Just found this and thought is was interesting and wanted to share. Enjoy:
http://www.happyshrink.com/postarc010416-30.html
http://www.happyshrink.com/postarc010416-30.html
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Tickling for depression article
- Thread starter Mac
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SteelJaw
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it makes perfect sense, it dose increse adrenalin and heart rate, not to mention endorphens. It stands to reason that tickling could be a highly effective cure for depression. all and all good find ^^
Id love to conduct a study, any ladies wana help?
lol hell, could probably get a governmant grant for that kinda thing ^^
Id love to conduct a study, any ladies wana help?
lol hell, could probably get a governmant grant for that kinda thing ^^ticklebunny 2
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I have to say that I just got finished reading this article and it was very interesting and really neat reading this. It was very helpful and very informative and a great read. I could not believe that it had talking about tickling to be possibly used as a way of treating and helping relieve depression. That was really neat to see and to read. I really enjoyed and really liked this article. So thanks to whoever shared this, it was great to read. It is great.
And I imagine that tickling could be used as a great stress relief or stress reducer and it could very well possilby could be used as a treatment idea to helping someone cope and deal with depression. Since tickling does cause one's endorphins to go crazy and causes serotonin to enter the body and feels many feel good and feel happy. I could definitely see this being a great way to help start deal with depression for sure. Thanks again for sharing this great article I love it!
And I imagine that tickling could be used as a great stress relief or stress reducer and it could very well possilby could be used as a treatment idea to helping someone cope and deal with depression. Since tickling does cause one's endorphins to go crazy and causes serotonin to enter the body and feels many feel good and feel happy. I could definitely see this being a great way to help start deal with depression for sure. Thanks again for sharing this great article I love it!
This is something I've been trying to convince people for a number of years, as I'm also someone who suffers from bouts of severe depression and social anxiety. I've never found a better cure or therapy for my condition than tickling, as it makes me feel great afterwards. However no one else seems to think or feel that way, as the various therapists I've talked to about this or asked said that it would violate our patient/doctor relationship. Some said they worried that this was not just for fun, but that I was actually getting sexual enjoyment from it, which made them feel that it was a form of sexual addiction. So anyone else out there want to share their stories either good or bad about this, as so far I've had little to no luck convincing people I know that this is a valuable use of therapy or that I'm wanting to be tickled purely out of needing to relax and destress. Thanks for posting the link to that article.
GirlWhoLikes2Laugh
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That's a great article! Thanks for sharing it and I think it's a good idea to tickle someone to help them with depression.
ticklebunny 2
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====================================
Yeah I know what you mean. I agree with you GirlWhoLikes2Laugh that would be a really clever and a great way to try to help someone with depresssion. It definitely is worth a shot, what harm does it do trying, I don't see the harm. That would be neat to see. Definitely would help make them feel happy and really good for a change for a while.
Tickler Bart
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For those who don't want to read all of the other Q & A until you get to the tickle Q & A, here it is . . .
Hello,
I was wondering if there was a link to, or studies involving tickling and depression? I have been battling clinical depression for e few years now. I was on Prozac which helped for a little while... I'm off that now and pretty stable; painting, as therapy and a release for expression has helped, too ... but I found out something really interesting..
When I'm tickled, I get less depressed. Now this may sound obvious- a little cootchie coo, a little laughter, the end. No, I mean, when tickled nearly to exhaustion, when it becomes a challenge to take (and where most people would call it quits) I find it to be therapeutic. True, it HAS to be with someone I trust, But I have personally found that If I'm vigorously tickled, like in a "tickle fight", my breathing increases, my heart rate increases, my adrenaline pumps (I understand that the body views tickling as an attack ), my endorphins flow and my seratonin, I assume, becomes normal dues to all the chemical activity. I'm not saying this would work for everyone & I'm not saying it's easy to take, but considering what the Prozac was costing, and that this can be a fun activity, after a good tickle, for up to 2 DAYS I'm very low key, easy going, nonchalant, and conflicts don't bother or stress me near as much.
