Depression
DEPRESSION
Depression is a common, serious illness.
Depression is more than just a low mood – it’s a serious illness that requires attention. People with depression find it hard to manage everyday activities. Depression can have serious effects on physical as well as mental health.
Depression is a known high risk factor for suicide. From 1998 to 2002, the suicide rate in Australia was four times higher in men than women. Around one million Australian adults live with depression each year. On average, one in six men and one in four women will experience depression in their adult lifetime.
What can you do about it?
Change your eating to include important FOODS.
Take SUPPLEMENTS that enhance your DIET -
Have enough SLEEP. Before midnight and try for 7 hours.
Engage in EXERCISE to keep your body function at top level.-
TAKE necessary MEDICATION –
Receive COUNSELLING – and don’t hesitate to TALK about your depression.
Post –natal depression:
20% of Australian mothers suffer post-natal depression. A recent international study suggests that new mums can reduce their risk of suffering post-natal depression by increasing the amount of DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid) in their diet. Their research measured the fish consumption and prevalence of post-natal depression in 24 countries including Australia. DHA is one of the essential Omega -3 fats known to be vital for normal brain and eye function. It can be found in tuna oils and tuna, also Atlantic salmon, sardines, anchovies, gem fish as well as organ meats such as brains and chicken livers, as well as eggs and wholemeal breads. An insufficient diet in DHA-rich foods can lead on to post-natal depression.
Heart Disease linked to depression in over 60’s.
Depression arising late in life could be caused by blood vessel disease rather than chemical imbalances in the brain. A study in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry by the
Being suicidal is not a crazy state. It has a biological link.
Depression may be a suppression of many emotions.
It is an individual response to their past that leads to putting the cap on many natural emotions. Freeing the mind and body of these constrictions can lead to the release of suppressed emotions that lead to depression. Certainly a feeling that “nothing can be done”, a defeatist attitude, lies at the heart of the person suffering depression.
Men and Depression
Men often experience non-traditional symptoms of depression, which can keep them from recognizing the problem and seeking help. Men tend to hide, even from themselves the symptoms of depression. Men tend to medicate their depression with drugs and/or alcohol and tend to act their depression out upon others or act in self destructive and angry ways.
While women are much more likely to seek help, men do not admit their problems as they think it as a weakness. And left untreated, the depression gets substantially worse over time.
Men ‘somatise’ their emotional states and create a variety of physical problems, which do not respond to treatment. Practitioners are constantly dealing with gut, sleep, stress and neuro-muscular problems, which arise from depression.
Depression affects both men and women, but quite often what they experience and how they respond is different. Men tend to focus on the physical symptoms, such as feeling tired or losing or gaining weight. They are also more likely to say they feel irritable or angry, rather than saying they feel low.
It’s vital that more people learn to recognise depression because effective treatments are available.
How can I tell if someone is depressed?
Common behaviours associated with depression include:
• Moodiness that is out of proportion to recent events;
• Increased irritability and frustration;
• More sensitivity to minor personal criticisms;
• Withdrawal from social events;
• Loss of interest in food, sex, exercise or other pleasurable activities;
• Being awake throughout the night;
• Increased alcohol and drug use;
• Staying home from work or school;
• Increased physical health complaints like fatigue or pain; and,
• Being reckless or taking unnecessary risks (eg. driving fast or dangerously).
Causes of depression
Factors that can contribute to depression include:
• Using drugs and alcohol
• Physical health problems
• Relationship problems
• Employment problems
• Social isolation
• Significant change in living arrangements (for example separation or divorce).
The good news
The good news is that a combination of antidepressant medication and psychotherapy along with supplements, exercise and sleep are most effective treatment approaches.
ANXIETY:
The adrenalin outpouring we experience when we are stressed is the culprit that creates our anxious feelings. That alarm system heightens our mental alertness, and may cause stomach queasiness, sudden sweating, shakiness, and a racing heart.
Vitamins are essential supplements for their effect on brain & body chemistry.
Vitamin B12, Vit. B6, Zinc, Hypericum, L-Tryptophan are very good supplements.
Dementia - folate status has been linked to the efficacy of neural transmitters and the performance of the blood brain barrier.
ZINC: Serious zinc deficiency will affect brain function, creating severe mental problems, including learning and behavioural disorders and an inability to handle stress.
Zinc and B6 . In the past five years research has found a biochemical marker for life-long anxiety symptoms, and have been shocked to see that as many as one- third to one-half of the alcoholics treated have this genetic, chemical imbalance called pyroluria. High levels of pyrroles systematically bind with B6 and zinc, preventing the use of these essential nutrients in the brain and body. The result is a myriad of symptoms, including severe inner tension, ongoing anxiety, poor stress control, fearfulness, and sometimes-episodic anger.
Hypericum . Extracts of Hypericum perforatum L. ( St John's wort) are now successfully competing for status as a standard antidepressant therapy. Because of this, great effort has been devoted to identifying the active antidepressant compounds in the extract. From a phytochemical point of view, St John's wort is one of the best-investigated medicinal plants.
L-Tryptophan.
Many people find tryptophan to be a safe and reasonably effective sleep aid, probably due to its ability to increase brain levels of serotonin (a calming neurotransmitter when present in moderate levels) and/or melatonin (a sleep-inducing hormone ). In particular, tryptophan showed considerable promise as an antidepressant alone, and as an "augmenter" of antidepressant drugs.
Cognitive behaviour therapy combines two very effective kinds of therapy – cognitive therapy and behaviour therapy. Cognitive therapy teaches you how certain thinking patterns are causing your symptoms – by giving you a distorted picture of what's going on in your life, and making you feel anxious, depressed or angry for no good reason, or provoking you into ill-chosen actions.
Behaviour therapy helps you weaken the connections between troublesome situations and your habitual reactions to them – reactions such as fear, depression or rage, and self-defeating or self-damaging behaviour. It also teaches you how to calm your mind and body, so you can feel better, think more clearly, and make better decisions.
When combined into CBT, behaviour therapy and cognitive therapy provide very powerful tools for stopping your symptoms and getting your life on a more satisfying track.
Changing Negative Thoughts
Science has shown that we talk to ourselves over 50,000 times a day. Professor Roger Sperry, who received the Nobel Prize for dividing the functions of the Left and Right brain in 1981, proved that negative thoughts attract negative thoughts, which lead to negative action and to negative reaction. Thank goodness for the corollary – positive thoughts attract positive thoughts, which lead to positive action and positive reaction. So what’s the key in this? Awareness! We need to be aware of our own self-talk. There is no doubt that negative self talk can drive us into depression.
What can I do for you?
My personal development course called “Free To Be Me” teaches meditation, turning negative talk to positive and how to do it. It discovers the attitudes that sabotage you, teaches you visualisation techniques and helps you understand the meaning of emotions so that they work for you and not undermine you. You come out of this course with stronger self esteem, self confidence and a deep understanding of the power of the mind. You become more aware of your self-talk and can reprogram your mind to supporting you.
In my Hypnotherapy studies, I have been taught Cognitive Behaviour Therapy which is recommended for Depression as well as many other mental stresses. Depression is often a push-down of unhappy past experiences that lead on to anger, frustration and defeat.
I use EFT (emotional freedom technique ) or TAPPING successfully for this change.
Acupuncture is another excellent therapy for calming and balancing your energies.
Do something about your depression /anxiety now and book in for a consultation.
