Healthy Alternatives to Antidepressants

This month, I am addressing the subject of the 3 most dangerous types of drugs.  Today, I will be speaking on alternative methods to help deal with antidepressant drugs.

SSIR Antidepressants
A brief review from September 5 newsletter is:  
Common side effects of SSRIs and SNRIs antidepressants:

• becoming numb to life
• severe agitation and feeling imbalanced
• feeling of losing one’s mind 
• losing the ability to have sex
• development of birth defects.

Severe side effects

• violently psychotic
• suicide
• homicide (mass shootings)

There is a widespread denial in psychiatry about the issues with their drugs the result of this can lead to serious consequences for the patient.  For more information and to read the full article go here.

Healthy Alternatives
As with last week, the steps that need to be addressed to find permanent solution are:

1. Address the cause.
2. Use natural botanical medicine that does not harm the mind or body.
3. Find the “Why” – Dig deeper and get the root.

Address the Cause
Depression can have different causes and if these are not addressed and just an antidepressant is given, it is a great disservice.  Some of the causes of depression are:

• Thyroid or Adrenal imbalances
• Heart problems
• Liver congestion
• Trauma
• Chronic pain
• Hormonal imbalances
• Stressful life events
• Medication
• Imbalance in brain chemistry
• Chronic Illness
• Lack of Sleep

There is much involved in each of the above that we do not have the space to deal with here, but these are the general causes of depression.  I had one client who had been put on antidepressants and later found out that she had thyroid problems.  This was the cause and could have been taken care with simple thyroid medication.
Solutions:   The first step would be to find out what is causing the depression.  Usually, a person will need to have help from a qualified practitioner.   There is help for all of the above.

Take Botanical Medicine That Does NOT Harm
There are healthy alternatives to drugs.  All of the above conditions can be addressed with Botanical Medicine and natural modalities.  
Some remedies that have helped many are:

• Adrenal formula, Wholistic Botanical
• Calm Heart, H4Y
• Mind Trak , Wholistic Botanical
• St John’s Wort 

NEW Products:  Solle Natural
Founder Greg Halliday and his wife Donna were searching for a natural way to approach her struggle with depression.  It seemed everything they tried either wasn’t effective enough, came with unwanted side effects or didn’t last. After years of trying everything from herbs to lifestyle changes and medication, they learned about adaptogens.  AdaptAble is an amazing combination that helps with depression AND can be taken while still taking prescription medication.  As a person gets better, they can slowly wean themselves off of the prescription effectively.   Here’s their story:

AdaptAble -Donna’s Story

The Adaptable Supplement  This can be used by anyone with depression regardless of the cause. 
 

Find out the Why – dig deeper to get the root
When getting to the root of an issue, one must consider the Triad of Health:  Biochemical, Structural, and Mental/Emotional.  There may be some of each of these causing the problem.  For instance, repeated football injuries (or most injuries to the head) are known to cause microscopic damages to the brain.  This is a structural problem which results in a biochemical imbalance, which results in a mental & emotional problem such as depression and more.  The actual disease for repeated head injuries is called Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).  (To learn more about this condition, see the trailer below.)  To then put insult upon injury, antidepressants are given, which can cause more brain damage!

Another example would be trauma.  Trauma can cause injury to the brain.  In this case, it is the chemicals released in the trauma, or afterwards by the memory of it, that causes the damage.  This can be from childhood or as an adult. 

Solutions:  The key is always finding out what the problem is so that the right modality or supplement can be used.

Another solution that any of us can do is to cultivation gratitude.  Here is a website on The Neuroscience of Gratitude and the Effects on the Brain.  It is now known that giving thanks actually changes the chemistry of the brain!!!

This is a very broad and deep subject, not everything can be covered, but I hope this is helpful to you.  God bless and if you would like any help, please contact me.

We’re here to help YOU!
Amy Willis MH, CTN