Brain bleed and depression relief?

[doccojohn]

Hello All,

I've suffered from depression for most of my life. In January 2015 I experienced a subarachnoid hemorrhage and spent a couple of weeks in intensive care in Boston.
I recovered fully in about three months, and for the next year I was completely free of depression! Then, over the course of three months, the depression returned with a vengeance and has been with me ever since.

I'm pursuing relief via medication and counseling now. The thing is, neither nor I any of the professionals (psychiatrists, psychologiests, and my neurosurgeon) who helped me have ever heard of a situation like this. Given the large number of people who suffer from depression, and the large number of people who have had a brain bleed, it's hard to believe I am the only one who has had this experience.

I spoke with someone from NIH this morning and she suggested posting here. So, has this happened to anyone else?

Thanks,

JP

[tic chick]

hey doccojohn !

welcome to BT!

i was interested in your question and my brain was trying to figure out why this might have happened to you.

I have suffered from depression before, but fortunately have never had a subarachnoid hemorrhage. i comparing a bleed with donating blood, something i do about 3-4 times a year. i have been depressed at certain times that i have donated blood. i never noticed any relief from depression after donating blood. however, i wonder if perhaps some of the drugs you were given to help your bleed resolve itself could have dissipated your depression? perhaps that would be an alternative path to discovering if there would be any help from a particular drug given to you during your bleed (and after), and it's ability to help your depression now?

perhaps someone will come along who has had the same interesting experience as you have and will be able to share their experience. i just thought this an interesting post and i wanted to share my .

thank you for sharing,
jeannie

[doccojohn]

Thanks, tc. Looking at the drugs they gave me (and there were lots!) is a good suggestion. But my main hope is that
the people in this forum will be able to spread this question even more widely than the forum itself.

There is another thing that changed about me after the brain bleed -- and I hesitated to mention it because it's
so odd I am afraid it will sound like a put-on. I've had a major sweet tooth for as long as I can remember. That
also went away for a year and it came back along with the depression.

One of my doctors said that a sweet tooth might be controlled by the olfactory brain center, which is also known to
affect dopamine levels. I dunno. I'm not sure I'd believe it if it hadn't happened to me.

Best,

JP

[Nozydoll]

Hi JP

How are you doing? I'm a newbie here and I am reading about depression then I came across your post. Just wanna ask if the subarachnoid hemorrhage is directly related as a cause of depression? Your response is highly appreciated. Thank you.