its more common then we think.

 

[Wyatt]

Im on the road to aclholism with the FAA these days, whatever they can do to make me as miserable of a controller as possible they will do but have some respect for the matter. I resent your comments because even though I didn't start this thread I take this crap seriously because its part of who I am, what I have been and who I am now. While your comments I'm sure were meant to be humorous becasue women are my crutch I find it disrespectful and not a whole lot offends or upsets me, but I've been in the depressed world, I battle it every day of my life and people like you who have no F'n clue make your remarks and think your cute and funny. Well I have a comment for you. F... You!

Right back at ya bunky!

For a guy who doesnt get easily offended or upset you sure are doing a lot of spouting off....Sounds like you dont need to be a controller, or anything else that requires responsibility with your problems. Why dont you quit your pissing and moaning and seek professional help?

Hows that for "cute and funny"?

 

[Gorilla]

Learjtcaptain, you had to know this would come, didn't you? 8/10 posters here sound like a clueless mom - "Cheer up, it's allll in your head." Some of you mean well, and some of you are just mean.

True depression is chemical, it's not just a state of mind. Yes, there are "the blues" that most get occasionally which CAN often be fixed by a rowdy night on the town. But for those that genuinely require meds, it is often a matter of life and death. It's not a joke. The guy wanted to know about getting BACK his medical, not how to snap out of a bluesy state.

I know some of you mean well, but it's a serious issue that can tear people apart. I saw it happen, and I have the utmost respect for that fine balance of dopamine and serotonin which regulates mood. Out of whack brain cocktail = utter and complete misery; I mean physically unable to get out of bed misery.

I wish I had the answer. My "friend" is not a pilot and successfully returned after the correct meds were found, but I'll say this... NOTHING should prevent you, your bud, or anyone else from seeking help. NOTHING. Do what needs to be done, and then work on the license. Good luck to anyone suffering.

 

[sky37d]

When I was suffering from depression the only thing that made me feel better was to go fly. When flying I use to think of nothing else except the task at hand. I can remember landing and having all the feelings come back to mind.

I'm reminded.
I was taking my PP lessons, when I lost my son. It was a horrible time. A couple of weeks later, I went back for a lesson. All the troubles lifted, I concentrated on flying, and the joy of being in the air. I can still remember that night, as if it was yesterday. Things got put into perspective. Having an understanding partner helps. So does sex. I found that if I am down, great sex puts things better. So does flying. Doing something different, changes the way you look at things. If you are constantly depressed, you can go see a shrink, or take a pill, but it's really up to you to determine what you are down about, and do something about it. Of course, that's the hardest part. Some of us don't want to acknowledge what that is. okay, that's just my $.02.

 

[MQAAord]

When you're in the clutches of depression, you can feel like you're not worth the air you breathe. Someone who's never been there really can't understand the complete and utter hopelessness and despair in that pit. You see the world through skewed eyes, unable to take pleasure and happiness in the things that ought to be happy.

I only saw a very small glimspe of this world, the depression I had was very mild and was not long-lasting. But if I had a mild case, holy crap I can't imagine what a bad case must be like. For very bad cases, excercise, diet, reading books, none of those will probably help. Professional assistance is NECESSARY. Drugs can help re-establish the chemical balance, and are a tool that should be used when necessary.

Please try to cut LRJ some slack. It can be hard to see people making jokes about something that so deeply affects you. It's not easy for someone who's never suffered depression to understand really how bad it can be.

 

[LowlyPropCapt]

Learjtcaptain, you had to know this would come, didn't you? 8/10 posters here sound like a clueless mom - "Cheer up, it's allll in your head." Some of you mean well, and some of you are just mean.

True depression is chemical, it's not just a state of mind. Yes, there are "the blues" that most get occasionally which CAN often be fixed by a rowdy night on the town. But for those that genuinely require meds, it is often a matter of life and death. It's not a joke. The guy wanted to know about getting BACK his medical, not how to snap out of a bluesy state.

I know some of you mean well, but it's a serious issue that can tear people apart. I saw it happen, and I have the utmost respect for that fine balance of dopamine and serotonin which regulates mood. Out of whack brain cocktail = utter and complete misery; I mean physically unable to get out of bed misery.

I wish I had the answer. My "friend" is not a pilot and successfully returned after the correct meds were found, but I'll say this... NOTHING should prevent you, your bud, or anyone else from seeking help. NOTHING. Do what needs to be done, and then work on the license. Good luck to anyone suffering.

Well said. Depression is a disease, the same as cancer, MS, stomach ulcers or anything else. It can and does manifest itself both mentally and physically. It is not a depressed persons fault, they don't bring it on themselves and there is little they can do to prevent it. It most people, it simply is and must be dealt with. It is a shame we don't look at depression and other mental disorders (I prefer the term "brain diseases") the same as we look at other more "acceptable" body malfuntions. A lot more people would get the help they need.

A diagnosis of depression is a lot more complex than simply saying to the doctor "I'm sad." In a conversation with my sister, who is both a physician and a depression sufferer, she told me that the condition is hard to identify and treat. The symptoms of depression can be indicative of other disorders, or even mask the symptoms of other disorders.

Bottom line: If you don't feel right, if you feel like you need help, get help. Consequences be damned. Life is too short to try to deal with a monster like depression by yourself for the sake of some flying job. If it turns out you are not depressed, then just report it on your medical as going to the doctor for a flu like symptoms. That's probably true enough.

Again... Find help, get support.

 

[SCT]

LrJetCapt,

I'm not superstitious, but look at your post #.......