Neurotransmitter test

     Ever since I worked for Dr Gordon in 2003, I've wanted to take one. Neuroscience was recently bought out by Pharmasan Labs. The simple urine test shows what levels your 10 different brain chemicals are at. GABA, Norepinephrine, Dopamine, and several more. But you have to go to a Naturopath or a progressive doctor who will agree to receive the results. Most MDs won't carry the lab tests, because the large hospitals have service contracts with large lab companies like Qwest, who don't do the tests. You have to go through a particular lab.

     The MD at the large hospital had just explained to me there was no such thing as a test to identify which brain chemicals were off balance. Because I had worked at Dr Gordon's office 10 years ago, I knew it was a lie. I always thought that was weird. They can tell you which pharmaceutical drug affects which brain chemical - like Celebrex affects dopamines-but they can't test you and tell you exactly what you need? They sit there and say, well, most Americans are positively affected by the drugs that increase dopamines, but you'll have to try it to see. You might need Zoloft or Paxil. Well, I've watched friends trust their doctors and take the prescribed medications only to endure weeks of sleepless nights and sweats and loss of appetite and loss of ability to concentrate, only to be told they need to try something else. Then they go through witthdrawal from that drug and all the pains of trying a new one. And we all hear about the side effects, most of which are actually intensified versions of your original symptoms. Like homicidal/suicidal thoughts or behaviors. I remember when Prozac first came out and people randomly started killing family members. Well the pharmaceutical companies went back to the drawing board and, funded by millions of dollars in research funding provided by the government, changed the chemical composition of Prozac by one molecule, renamed it Celebrex and remarketed it. I am continuously astounded that drugging the American population to death is promoted and allowed and legal,yet, taking a simple urine test to check  the levels of your brain chemicals is taboo.
      The therapist who administered the Beck Depression Inventory test and found me "Extremely depressed" told me she felt my depression was "situational", caused by the persecution experience I had recently had at the Jesuit University. She also told me to go straight to an MD and get a prescription. So, I did. I spent about 10 minutes speaking to the MD, who assured me when I asked that "there just isn't" a specific test to check people's brain chemistry, walked out with a generic prescription for Celebrex (Celexa) and a bill for $218.00. My route home just happened to bring me past the Naturopath's office and I decided I would finally bite the bullet and get the urine test. I was surprised by the results and really glad I paid the $225 to have the test.