[HeartTattoo]

These links seem relevant to MLC behaviors.  Challenge may be for society to recognize MLC behaviors as abnormal, instead of "following your bliss" or "unhappiness in your marriage" or "finally finding your soulmate".


http://www.webmd.com/depression/news/20150630/scans-suggest-recurrent-depression-may-take-toll-on-the-brain?ecd=soc_fb_07012015_recurrentdepressionmaytaketollonbrain

http://gizmodo.com/5874433/the-pill-that-could-cure-depression-by-growing-your-brain

[kikki]

According to the researchers, that suggests that it is recurring depression that takes a toll on brain anatomy.

The take-home message: Get depression diagnosed and treated before brain changes can occur, the Australian team said.

"This large study confirms the need to treat first episodes of depression effectively, particularly in teenagers and young adults, to prevent the brain changes that accompany recurrent depression," Hickie said in a university news release.

Good to see our hunches being proven.

[Savoir Faire]

Interesting articles.  The other sad fact to consider is that the longer the brain remains out of chemical balance as it is in MLC, the more likely the person is to develop dementia later in life.  A sobering fact indeed.

We will not know if this is true for many years but all the evidence points to some early onset dementia in the MLCer - what a terrible thing, to come out of the crisis and then to REALLY forget everything.

I hate to even think it seems karmic.  Even in patients where there is no family history of dementia, the disease is thought to be inevitable because of the long term depression.

[HeartTattoo]

Interesting articles.  The other sad fact to consider is that the longer the brain remains out of chemical balance as it is in MLC, the more likely the person is to develop dementia later in life.  A sobering fact indeed.

SF,

Very discouraging for me as H is 62 already, both parents having had dementia, & possibly a lifetime of covert depression.

So much research needs to be done!
Hugs,
HT

[kikki]

The other sad fact to consider is that the longer the brain remains out of chemical balance as it is in MLC, the more likely the person is to develop dementia later in life.  A sobering fact indeed.

This really concerns me too.  There are a few pieces of information about this on our old neurotransmitter/brain scan threads.

[patience.of.a.saint]

I have an aunt in the nursing home for dementia. It's very sad. I never would've guessed her to have depression, but the oddest thing is that I think she may have went through MLC. She was married for over 25 yrs to her first husband. Divorced him, but always kept his number handy. She married another man...divorced him too. Then she moved to our state and her first husband did too. He lived maybe 30 miles from her. He went to see her when she went in the nursing home, but by then, she didn't want him there...didn't want him to call. Not sure what has happened since then, but she has gone down hill ever since she was diagnosed with the dementia.

From the limited reading I have done on dementia, they can also get it from excess alcohol, which could also be possible for her. It would also make sense with the connection between alcohol and depression.

Very interesting.

[Songanddance]

My mother had early dementia and died when she was 66. She was not depressed nor did she drink. She did smoke but stopped smoking when the first grandchild arrived  5 years prior to her death. However the sudden withdrawal of the nicotine started to have an adverse effect on her brain and she started to lose the ability to play the piano (degree level pianist), communicate in full sentences and for the last 18 months she started blacking out for a few seconds.

(She technically died of carcinoma of right lung. We had no idea she was so ill because she had lost the ability to talk coherently. )

Her brain when it couldn't get nicotine started to eat away at the oxygenated parts of her brain (bit like a slow caterpillar munching on a leaf) until there was very little coherence left.
This was an unusual form of dementia and ironically she became depressed as a result of the increasing dementia.

[31andcounting]

Wow, Songanddance I have never heard of that form....how terrible.
The dementia information is kind of scary.  Such a sad way to end and if someone had also lived a depressed life, wow not my idea of living really.    Leads to wonder if you "beat" or "handle" depression with the right meds you could live a happier earlier life and maybe it would keep the dementia away??  meaning if you "got your chemical imbalance" under control would that keep dementia from developing  ??  Maybe that info would keep stubborn people to take meds if they needed them??  just wondering?
31

[Songanddance]

I would go further 31.  If Science would really take depression seriously and research the brain patterns and chemical imbalance more thoroughly - I venture to bet that they would find a chemical link between that and dementia.

[Thundarr]

Thought this article was a bit interesting as it addresses inter-generational patterns of infidelity.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/07/24/quickest-way-to-tell-if-your-partner-will-cheat/?intcmp=features