There's a Blood Test That Can Diagnose Depression. Why Aren't We Using it?

[@willinwoods]

One immense problem with self-assessment, is when you've been ill for so long, that you have no concept of what's "normal." I've had several periods where I couldn't really remember what it would be like NOT to be depressed, and then being asked about how I feel and do compared to "normal" was like them asking a blind person about their perception of "pink" or whatever. Very frustrating, on top of everything else.

[@pbsvitals]

Great insight. Thank you sharing with us. We re-shared your comment on Instagram because we thought it was great food for thought.

[@DrBrainTickler]

Yeah, and even worse is when people use their diagnosis who validate their fake sense of identity, pretending that they know who they are or what they are. Then they make their diagnosis solidified as part of their identity and they incorporated into their life and all modalities within it. They act out what they think the diagnosis means and what they think it means about themselves.

[@DrBrainTickler]

Perception is at the core of our psychological state and I see that you see this... How far have you taken that thinking? How many directions have you extrapolated in? I highly encourage you to focus on that and I know you're going to enjoy the epiphanies if you haven't already.

[@DrBrainTickler]

@@pbsvitals I'm logistical and existential intelligence of the highest caliber and so it's a crime for me to speak or to exist and there are no laws to protect me so I have no choice but to point all of this out and insist that every other intellectual who has a megaphone to the world empowers me to speak.

[@DrBrainTickler]

@@pbsvitals the entire world has become myopic and shortsighted because they slander the smartest people alive and thereby justify shunning them which is nothing short of a witch burning. Call me a narcissist or say that I'm having delusions of grandeur and you weaponize the DSM or psychology in a way that slanders me and justifies the burning of the witch. Call me in narcissist and it's like rallying The village idiots to raise the pitchforks and torches.

[@Asharra12]

I think this might be very cool for screening mothers for PND/PNA. In the midst of body changes, lifestyle changes and suddenly having to support this living, breathing helpless child, it can be very hard to diagnose what is depression and what is just a part of that change. For example, if I tell you that I've got a child who is a few months old and I'm struggling with sleeplessness, many would dismiss that as "part of motherhood and breastfeeding". But if I add more information and say that my child is a really good sleeper and sleeps 12 hrs a night but I only sleep 4 if I'm lucky; suddenly that's a depression symptom. But if you diagnose it too late, it's harder to deal with because it's gotten to a worse state. Early intervention is always better.

[@pbsvitals]

Yes, thank you for bringing this up! Making a mental health diagnosis can be tricky because there are often many overlapping symptoms, and as you mentioned, other external factors. We’re already seeing researchers develop tests to improve the detection of PTSD, Alzheimer's, and suicide. It wouldn't surprise me if we see something for postnatal depression and anxiety sometime soon.

[@8brightside8]

Blood test info starts at 6:30

[@taraann-ms1oi]

Thank you.

[@mlroeder]

God, the difference this could make!! I can only imagine how much this could've helped my own journey. Depression is currently such a subjective experience, to be able to have something that someone can look at and see proof can change everything. I have the added joy of chronic pain as well, which, when there's nothing you can point at as a cause, can make it hard to be taken seriously. I'm so excited about this!

[@LynHannan]

Sounds very appealing. I believe it would eliminate the stigma. Question about these biomarkers: what is the likelihood that the biomarkers for various depression types are the same as for high, long-term stress situations. Is there a real correlation/causation between the two?

[@pbsvitals]

That is a great question and one reason these tests are not quite ready for widespread use. We are probably in the infancy of understanding this condition.

[@rekaesmate3733]

I've been going to counselling for a year before the question of depression even came up. I was so used to masking my low moods, i was still doing it even though I thought I was honest wih my therapist. And i had no concept of what it was like not to be depressed . When I reported having a normak or efen a good week, I didn't realise my perception was skewed. I came across thse 9 questions by accident,and what shocked me wasn't my almost max score, but the idea that there are people (the vast majority of people if research is to be believed) who barely score a few points. And I couldn't remember a time in my life where I went 2 weeks without just one of those things. The only symptom I didn't have was selfharm and suicide, which made me discount the idea of depression in myself, as his illness is so often equated wih those things. But once I met those questions and brought it up with my therapist and she started asking depression related questions, she had doubt that that's what I had. In my life I have taken a myriad of blood tests for my constant fatigue and sleep problems. I can't imagine the difference it would ave made if a doctor would have checked for one more biomarker and I would have been able to start treatment for depression at 15 instead of 28. And maybe those markers could also help wih finding the right medication much faster instead of it being a guessing game.

