Hey, uh Public Service Announcement:
I have Major Depressive Disorder among other things and I do not recall a time in my life where I was not depressed and extremely tired. Meds help, but left me with low-key depression instead of stay-in-bed-for-months depression.
My dad was poking around on a science news site a couple of weeks ago and because he knows my siblings and I are freakishly flexible (I can pull both shoulders out of socket. The idea of a dislocated shoulder is meaningless.) he sent me info on a gene mutation that impairs your ability to convert folate into its active version methylfolate, so he told me to try out a methylfolate supplement. I've been on it for over 2 weeks and my dad, the husband, and the siblings are shocked at how much more active I am after taking this supplement.
The quick diagnostic test to see if this may help is to make a number 4 sign with your thumb and see if your thumb goes to the edge of your hand or further.
There is a "medical food" called Deplin that is prescribed as a drug that is added to your medication regimen to help boost its effectiveness. Deplin is methylfolate. The therapeutic dosages for MDD are 7.5mg and 15mg, with the higher dosage being more effective in clinical studies.
I'm telling you all this to say this OTC supplement that you can buy in therapeutic dosages is actually working for me. And this mutation apparently occurs in 30 to 40% of the population. Like, I'm now able to go to my demanding job for 8 hours and then do some low-key exercise afterwards on the daily. Two weeks ago, I probably would have just laughed at you if you'd suggested the same thing.
Like, I don't even know if I'm actually depressed right now. Do you know what an insane thing this is for me to say?
