Posted by Ritch on March 20, 2002, at 10:58:23
In reply to Re: Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance Butting In » Ritch, posted by IsoM on March 20, 2002, at 0:16:38
> Mitch, I still haven't given Rach's test a try yet but I am curious to try it & report back to her. But I think it'll only work for some people. Like headaches or stomachs, everybody gets them but from many different reasons. One headache may be tension related, another a hang-over, a third, banging their head on something, & in a rare case, a tumour even.
>
> Same with depression. Depression is merely a symptom of something gone wrong. Most causes are physical but there are emotional blows that can seriously sap a person such as wars, death, & other disasters - some are more fragile than others too.
>
> In all the psychological tests done on me, the results always show I'm almost smack dab in the middle of right-brained & left-brained. I could never figure out why any question would ask things like "If you're the head over a large group of people, does it make more sense to do it your way - the right way, or to do it the way that would make your employees happy?" To me, those are the stupidest questions as either answer really isn't the right answer. You do it both ways. Logic doesn't exist separately from feelings, & vice versa!! So I don't need to try balancing my sides.
>
> But that doesn't stop me from be depressed & need treatment. Best, I guess, to try it out fair & square. I wonder how many times I'm going to be stepping on my cats' tails though. :-)
> I plan to try to find more about the scientist & any other things he came up with to get an idea of how credible he is.
Hi,When I read this type of research stuff-I don't get as excited as I used to. I really think they are onto something, however. But, when it comes out in the wash it might not be what many think it is (including the researchers). I know that when I get into a "mixed" state it involves a lot of intrusive GAD/OCD-like thought loops. It is the worst thing that ever happens to me. When I am just "plain" depressed everything is just at a low ebb. No focus, no motivation, no energy, sleep and eat a LOT. Whenever I get hypomanic I get intrusive music! But, I don't mind intrusive music that much, it doesn't have as much potential to trigger angry or anxious emotions. It usually is music I have been listening to lately. I am definitely more right-brained according to the "tests"-whatever that means. AED's "quiet-down" the music considerably, and SSRI antidepressants pump up the volume and the patterns become very short, tight, and repetitive. Sometimes, I can get more than one tune playing simultaneously-I don't care for that. Right now I feel rather neutral and the music is playing in there, but it is rather faint and more melodic, contiguous. How does this all relate to "sticky-switch" theories (if at all)? Well, your music memories are in your right temporal lobe (I think), whereas your verbal center is in the left. It seems like I feel better if the right side is "in charge". I did try that "ice-water thing". I popped some in one ear and I couldn't walk a straight line! I kept curving the opposite direction of the side I put the icewater in. I put some icewater in the other ear and I nearly fell down! Walking was also-similar I would make a curved path the opposite direction as well. It felt like I was walking on a curved railing and someone was trying to pull me off of it and I had to resist them from doing so. Ok, I am a little weird I have to admit. The other day when I started the dexedrine trial, I noticed that the left arm/leg seemed *different* somehow. It was like it was awake-well it should be awake all of the time shouldn't it? Ok, this is strange, but I could look at my left hand and it seemed like it was "smirking" or seemed "mischievous" somehow. It reminded me of the flower on the Bullwinkle Show that was eating up everything-"the Pottsylvania Creeper", it just had that mischievous look about it. Ok, that is just too weird.
Mitch
poster:Ritch
thread:98771
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020318/msgs/99006.html