Quote:
Originally Posted by Guitars+gems
My point was not to equate antidepressants with cigarettes, and I didn't say that people use SSRI's just because cigarettes are too expensive. My point was that smoking was a form of self-medication that is no longer acceptable. Yes, of course other forms of escape are, and always have been, in use. I was talking about a specific activity used for self-soothing, that was more widespread than it is today. I theorize that it was used as a means to deal with depression and the pain of living.
If you had the impression that I was trivializing antidepressants and their ability to improve the quality of life, I'm sorry. That's not what I was saying. My theory is that no longer having the option of smoking to help escape the unhappiness and discomfort of depression, maybe people who may have chosen to smoke previously, are willing to seek medical treatment. Thus, the uptick in numbers that the op mentioned.
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If there is a decrease in consumption of X and an increase in consumption of y it does not necessarily mean there is a correlation between them.
Whilst people find smoking comforting, I find the idea that it would be in anyway useful to treat depression hard to believe. (I smoked for 30 years and have also suffered from depression).
To describe this supposed correlation as a "theory" you will need to come up with some data to justify that claim.
Everybody smoked in the 50's but then everyone wore hats in the 50's. I don't think anyone would make a claim that the decrease in hat wearing has anything to to with the take up of anti depressants.