Interestingly, I read on the Internet (over a year ago) that patients were being tickled by therapists in, I believe, Finland, for just such experimental reasons - the treatment of depression. Also, I have written to a woman who goes to a NY therapist on accession just for a 30 minute session of being tickled (Yes, with rest breaks...) to allow her to be calm and focused afterward. Another man I met online actually had blood tests done before and after being intensely tickled, and, sure enough, besides being tired, he felt calmer & happier - meanwhile the blood tests showed that his seratonin levels had gone down, his adrenaline and endorphins had gone up, post-tickling. He had dthis done after careful discussion with his therapist who thought it might be worth a try. Apparently, it was always consensual and, in the end, seemed to work. True, it pushes the comfort zone, but then - who likes going to the dentist? Is surgery really something we look forward to, even though it works? Some treatments out there do involve discomfort and are not for everyone (the tickling, for example, would probably be a terrible idea for an abused patient ).
But what are your thoughts? As a society in general, supposedly, we touch much less than we should. What would an aggressive - but consensual - touch like tickling ad for those with depression? I swear that it works for me (I'm not suggesting it for other people unless it's discussed with their doctor ). Then I find two other people who also seem to understand what I'm talking about, one having lab evidence to back up his theory. Have you ever heard of this, even as an experimental therapy. I can't locate the Finland study info now - if that was indeed where it came from...
Mike M
Dear Mike M,
Years ago I have read an article about tickling as a means of reducing depression but I can't remember its source. It would make sense that the stimulation of tickling increases respiration, heart beat and blood flow. Studies show that most exercise reduces depression as well. Unfortunately, many depressed people suffer from low energy levels and are unmotivated to exercise or for that matter, be tickled. If this works for you, I would encourage you to continue. I don't think it's for everyone, and I doubt that it will become a mainstream treatment for depression, but If you can find someone you trust to do this and you are in good physical condition, it may be an effective treatment. Keep laughing Mike. Whether it's humor or tickling, anything that puts a smile on your face is good low cost medicine.
happy(collectingfeathers)shrink
Hello,
I was wondering if there was a link to, or studies involving tickling and depression? I have been battling clinical depression for e few years now. I was on Prozac which helped for a little while... I'm off that now and pretty stable; painting, as therapy and a release for expression has helped, too ... but I found out something really interesting..
When I'm tickled, I get less depressed. Now this may sound obvious- a little cootchie coo, a little laughter, the end. No, I mean, when tickled nearly to exhaustion, when it becomes a challenge to take (and where most people would call it quits) I find it to be therapeutic. True, it HAS to be with someone I trust, But I have personally found that If I'm vigorously tickled, like in a "tickle fight", my breathing increases, my heart rate increases, my adrenaline pumps (I understand that the body views tickling as an attack ), my endorphins flow and my seratonin, I assume, becomes normal dues to all the chemical activity. I'm not saying this would work for everyone & I'm not saying it's easy to take, but considering what the Prozac was costing, and that this can be a fun activity, after a good tickle, for up to 2 DAYS I'm very low key, easy going, nonchalant, and conflicts don't bother or stress me near as much.
Interestingly, I read on the Internet (over a year ago) that patients were being tickled by therapists in, I believe, Finland, for just such experimental reasons - the treatment of depression. Also, I have written to a woman who goes to a NY therapist on accession just for a 30 minute session of being tickled (Yes, with rest breaks...) to allow her to be calm and focused afterward. Another man I met online actually had blood tests done before and after being intensely tickled, and, sure enough, besides being tired, he felt calmer & happier - meanwhile the blood tests showed that his seratonin levels had gone down, his adrenaline and endorphins had gone up, post-tickling. He had dthis done after careful discussion with his therapist who thought it might be worth a try. Apparently, it was always consensual and, in the end, seemed to work. True, it pushes the comfort zone, but then - who likes going to the dentist? Is surgery really something we look forward to, even though it works? Some treatments out there do involve discomfort and are not for everyone (the tickling, for example, would probably be a terrible idea for an abused patient ).
