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The Body Blues: Misdiagnosed & Undertreated

The authors of the new book, When Your Body Gets The Blues, say that the "Body Blues" is women's most misdiagnosed and under-treated mood problem. Why?

According to author Dr. Marie-Annette Brown, most practitioners have been trained to look for signs of serious depression such as suicidal thoughts or a loss of all pleasure. The Body Blues and other mild mood disorders are usually overlooked.

Another factor is that until recently, most of the depression research has been conducted by male researchers. Many of the studies have had male participants as well, mainly because men do not have so many hormone swings which can greatly complicate studies. As a result, the symptoms more common in women have been given much less attention. For example, depressed men are more likely to lose their appetite, lose weight, and have an absence of feelings. In sharp contrast, women are more likely to overeat, gain weight, and have marked mood swings. Many practitioners do not view these symptoms as signs of depression, resulting in under diagnosis.

Similarly, the majority of the screening tools that practitioners use to test patients for depression focus on symptoms that are more common in men than women. As a result, many women score artificially low on the tests and do not get the care they deserve.

Finally, prior to the LEVITY research study, antidepressants were the only therapy proven to relieve the symptoms of the Body Blues. As Dr. Brown points out, it is understandable that many doctors are reluctant to prescribe medications for people with mild to moderate mood symptoms. Many women are reluctant to solve their problems with drugs as well. As a result, women with the Body Blues have had to choose between drug therapy and no therapy.

Dr. Brown states, "Until the LEVITY Program, there has been no clinically proven drug-free therapy for the Body Blues. Wisely, most health care providers stay away from unproven therapies. It would be irresponsible to treat patients with an alternative therapy that had not been proven to be effective. As a result, most women who go to their doctors complaining of overeating, weight gain, fatigue, sleep problems, and irritability are given mood-elevating drugs, diet pills, or sleep medications."