On Jan 9, 2007, at 1:00 PM, Helio W. wrote: > External stimuli can affect a person's brain chemical balance, no? > That > would explain the poor scientific record of cures by prayer or > psychoanalysis.
There are so many factors that go into achieving the correct chemical mix in the brain, it's amazing that it works at all. The problem with most drugs is that they cannot possibly address the specific problem. Let's take the example of a serotonin deficiency, the most common cause of clinical depression. There are several possible causes for this: 1) deficiency in enzymes that create serotonin 2) overzealousness of enzymes that break down serotonin 3) structural abnormality in serotonin receptors 4) excess of serotonin analogues that compete for receptors Each of these will have the same net effect, but for a completely different reason. It is foolish to imagine that a single pill could work for everyone. BTW, the brain does respond chemically to thoughts, so there is an excellent basis for talk therapy by iteself being beneficial in many cases. The "improved" thoughts can trigger more serotonin release, which in some cases can be a permanent change via "rewiring" of the brain. -- Ed Leafe -- http://leafe.com -- http://dabodev.com _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: ProFox@leafe.com Subscription Maintenance: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.