Our bodies are in a constant change. Sometimes those changes might tip our physiological scale quite unexpectedly. We assume that we operate on some kind equilibrium and thus if the assumed balance is disturbed abruptly that would indicate to most us a problem that owes to be solved. Such is the case with most of our assumptions about psychological disorders. We believe that "chemical juice x" is off balance that causes us to react in a certain away. This pattern of thought though is false.
The simple reason why a chemical imbalance is impossible is simply because there is no basis from which we can draw an "average" sample. For example, we know when the PH of a fish tank is off that might lead to fish death. Thus, we lower or increase the PH so we can meet the ecosystem's average requirements. For human beings, no such thing as "average behaviour"exists. There is no average human from whom we can draw comparisons. There is no "average physiology" to emulate in order to reach a "chemical" or "neurotransmitting" balance.
Unlike traditional medicine where specific values can indicate different things, in psychology there is no direct causative factor for determining behaviour or mood. For example, we can assume risk factors for heart conditions if someone has high blood pressure, high cholesterol and they are overweight but even in this case our estimate can be rough and not scientifically demonstrable. Exceptions to the rule such as fat, unhealthy people outliving thin healthy people with no risk factors render our scientific hypothesis false. In science, something has to be true every single time it is tested. Not sometimes. This is how we get the laws of nature, such as gravity. This why our perception about diet and eating habits and how those might affect our health have changed greatly over the past few years. The evidence are very inconclusive to the point of becoming irrelevant when it comes to following a preventive course of action.
In traditional medicine to deal with such error discrepancies we rely on different risk zones. Our physiology is dependent on some parametres and this if we assume control over those our health can be improved. When it comes to our behaviour though the situation is much trickier. There is a vast array of behaviours and influences one can experience and in combination with out physiology it can produce unexpected results. No single neurotransmitter or hormone can cause a definitive change in behaviour. No medication can "balance" anything in our body in case our lab exams seem off. We can administer oxytocin to someone but that can cause other changes in the body and further "imbalances". Our body physiology does not work with on/off switches. We cannot reduce one "chemical" and increase another in order to "balance" things out.
Those who try to attain a "balance" in behaviour rather work out a social engineering program. If we get enough people to behave in a certain way and accept such behaviour as "normal" then all the deviants should work towards that direction in order to fit the norm. Such is the case with psychology and general psychiatry today. We model behaviour based on a client basis. If the individual feels that they have a phobia towards something or a "disorder" and they can't handle it, then we administer what seems to be an appropriate medication in order to "solve" their problem. Thing is, this is not science. This is merely trying to satisfy someone that has a very unique problem with a very generic approach.
Depression and Anxiety are perhaps the most central problems in the dialogue about "chemical imbalance". Thing is, both are entirely natural occurrences. The body experiences depression and anxiety much like it experiences happiness. They have gotten a negative connotation due to the cultural narrative reasons, not medical. We get depressive and anxious due to our lifestyles much like we get happy. Sometimes our bodies signal that we need to change something and thus we go under the anxious or depressive mode. No medication can balance our day to day behaviour. We live in a society where we view every single unpleasant thing that happens to our bodies as a problem that needs to be fixed. If we approach it as a "ride of passage" then it becomes an entirely different thing.
Very often mainstream science is drawing the wrong conclusions about its findings, the fact that it appears to be a chemical imbalance because it can exist in people with certain mental illnesses doesn't mean its caused by that, it could be the other way around, however large pharma has a lot to lose by it being found to be this way so this idea is propagated.
Interesting post :-)
Thought you may be interested in mine about mental health equality!
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https://steemit.com/life/@georgemason/demand-mental-health-equality-now
I am Student of Biochemistry.So This blog is very informative for me.I am surprized to read your blog.I didn't know this info.
I wait for your upcoming blog
This resonates with me so much. I have been diagnosed bipolar. I know that the imbalance can not be proven scientifically at this time. It aggravates me, but I refused to sit idle and accept that fate. I believe there could be something else going on, something the western world has yet to adapt to.
I found this wonderful post on mental illnesses. Its the shamans view of mental illness. Here's the link:
https://www.jaysongaddis.com/the-shamanic-view-of-mental-illness/
It's a pretty awesome article. I hope I didn't offend anyone by throwing down a link, but if you liked @kyriacos' post then you'll love this as well.
Appreciate the good information bud, Keep Steeming!
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Thanks for sharing i will done upvote I always see your post. And follow you
keep it up
Wow how such changes can be exist in our body and mind
Amazing thank you for the information
I will wait for more
Really great read, got me thinking! I'll upvote it 'cause it's brilliant topic! We should know more about our brain so we're no slave but master of it! <3
I support you on that, that there is nothing like chemical imbalance of the brain. Our body adapt to climate change and I don't think that the world imbalance of the brain is proper.. Nice view on the brain..
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decent post for steemit .good job. @upvoted @resteemit
A very good thesis of physiology.I appreciate your research.You express this thinks is goodly well.I known many good tips about health.Keep it up
Thank you
Wow good
Interesting topic, @kyriacos. What of schizophrenia and mania? We know that these mental disorders a treated chemically, to change the chemistry of the brain, and in may cases the treatments bring a great deal of relief and stabilization to patients. Would this not be a stabilization of chemical balances in the brain?
@crystalize The reasons that leading to schizophrenia are genetics, neurobiologicals and environmental factors also affect the chemistry of the brain. The symptoms of schizophrenia are due to the hyperactivity of dopamine.Neurological drugs compete dopamine to bind to the postsynaptic...
Yes, but dopamine and "neurobiologicals" are chemicals, which are not stabilized in a manner that allows a patient to function properly, and when treated with other chemicals, balance out the workings of the brain to allow functionality. Technically speaking, is indeed an imbalance.
The most complex organ of our body! It's responsible for all the movements of our body, all senses... nice article! I also wrote about brain! Read it if you want.I am waiting for your comments and your next posts! @kyriakos
seems like a lot of people are walking around with magnesium or cannabis deficiencies.
Great post! I think you will enjoy reading about Polyvagal Theory.
Two especially-appreciated excerpts:
>Those who try to attain a "balance" in behaviour rather work out a social engineering program. If we get enough people to behave in a certain way and accept such behaviour as "normal" then all the deviants should work towards that direction in order to fit the norm.
Also,
>this is not science. This is merely trying to satisfy someone that has a very unique problem with a very generic approach.
That's absolutely true. The ride of the passage approach alone solves a large number of psychological problems itself.
I really love this i read something similar to this some weeks back. Thanks so much for this
Great points made in this article. Especially this one...
Could the same be said for things like ADD and other learning disabilities or behavioral problems?
I've heard some make the argument that different learning styles and ways of processing information are being confused for some sort of "dysfunction"...and thus, being addressed by medication and other treatment methods.
I'm no expert on this, but am curious to hear your thoughts on that. Thanks for the great info.
Soy estudiante de medicina. Es cierto es difícil probar científicamente que cuando hay una enfermedad existe un desequilibrio. Es interesante saber que puede ser un mito, sin embargo está establecido un funcionamiento normal para cada sistema se llama homeostasis y cuando las cosas no funcionan bien y no se autoregulan aparece entonces la enfermedad. sobre el sistema nervioso central poco se sabe comparado con otros sistemas es por ello que el campo de la terapéutica se encuentra limitado y se basa solo en reponer lo que falta para tratar de restablecer el equilibrio. Se debe seguir avanzando para poder dar una cura definitiva a estas enfermedades