DEPRESSION – SYMPTOMS AND SUGGESTIONS

by Frank M. Jordan

There are currently some 20 million Americans in the United States who suffer from depression. There are 30 million Americans taking an anti-depressant for a variety of reasons, including chronic pain, anxiety and social disorders.  Unfortunately, there are also probably millions of Americans, especially women, taking anti-depressants for misdiagnosed thyroid health conditions that are made worse in most instances by such drugs.

Psychiatrist call depression a mood disorder characterized by five of the following symptoms for at minimum two weeks:

• Feelings of sadness or irritability

• Loss of interest in activities once considered pleasurable

• Weight loss or gain of more than 5% of body weight

• Insomnia or over sleeping

• Fatigue

• Feelings of worthlessness, shame or guilt

• Poor concentration

• Thoughts of death or suicide

If these symptoms persist for more than two weeks, you are considered to be clinically depressed and should seek professional help in assessing and resolving the depression. Depression is a complicated disease affected by many variables and is known to be caused by multiple factors including:

• Genetic susceptibility (Studies of family history and unique characteristics - twins, etc.)

• Imbalance of neurotransmitters

• Poor coping skills together with behavior learned by interactions with others.

• A symptom of a coexisting disease such as cancer, heart disease or diabetes.

• Side effects of medications as any drug can cause depression as a side effect.  Drugs specifically proven to cause depression are those related to being prescribed for hypertension, pain, cholesterol, chemotherapy, birth control and hormone replacement therapy, including but not limited to steroids, antibiotics, chemotherapy and cancer pharmaceuticals and synthetic hormones.

• Deficiencies of needed natural nutrients including vitamins, minerals, protein and essential fatty acids, particularly magnesium and Omega 3 fatty acids.

• Infectious, inflammatory agents

• Chemical, metallic and plastic and environmental toxins

With so many causes of depression, why are we focusing only on the neurotransmitter cause of depression in almost all research seeking pharmaceuticals by prescription to resolve depression? Neurotransmitters can be manipulated by medications that are patentable with protected cash flow for many years to the Pharmaceutical corporations who produce and market the drug.

To treat depression only by use of medications while ignoring the true cause is incomplete, short sighted and in most instances only treats the symptoms instead of resolving the cause.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER IN THE BATTLE AGAINST DEPRESSION

If you have been struggling with depression and are not sure what to do, the following list are suggestions to be implemented that have benefited many challenged to some degree by depression.  If you have clinical depression by the criteria previously presented, the following list is helpful, with the additional involvement of a health care professional with expertise in the area of depression.

1.  Analyze your daily lifestyle habits carefully with particular regard to:

• Smoking

• Caffeine

• Alcohol and street drugs

• Poor diet with sugar laden food and drinks, other junk food and refined grains

2.  Exercise - Moderate exercise of 15-30 minutes three times weekly is a minimum with walking excellent

3.  Life circumstances:

• Grief

• Job stress and/or money problems

• Relationship stress - children, spouse or significant others, extended family, co-workers, etc

• Self esteem

4. Medications:

• New medications

• Changes in dosages of any medications

• Combination of medications

• Changes in health without review of medications as to purpose, amount and frequency

 5. Medical problems including Surgeries, extended hospital stays or medial errors

After completing an in-depth review of your health challenges and life issues from both a physical and mental perspective, begin the following steps:

1. Begin a new lifestyle diet to eat for fuel

• Lower blood sugar levels and maintain a normal blood sugar level - sugar directly affects mood

• Severely restrict prepackaged junk food

• Eat green vegetables, lien protein, tart fruits and periodically lien meat

2.  Drink at minimum 1/2 your body weight in ounces of quality water daily and severely or eliminate limit caffeine and alcohol

3.  Stop smoking, chewing or anything else you are doing with tobacco products.

4.  Review your pharmaceutical prescription drugs and eliminate or reduce the dosage of any possible for these actions.

5.  Begin a reasonable exercise program of 15-30 minutes at minimum 3 times weekly

6.  Take a quality multiple vitamin with B Complex, Minerals including magnesium and Enzymes

7.  Balance Fatty Acids with an Omega 3 to Omega 6 ratio of 1 to 1 (American diet now 1 to 20!)

• Cold water fish - salmon, mackerel (avoid mercury contamination of some farm-fed fish)

• Fish Oil and Flaxseed Oil supplements

8. Probiotic to provide good flora in the intestines for proper nutrient absorption and delivery

9.  Promote a peak immune response with:

• Adequate rest

• Stress reduction

• Proper diet (no sugar!)

• Moderate Exercise

• Supplementation such a MG Glucan, CoQ10, Astragulus, NSC Pro Probiotic, etc.

10. Supplements such as St. Johns Wort - 300 mg of 1-3 tablets daily for moderate depression (25 double blind studies have demonstrated St. Johns safety and efficacy in nutritionally promoting wellness from depression. The negative publicity was generated by testing in severely depressed individuals which was never represented to be a result of St. Johns Wort intake.)

11.  Have testing performed for a thyroid health challenge often overlooked or misdiagnosed.

11.  Be positive in thinking and talking about the good things and blessings in life

12.  Establish relationships and develop friends to be trusted with confidences

13.  Seek a spiritual relationship with Jesus Christ and establish hope, self worth and esteem, awareness you are not alone and a certainty of a positive future both in this life and eternally.

13.  If after six weeks there is not significant improvement, seek professional help with a mental health professional.  Ask questions about any medications as to purpose, duration of intake, dosage, side effects, etc.  Read the report on this website for questions to ask your doctor.

You are the key to your becoming a positive person in attitude, personality and relationships.  Professional help is available if you have clinical depression, but try the steps above in lifestyle changes that have aided thousands in a natural recovery to live a bountiful and fulfilling life.

Warning:  If you decide to stop taking a prescribed depression medication, you must do so slowly under physician direction.  Do not stop suddenly as severe side effects can occur.  If you experience negative emotions after taking the medicine related to suicide and/or self destruction, call your physician immediately and report the negative emotions!

 

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