I got my lab results back!

4782 Views 25 Replies 12 Participants Last post by palmer562, 1 h ago

DerealizedDutchie

Discussion Starter · Jan 15, 2019 (Edited by Moderator)

hi all,

I just got my lab results back and i wanted to show it to you, because discussing it might benefit more than one person in the end.

As you can see, my serotonin level is HIGHLY elevated and the catecholamines are all diminished. Serotonin is supposed to be in a range of 100-225 and mine is 502..

I have never taken any medication whatsoever to increase my serotonin.

My current symptoms are the following:

- Derealization (life outside my house looks like a joke, a dreamworld, as if i'm on marijuana. It's strangely intense and i dont feel connected to any environment whatsoever nor do i feel a connection to persons or objects)

- Tinnitus (24/7)

- Extreme fatigue

- Digestion problems/gut issues/leaky gut

- Depression/no motivation/no ambition/life has no meaning at the moment

It really shocked me that my serotonin is that high.. i thought it would be very low to be honest

I'm seeing my doctor on thursday, but i'm hoping someone here could shed a light on the serotonin part, or maybe others who did a similar test as well.

Cheers

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Chip1021

· #5 · Jan 16, 2019

There's a reason why these tests aren't standard practice. Despite all the talk about mental illnesses being caused by "chemical imbalances", there's very very little evidence to support it. What's more, we don't really know how any neurochemicals really work in the brain, what their function is, or what the ideal range of values truly truly are. At least, there is no scientific consensus to any of these issues.

In other words, these tests don't have much practical value in medicine. They don't reliably predict symptoms of any mental health issue or indicate which treatments will be most beneficial. At least not yet.

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Chip1021

· #8 · Jan 16, 2019 (Edited by Moderator)

I disagree with your first paragraph (in your last post directed at me), but mostly agree with your second. Comparing these elements with others who experience your same symptoms is often how progress happens. At least it's a start when you don't have any concrete answers.

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Chip1021

· #17 · Jan 18, 2019

Laurany152 said:
Well the more you learn! I thought they could do blood tests to measure them. So if they can't really measure them in the blood stream then how can they say that you have a chemical imbalance in your brain like with Bipolar? This all seems so hopeless.

They can say that because nobody prevents them from saying that.

And if you listen closely to the commercials for psychotropic medications, they use a bunch of weasel words like "is believed to affect" and the like.

The fact is, psychiatry uses the meds they do for these various conditions because they seem to work for a lot of people. In fact, many people end up being diagnosed for a particular condition merely because they experimented with a drug for that condition and found relief. Theories about chemical imbalances are based a backwards-thinking approach that these meds are supposed to affect this or that chemical, so perhaps the original illness is a lack of such and such chemical. There is actually much less real science involved in psychiatry than you are led to believe.

I rant a lot about psychiatry on this forum. I wouldn't have such a problem with the field if: 1) they were more honest about what they do, what they know and do not know, and 2) they didn't have the power to impose their diagnoses and treatments on people against their will.

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