Depression

May

2016

5 Causes for Depression

As much as the medical industry would like you to think otherwise, there is not physical/biological test for depression. Most tests are done by doctors or psychiatrists that ask a series of questions. They are trying to determine if one has clinical depression.

Definition of Clinical Depression:

“Clinical depression is the more severe form of depression, also known as major depression or major depressive disorder. It isn't the same as depression caused by a loss, such as the death of a loved one, or a medical condition, such as a thyroid disorder.”

The issue here is that this is all subjective. It is all in the opinion of the doctor or psychiatrist. The huge majority of psychiatrists will not do physical tests as they are not actually looking for the CAUSE of depression. They are looking to summate symptoms.

Most doctors have the know how to actually ascertain the cause but don’t willingly take the time.

From an article by Fred Ovsiew in the Psychiatric Times:

“Psychiatric patients commonly suffer from general medical conditions; often these conditions affect or even produce the mental disorder. In formulating the psychopathologic condition and identifying its cause, why would one want to forgo tools that generations of physicians have found useful in the diagnostic endeavor?”

Sugar and Depression

Sugar has been long known as a big contributor to depression. It spikes then crashes your insulin levels. Watch children race around at the end of a birthday party when they have had the cake, then crash violently later. Have a bunch of sugar for lunch and try and stay awake and alert in the middle of the afternoon. The website PsychCentral.com has a good article on that here: Depression and Sugar

2. Allergies and Depression

It has been known for years that allergies are linked to depression. Any number of books and articles connecting the two. Besides affecting sleep and general function there are other chemical reactions that also affect one at a biological level. Allergies have been connected to numerous other mental disorders as well. Great article here on WebMD.com : Depression and Allergies

3. Monosodium glutamate (MSG) and Depression

MSG is rampant. Is has many names and that is the subject of someone else’s article. There is a lot of evidence how it can affect ones mood. MSG should absolutely NOT be given to growing children or teens. This is a very scientific article on the subject but if you can wade through the technical gobbledygook you will see the dangers. Even adults can have mild to severe reactions to Monosodium glutamate. This food ingredient is almost impossible to stay away from if you are eating packaged goods. It is there to enhance the flavour and most packaged goods have the flavors pretty much processed out of them. Also, most restaurant foods, particularly fast foods will contain MSG. Again, the warning about the technical jargon: Depression

4. Soda, Pop, Soft Drinks and Depression

High Fructose Corn Syrup has replaced sugar in a lot of instances or is often used in conjunction with sugar in non-diet soft drinks. Both diet and non-diet soft drinks have been consistently linked to obesity but here is a study that directly correlates fructose to depression. If you do the research, you will find that High Fructose Corn Syrup is actually worse for you than sugar. It spikes the insulin levels in ones body even worse than sugar. So, this can cause depression in both a direct and indirect manner. Directly by the insulin ‘crash’ and indirectly by the numerous side and other effects of obesity and other health problems. So, if you don’t want your children or teens getting depressed or overweight then don’t give them soda or packaged breakfast cereals.

5. TV, Radio, Newspaper News and Depression

Some years ago, a friend was at a clients house and found her to be terribly depressed. On questioning her, he found that she started and finished every day watching the News on television and would also read the newspaper and listen to the news on the radio throughout the day. He challenged her to stop all this for a period of six to eight weeks. She agreed. In only eight days she called him and said that her outlook on life had completely changed. She was happy and didn’t get down or depressed easily at all. She was more than a little amazed at how simple this was. This was slightly before the advent of Facebook. I challenge anyone that is having trouble and is also reading on Facebook or online or anywhere how absolutely horrible the world is, to STOP! Take a few weeks - don’t worry, the world won’t end - and completely get rid of the ‘News’ in your life.

6. Television and Depression

There is a direct proven link between watching television and depression. TV is hypnotic. It is also putting one at effect instead of getting a person DOING something. (No, watching TV is not ‘doing something.) The obvious effects are its contribution to obesity but many people will be surprised to find television’s relationship to Depression. One may think that watching the boob tube is a way of distracting oneself from troubles or ‘taking a break’. If you are going to do that, though, keep it to a minimum. Which is pretty much impossible for most people. This site: rodalewellness.com cites several research surveys done by scientists that show without a doubt that watching too much television can increase and actually cause depression. Watching TV

So, you have a choice. You can just take a pill from your doctor and mask some symptoms or you solve it yourself. In our next article, I will list out the prescription(pharmaceutical) drugs that actually cause depression.

Jan

2016

Big Pharma Causing Suicide?

Sep

2015

Depression – no fun at all!

As with physical pain, drugs can mask an underlying cause. Many psychologists, doctors and psychiatrists will tell you that the drug is bringing an abnormal or chemical imbalance back to a more natural state. When asked to do a test for this as one would do for a physical ailment, no test can be produced; there never has been one.

So, you are struggling with your depression and want some kind of relief, anything just to be unstuck from this awful cloying mass and feeling that is with you every minute of the day. The Doctor offers you you a pill or a bottle of pills like Xanax or some such promising relief. Offering one kind of hell for another; for now you are in a chemical straight jacket as when the effects of the drug wear off here comes your funk again.

In 30's, 40's, 50's and 60's depression as a 'disease was pretty much unheard of. The folks that would make money from your illness would have you believe that half you school class back in those days were just hiding a constant horribleness. I have spoken to hundreds and hundreds of people from these earlier eras and this is just not true. Unless I was only able to find those who were not constantly dogged by depression. Certainly many voiced that they were some times troubled and sad; life as a teen can be horrible at times but any that I spoke with were able to come out of it without drugs.

There is this idea purported by the medical industry that this particular day and age, this society is more stressful than earlier times. They would have us believe that this the only era where anyone had difficulty with their parents or children.

I know that you think that your situation is special and different. Believe me it is. But at the same time it isn't.

So what did people do before drugs were the answer. Do you want a quick fix? Something that will mask the symptoms? Or do you want to fix it? I do honestly know that it feels like it is something that cannot be fixed. But believe me you and the human race are made of sterner stuff than that. You may not think that now but it is the truth.

I read this book years ago by a psychiatrist named Sydney Walker Jr. The book was called A Dose Of Sanity. It was about the mood altering drug Prozac. One of the things that he said repeatedly in the book was that he could invariably find out the underlying physical cause of some mental difficulty. He gave examples ranging from allergies to brain tumours where Prozac had been prescribed nearly causing deaths if Dr. Walker had not intervened.

I am not entirely convinced,though, that every person that is depressed has some physical problem. I have seen too many people resolve their depression in other ways. I have this friend at the gym. He was prescribed drugs as a solution to his depression by his doctor. His uncle got a hold of him and took him to a martial arts class and he never looked back, never took any of the drugs, he didn't need them anymore once started training.

This may not be the solution for everybody and may be more difficult for you to start something to change. Also, some in the medical industry would argue that he was not really depressed if it was that easy; that a little exercise is not going to resolve something of this depth. If you listen to his story, it was not that easy, but he was able to persist with help of his uncle.

Sometime that is what is needed. Someone to help you get from here to there. The majority of time the solutions to the most complex situations are ver, very simple! (I know there is no way you are going to believe that when you terribly depressed.)

A couple of things to try and hold onto when you are feeling the worst: firstly, it is not, no matter what you think, you! And two: it can get better - there is something that you can do about it.