[@pbsvitals]

Thanks for sharing - a blood test will never be perfect but could help a lot of people in your situation - depression is insidious that way in that it clouds our thinking and makes it harder to seek out help when we need it.

[@rekaesmate3733]

@@pbsvitals if it were able to just indicate the higher possibility of depression (or other mental illness), it could still help a lot in early intervention and validation

[@MuskanKhan-kf9xn]

Now you are ok i am suffering from depression anxiety😢

[@Isaksson9915]

This was really interesting. Thank you!

[@pbsvitals]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jillroot8933]

Valuable information that more doctors and people suffering from depression should be aware of.

[@pbsvitals]

Agreed! We want to help equip people with the information they need to live a fruitful life. Everybody deserves happiness!

[@johnboyghgfgd5813]

I really hope that this will be the future. I am struggling with severe mental/neurological (it's the same thing in my opinion) disorders since late childhood/early teenage years. It ruined my life and the hopes and dreams that i had, and i can't even BEGIN to tell how frustrating and cruel it is that i don't even know the biological causes. I want to know why i feel so depressed, why i can't concentrate no matter how hard i try, why i have this extreme fear and anxiety. My diagnoses are depression, OCD and ADHD, but that doesn't tell me anything about what's happening inside my brain. They are just labels someone slapped on me after he talked to me. It feels so incredibly archaic, a part of me can't believe that's how a medical field operates in the year 2023 (that doesn't mean i blame the doctors, i know the brain is incredibly complicated). Sometimes i dream about living in the future when science actually knows how the brain works so they can truly help me. But sadly today we almost completely depend on words to diagnose the problem, and then they more or less have to guess what medication could help. There are so many advances in virtually all fields of medicine, but psychiatry seems to be lagging behind. Maybe that's not fair to say, there probably is some progress. Years ago i heard some talk about gene therapy for depression. I was so excited to hear about it. We need much more research in that direction in my opinion. Drugs and psychotherapy can only do so much, they can help, but i don't think they can truly cure the underlying causes of many psychiatric disorders. I hope one day we will get there.

[@HelgatheHorriblez]

I have been researching a lot of these symptoms for years and have found that vitamin deficiencies and gut dysfunction can cause overlapping symptoms. If you’re not finding relief from medications maybe these causes should be considered.

[@jannamwatson]

Dr Marmar has lupus. That's the most prominent butterfly rash that I have seen.

[@AJBuddha]

I’ll take 1 serotonin, please!

[@thyagu.udayakumar]

We need an objective test ASAP. Come on guys, either this is just a research funding problem or we are incapable and we have to wait a few centuries to understand how the brain works.

[@taraann-ms1oi]

What’s the actual test?

[@nikakhan7668]

When its coming in market and would be available in every country

[@sergioabdonmatusmardones1921]

Thanks for divulging

[@pbsvitals]

We're more than happy to share what we know! We want to do our part to help make health approachable.

[@stv3800]

whats the name or number of this test?

[@mrahzzz]

Lol "ouchie spot" Thanks for keeping it real with the technical medical terms 😉😆

[@pbsvitals]

;)

[@cam553]

Pharmaceutical companies will surely be sponsoring this research. The perfect biological and objective diagnostic method.. to justify more meds. Hopefully rTMS or other non-pharma treatment protocols are successful in reducing these bio markers.

[@donb8088]

The pharma companies could also make new and better treatments with confirmed biomarkers. They are very good at creating molecules that target another molecule but not finding which biochemical problem causes each disease.

[@emmalouie1663]

Mental health issues remind me of plastic surgery, it becomes a lifestyle and a whole industry. Prozac has been out since the 1980s and it seems nothing much has changed doctors are still handing out random pills to people.

[@TeethToothman]

❤❤❤

[@havegooddays8]

There also if they notice the stress and depression with anxiety is garbage trucks with no tune up running plus trains

[@SellyNue]

A psychiatrist is promoting triangulation?!?!?

[@dashthedemon]

POV: u missed clicked this vid

[@havegooddays8]

There's a tik tok people say to listen to a song under a pillow and you can hear it replay it's self

[@a51mj12]

Yeah, if we could fly... Rrright. Skip and dislike