You know you're stressed. You know you're anxious. Do you have depression? And do you need to know the latest in the biology of how the brain works and depression works or doesn't work and whether the gut is involved in getting meaningful help?

That's today's big question. I promise it's kind of one question, even if there are a ton of different answers, and they're going to be different for everybody.

This conversation is a follow-up to our last couple of conversations about the brain, the gut, and depression. My returning guest is Srijan Sen.

Srijan is still the Francis and Kenneth Eisenberg Professor of Depression and Neurosciences at the University of Michigan and the Director of the Francis and Kenneth Eisenberg and Family Depression Center. 

His leading research focuses on the interactions between genes and the environment and their effect on stress, anxiety, and depression.

Content WarningThis week we're talking about depression, and stress, and anxiety, and mental health, and suicide.This is a very important conversation but if any of this could be triggering to you, please just skip over the next one. Nothing in this conversation, of course, should be taken as medical advice. If a treatment, or some combination of treatments, prescribed or recommended, by your health care provider is working for you, huzzah. That's great. Stay with it. Your personal experience with the treatment is much more relevant than anything in this conversation. If you're using a depression medication or other therapy and not getting relief from your depression symptoms, talk with your health care provider.If you are struggling and feeling distressed, or that you might hurt yourself, text or call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, right now, to get help. And you can even call and press 3 to speak to a counselor with the Trevor Project, who provide wonderful support for LGBTQ+ folks.

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INI Book Club:

• Find all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-club

Links:

• Follow along with the work of The Sen Lab
• Follow Srijan on Twitter
• Suicide Crisis Lifeline (Call 988)
• The Trevor Project Hotline for LBGTQ+ youth
• Listen to Srijan's first episode

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• Edited by Anthony Luciani
• Produced by Willow Beck
• Intro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.com

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