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Can Drugs for Depression and Anxiety End up Causing It?

October 23rd, 2010 No comments

It’s a kind of paradox in psychiatric medicine – a drug that’s used to treat a certain disorder ends up causing the very symptoms it is supposed to erase. It’s a quality shared by popular drugs like Zoloft and Celexa that are used to treat both depression and anxiety. On the way to helping you, these sometimes also end up causing anxiety. People often wonder how this is possible.

It was around a half-century ago that researchers first noted how antidepressants also had the effect of helping with anxiety. The only problem there was, that antidepressants don’t have this unintended effect in everyone. Only some people experience them. The flip side of that coin is, that sometimes, just as they can help with anxiety in some people and not others, they can cause anxiety in some people and not others. Antidepressants causing depression, stimulants getting people all relaxed, are all common  effects of psychiatric drugs. It just happens because even as people are similar, when you go deep into the structural level of the brain, different people can have drastically different makeups. Each person has a biology that is quite unique. Just as no two people are alike, the nature of their depression can vary widely too.

Among med school students, a popular way of explaining this paradox goes like this. Let’s say you’re in a car; the action of depressing the gas pedal doesn’t always produce the same result. Depending on which gear you are in, the action of pressing down on the gas can make the car surge forward or backward. With a chemical that’s designed to do one thing, you can get often a result that’s the opposite of what you intended, depending on the biology of the brain. Going further in the depression and anxiety analogy of what you see in a car, you don’t know what result you’ll get depressing the gas pedal unless you know about the kind of road you’re on. You could be on a road that is flat, one that slopes upward, or one that slopes down. You’ll get very different results depending on which way the incline goes. You can’t really tell how depression and anxiety medicine can operate on a person until you are able to really correctly determine from that person’s life experiences, the kind of stresses they feel, their temperament, their personality, and so on.

If an antidepressant you take ends up making you terribly anxious, there are several possible options open to you. The anxiety might point to a case where you were prescribed too high a dose. Starting on a much lower doses and raising it gradually could certainly remedy the situation.  And of course, no one should discount the kind of powerful effect psychotherapy can have.

How to Have Beautiful Skin

October 19th, 2010 No comments

Beautiful skin is every persons dream and it is important to know how to get that perfect looking radiant skin. A routine has to be followed to bring the best out of your skin. First, it is not enough to get facials as these need follow up home treatments that will ensure that the clear and beautiful skin is maintained. The first step is to ensure that you eat enough fruits and vegetables. These compose a healthy diet, which goes a long way into bringing out that enviable skin you have always dreamt of having.

Another routine towards achieving a beautiful skin is drinking plenty of water. Water has a cleansing effect on the skin and this clears off blemishes and other impurities. Water also cleans the blood and this ensures that you do not suffer from clogged skin, which may result into pimples. Experts recommend an intake of up to eight glasses of water on a daily basis and the results will be a flawless and clear skin. Water also helps in cutting down on weight and this will boost your self-esteem making you look and feel more beautiful.

Most people are their only hindrance to acquiring a beautiful skin. It is important to note that some of the habits we engage in end up damaging our skin. These include smoking and excessive drinking. The skin becomes dull and lifeless and this can be turned around if we adopt a change in lifestyle. Quitting smoking is the basic step and the alcohol intake must be regulated. Other skin damaging habits include skin tanning whereby we tend to take advantage of the summer and overexpose our skins to the harmful sunrays and this may lead to skin cancer.

A blissful sleep is a step towards a healthier and more beautiful skin. Many people do not get enough sleep and this leaves them with tired, sallow, saggy, and dull skins. The eyes also become puffy due to lack of enough sleep and the energy levels take a nosedive. It is important to ensure that you sleep for at least 8 hours daily to give the skin time to rejuvenate. This will definitely work magic on the skin and it will look livelier and more beautiful. The eyes will also glow and appear brighter as they are well rested thus cutting out the puffiness.

Exercise is the key to beautiful skin and it is important to exercise regularly. Waste trapped in the body is removed through sweating and this relieves the body of toxins that harm the skin. The complexion achieved from exercise is rosy since the body cells get a chance to oxygenate them with fresh air. These exercises include walking, jogging, cycling, weight lifting, and skating. These exercises maybe done in a gym or in the streets depending with ease. The body also becomes energetic cutting out sluggishness, which makes many people feel and look unappealing. A skin cleansing routine must also be done twice a day as it prevents skin breakouts.

Causes Of An Abnormal Pap Smear

October 19th, 2010 No comments

A Pap smear is a screening test that is carried out on the cervix to determine the risk of cancer. It may also be referred to as Pap test, papanicolau test, smear test or cervical smear. It is administered by gynecologists. An abnormal pap smear is a test that indicates that there are changes in the normal status of the cervix. However, this should not be a cause for alarm since not all changes are cancerous. Women must always undergo routine pap smears to rule out cancer and get advice on how to act on anything unusual.

The cervix has cells, which develop just like any other organ. This growth may at times cause damage to the cells. This may cause an abnormal Pap smear result. To ensure they do not develop into cancers, these damaged cells are removed. That is why it is very important to get a Pap smear test to ensure that such abnormalities are corrected. The cervix may register precancerous changes that vary according to the risk they pose. These tests are documented by the Pap smear test and they are all referred to as Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN). They are however graded in different levels, that is, CIN 1, CIN 2, and CIN 3. CIN 1 refers to those precancerous cells that are mild. They are not yet dangerous and are dismissed by doctors, as they do not pose any health risk to the patient. They clear on their own after some time.  CIN 2 is moderate though it could have a potential risk. That is why it calls for further tests and evaluation. The same case applies to CIN 3, which is referred to as severe. If women embrace pap smears, cervical cancers can be eliminated.

It is important to note that cervical cancers are caused by the Human Pappillomavirus (HPV). This condition is sexually transmitted and is most common with younger women. Women who have had regular sex encounters are advised to run pap smears. Also prone to this condition are women who smoke. However, not all HPV’s cause cervical cancer. The good news is that cervical cancer takes years to manifest itself fully and that is why pap smears should be done religiously. Those starting out on the smears ought to do them after three or five years. Those who have had them ought to make it a yearly ritual. There is a HPV vaccine but pap smears are still encouraged even in the face of these vaccines. Pap smears can be done anytime during a woman’s life but it is less advisable when menstruating. This procedure is comfortable though different women may register discomfort. Those suffering from cervical stenosis may experience pain. The after effects of a pap smear may include cramping or spotting. Abnormal pap smears are few in number and even those reported as abnormal are mild. The Bethesda System is used in reporting the abnormal pap smears. These abnormalities include the herpes simplex virus, yeast, and trichomoniasis. They also report the Squamous Cell abnormalities as well as abnormalities in the glandular epithelial cell.