But what are your thoughts? As a society in general, supposedly, we touch much less than we should. What would an aggressive - but consensual - touch like tickling ad for those with depression? I swear that it works for me (I'm not suggesting it for other people unless it's discussed with their doctor ). Then I find two other people who also seem to understand what I'm talking about, one having lab evidence to back up his theory. Have you ever heard of this, even as an experimental therapy. I can't locate the Finland study info now - if that was indeed where it came from...
Mike M
Dear Mike M,
Years ago I have read an article about tickling as a means of reducing depression but I can't remember its source. It would make sense that the stimulation of tickling increases respiration, heart beat and blood flow. Studies show that most exercise reduces depression as well. Unfortunately, many depressed people suffer from low energy levels and are unmotivated to exercise or for that matter, be tickled. If this works for you, I would encourage you to continue. I don't think it's for everyone, and I doubt that it will become a mainstream treatment for depression, but If you can find someone you trust to do this and you are in good physical condition, it may be an effective treatment. Keep laughing Mike. Whether it's humor or tickling, anything that puts a smile on your face is good low cost medicine.
happy(collectingfeathers)shrink
I like the fact that we're both from Australia, and we both have Mr Tickle in our sig. Except mine has had an Aussie makeover
Sorry, off topic. I'm CERTAINLY happier after I get tickled. I lose bets and card games often deliberately just to slip a tickling in.
MeleeDuck_9
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So since I suffer from depression, does this mean I can ask a female friend of mine to tickle me senseless and not feel guilty about it? only problem is the resulting boner...
All the cool kids have it.
Therapy
I actually have this done on a regular basis. I am not depressed just very high strung. I posted the original link becaue I find it very, very interesting and thought others might too. Problem is tickling can be fun, therapeutic (I've talked to several legitimate therapists who believe this as well), sensual, sexual, etc. Thats the problem. The perception of the individual towards tickling and very possibly the reaction to the one being tickled...or how they present it.
I actually have this done on a regular basis. I am not depressed just very high strung. I posted the original link becaue I find it very, very interesting and thought others might too. Problem is tickling can be fun, therapeutic (I've talked to several legitimate therapists who believe this as well), sensual, sexual, etc. Thats the problem. The perception of the individual towards tickling and very possibly the reaction to the one being tickled...or how they present it.
Having suffered from serious depression for a number of years, and experienced such things as tickling in an attempt to "improve my mood," I would argue against this.
One reaches a point, with depression, where one does not wish to be "cheered up." It isn't rational; it doesn't make sense. A lot of things don't, but they are still felt quite strongly. One time, I had something of a breakdown and started vomiting into the trash can; my first thought was that my life was already worthless and disgusting and poisonous enough to the rest of the world that my vomiting simply proved it.
On one time in particular, I experienced a crisis period when someone refused to leave me alone and let me work my way out of the way I was feeling on my own, and I've talked to others at group therapy and support groups who have had similar, if not identical experiences.
IMO (this part certainly is) depression is sorely mishandled in our society. People simply don't want to deal with the irrational and negative feelings that sufferers of depression, who might be impacting their lives with said suffering, are feeling (I'm not saying they're selfish; they don't want the sufferers to deal with it either, I'm sure, and it's hard to deal with someone making your life miserable for reasons that don't make any sense for months, if not years on end).
I've known many people who were diagnosed as having a seratonin deficiency, or some such thing, but I've never met one person who had this verified through an actual medical examination; they felt depressed, and a conversation with a psychiatrist led to... not only a diagnosis of a brain chemistry disorder, but dangerous medication to combat this completely unconfirmed statement.
I have always felt that my depression was the result of circumstances and situations in life that I couldn't seem to figure a way out of. Every time I went through a period of being terribly depressed, I could (and can, in retrospect) isolate what it was that was causing me to feel so down that the usual everyday disappointments life brings, instead of being easily disregarded, compounded the problem tremendously.
With diagnosis of a medical condition being so flippantly handed down, it isn't easy for a lot of people to take depression seriously. I do believe it's serious (and I'm not denying that there might be a chemical problem, but without an examination to detect that how could anybody know?), but attempts by friends or family to use something like tickling or pop-psych-101 to try and forcibly deal with the problem seem more likely to do considerable harm than good.
