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Why I'm so passionate about #PhysicalActivity as a frontline MH treatment (thread):
Due to my MIH, I dropped out of college, had daily panic attacks, developed severe depression + chronic nerve pain
...
Due to my MIH, I dropped out of college, had daily panic attacks, developed severe depression + chronic nerve pain
...
My GP offered me #SSRIs or to be added to a long #therapy wait list.
Not once was I asked about any lifestyle risk factors, such as my PA levels, sleep pattern, or #diet
(some of the highest #riskfactors, I now know).
...
Not once was I asked about any lifestyle risk factors, such as my PA levels, sleep pattern, or #diet
(some of the highest #riskfactors, I now know)....
In fact, my GP actually said:
" #Depression comes and goes in waves
, you just have to watch out for it".
I was in such a state, I began skipping college for fear of having #panicattacks in front of others.
The only safe place I could hide was on my bike, or in the gym....
" #Depression comes and goes in waves
, you just have to watch out for it".I was in such a state, I began skipping college for fear of having #panicattacks in front of others.
The only safe place I could hide was on my bike, or in the gym....
Little did I know, by becoming a little more physically active, I was activating a tiny catalyst 
I went all bright-eyed to my GP to report the news that exercise was starting to improve my #cognition, sleep + the panic attacks were becoming less frequent....
I went all bright-eyed to my GP to report the news that exercise was starting to improve my #cognition, sleep + the panic attacks were becoming less frequent....
Sadly, he had (seemingly) little or no knowledge of the #CNS, how exercise structurally changes the #brain + enhances #plasticity, as he said:
"That's nice that it helps, but it's not a solution, we will up your dose and keep going with it".
...
"That's nice that it helps, but it's not a solution, we will up your dose and keep going with it".
...
Instead of being disheartened, it gave me the fuel I needed + a stubbornness to prove this statement wrong, as I FELT the effects of PA so VISCERALLY + was watching my life change.
I'm so glad I had that experience, as it's forged my entire career
#BrainGains
+ a stubbornness to prove this statement wrong, as I FELT the effects of PA so VISCERALLY + was watching my life change.I'm so glad I had that experience, as it's forged my entire career
#BrainGains
I'm not adverse to meds as a short-term solution for some w/ SMI, alongside other therapies, but here's the issue:
The RATE at which they're dispensed.
34mil in 2018, 70.6mil in 2019.
They're being prescribed even to those without SMI. Let's do better!
(*UK stats)
The RATE at which they're dispensed.
34mil in 2018, 70.6mil in 2019.
They're being prescribed even to those without SMI. Let's do better!
(*UK stats)
