Robbed
10-13-2007, 08:29 PM
I don't know if there is anyone here who is into pharmacology. But I have had a thought for some time about meds. It would appear that a BIG problem with current meds is this fixation with serotonin. Yet serotonin has its problems as a target. Specifically, (1) low serotonin is not always a problem, (2) serotonin can indeed be too HIGH in an anxiety state (in which case, an SSRI will make things worse), and (3) serotonin has VERY far-ranging effects in the nervous system and body as a whole (which is why SSRIs tend to have such nasty and far-ranging side effects). On the other hand, anxiety is caused by stress, and the effect of stress hormones on the brain. So rather than trying to monkey around with serotonin, how about designing a drug to block/reduce the action of these stress hormones (ie adrenalin and cortisol)? It would seem to me that such a drug might be both more effective AND have fewer side effects.