From my own experience, what worked best was being treated normally. Being left alone when I wanted to be; for me, that was most of the time, but I'm not particularly social however well I'm feeling. For someone who normally enjoys other activities, being invited along on fun family- or friend-related events that they would normally enjoy and allowing them to do whatever they felt like doing, there, without being made to feel pressured to "get better" (IME, nothing sets off a depressed person more destructively than the feeling that they're being pushed to get better; it works quite "nicely" with the whole "I'm even more worthless, see how upset I'm making everyone" issue).
One reaches a point, with depression, where one does not wish to be "cheered up." It isn't rational; it doesn't make sense. A lot of things don't, but they are still felt quite strongly. One time, I had something of a breakdown and started vomiting into the trash can; my first thought was that my life was already worthless and disgusting and poisonous enough to the rest of the world that my vomiting simply proved it.
On one time in particular, I experienced a crisis period when someone refused to leave me alone and let me work my way out of the way I was feeling on my own, and I've talked to others at group therapy and support groups who have had similar, if not identical experiences.
IMO (this part certainly is) depression is sorely mishandled in our society. People simply don't want to deal with the irrational and negative feelings that sufferers of depression, who might be impacting their lives with said suffering, are feeling (I'm not saying they're selfish; they don't want the sufferers to deal with it either, I'm sure, and it's hard to deal with someone making your life miserable for reasons that don't make any sense for months, if not years on end).
I've known many people who were diagnosed as having a seratonin deficiency, or some such thing, but I've never met one person who had this verified through an actual medical examination; they felt depressed, and a conversation with a psychiatrist led to... not only a diagnosis of a brain chemistry disorder, but dangerous medication to combat this completely unconfirmed statement.
I have always felt that my depression was the result of circumstances and situations in life that I couldn't seem to figure a way out of. Every time I went through a period of being terribly depressed, I could (and can, in retrospect) isolate what it was that was causing me to feel so down that the usual everyday disappointments life brings, instead of being easily disregarded, compounded the problem tremendously.
With diagnosis of a medical condition being so flippantly handed down, it isn't easy for a lot of people to take depression seriously. I do believe it's serious (and I'm not denying that there might be a chemical problem, but without an examination to detect that how could anybody know?), but attempts by friends or family to use something like tickling or pop-psych-101 to try and forcibly deal with the problem seem more likely to do considerable harm than good.
From my own experience, what worked best was being treated normally. Being left alone when I wanted to be; for me, that was most of the time, but I'm not particularly social however well I'm feeling. For someone who normally enjoys other activities, being invited along on fun family- or friend-related events that they would normally enjoy and allowing them to do whatever they felt like doing, there, without being made to feel pressured to "get better" (IME, nothing sets off a depressed person more destructively than the feeling that they're being pushed to get better; it works quite "nicely" with the whole "I'm even more worthless, see how upset I'm making everyone" issue).
Sanhael, you bring up good points as a reminder that depression is a serious illness. My sense is that the others posting about this (as well as myself) would only suggest tickling if the bout was relatively mild and treatable without drugs (any condition treatable without drugs is good in my book). Cases of serious depression that you described reminds us all how delicately tough cases have to be handled. (BTW, could diet be a factor and could that help?)
For platonic tickling without the boner, I always suggest to my male buddies to ejaculate before meeting up with your tickler. I would also hold off on your zinc and vitamin E that day.
MeleeDuck_9
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For platonic tickling without the boner, I always suggest to my male buddies to ejaculate before meeting up with your tickler. I would also hold off on your zinc and vitamin E that day.
but then its not as fun
JustPeechy
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I suffer from depression and know that if anyone attempted to tickle me during a dark time, I would probably kick them in the bajeebees.
However, after it has passed and it is another day, tickling is a great way to get back to living.
However, after it has passed and it is another day, tickling is a great way to get back to living.
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I would say tickling can be a great stress reliever.It can be sexual ornonsexual depending on the situation.If it was a doctor type of deal you probably would 'nt get the sexual part as you might if it were your partner ya know.
