Guest guest Posted August 18, 2007 Report Share Posted August 18, 2007 I am looking for an alternative to prescription meds for depression that increase energy. My DR. has been telling me that there are a couple of chemicals that are low and that in order to have energy back to normal, they need to be raised. I cannot recall the name of the two chemicals off hand. So if you suffer from depression and especially the lack of energy and have been able to find a possible cure, please contact me..thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 18, 2007 Report Share Posted August 18, 2007 Get some Yerba Mate tea (at any health food store), brew according to instructions and drink 16 oz in the morning and 16 oz in the afternoon. I have been drinking this much of Yerba Mate lately and I noticed a distinct improvement in the mild depression I had been experiencing. Courtney selfhelp07 <selfhelp07 wrote: I am looking for an alternative to prescription meds for depression that increase energy. Got a little couch potato? Check out fun summer activities for kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 19, 2007 Report Share Posted August 19, 2007 Mild depression and lack of energy is as much as symptom as a condition of its own. The two chemicals your doctor was likely talking about are seratonin and dopamin. An undiagnosed underactive thyroid can mask itself as depression and should be evaluated. Also, the greatest anti-depressant is not a chemical, but physical movement - exercise such as running has been shown to improve mood because it boosts the endorphin release. Dr. Duke a noted herbal expert in one of his books talks about the value of eating a single brazil nut a day to ensure you take in enough natural substances to provide seratonin. St. Johns Wort has a lot of reserch literature showing its benefit in treating mild to moderate depression, sadly the NIH funded study done a few years ago was changed early on from a replication of other studies to a study on major depression and ended up having no true benefit to the scientific literature. The caveat for St. John's Wort is that it can reduce the benefit of certain drugs such as birth control pills and AIDS and anti-viral medications. Feeling depressed is not something you should try to manage on your own, please make sure you have someone who is in partnership with you on your health - a friend or family member who you talk to daily and who will notice if you are not climbing out ot the depths of a dark feeling. Finding a health care professional who is your champion is important. And if you feel the need to try a prescription drug, don't beat yourself up over that - be fully informed. There can be some benefit. I " ve had experts tell me that there can be a short term benefit for such medications - to give you chance to find your bearings/balance...the caveat is that drugs are never to be used alone, they should always be used in conjunction with counseling...and likely the use of a herb should also be used in conjunction with counseling. Acupuncture, and body work (massage, polarity therapy, etc.) have also shown beneficial. Practicing Tai Chi or Qi Gong daily (especially out of doors where you are breathing fresh air) can improve mood and energy levels. Take the Internet to Go: Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news, photos & more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 20, 2007 Report Share Posted August 20, 2007 I have had incredible personal success with GABA (google and you can find several articles providing info) as well as a Flax/E.Primrose Blend. I get both and lots of other well priced supplements from DoctorsTrust.com Best wishes, Lisa--- In , " selfhelp07 " <selfhelp07 wrote: > > I am looking for an alternative to prescription meds for depression > that increase energy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 22, 2007 Report Share Posted August 22, 2007 Hi selfhelp07, Let me say that I agree with camcentral - don't go through this alone. Make sure you have support through friends or family, a counsellor or a support or church group. Whatever works for you. You don't say whether you've been suffering for a long time with depression or not. My own feeling is that depression can be as different as the person experiencing it. Some people have stressful events, become depressed, and eventually come through it, either with counselling and/or meds or not. While other people seem to suffer and suffer for years - in these cases I think there is more of an underlying health/biochemical issue going on too. I will share with you my own experiences as I have been working through my depression most of my adult life. I have done many sessions of therapy - this helped some as I was able to recognise and face childhood issues. Also, I have been on SSRI antidepressants a number of times. These were helpful at times when I was just not coping at all. I came across Dr. Carl C. Pfeiffer ('Mental and Elemental Nutrients'). His research on chemical and nutrient imbalances in mental illness lead me to go to the Brain Bio Centre in London (http://www.mentalhealthproject.com/content.asp?id_Content=994). They helped me a lot. (sister clinic in the US - Pfeiffer Treatment Center http://www.hriptc.org/). I urge you to review Pfeiffer's book and have your doctor do the relevant blood and urine tests for histamine levels, krytopyrrole levels and food allergies. Also various hormone issues can be a biochemical cause of depression. In my case I have very low blood histamine levels, estrogen levels drop off quite low at some points in my monthly cycle, and I have a few food allergies. A hair mineral test may also be useful. Mine showed a chromium deficiency which can indicate poor blood sugar control and fatigue. The results of any of these tests will partly determine which supplements you should take, however, here are some general guidelines. St. John's Wort and 5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan) - these are good supplements for depression, however DO NOT take if you are currently taking a prescribed antidepressant medication. This could cause serotonin levels in the brain to rise too high, bringing on a whole different set of problems. Also 5-HTP is contraindicated in systemic lupus erythematosus, asthma, ischaemic heart disease. St. John's Wort 0.3% hypericin 300mg – 3x per day, 50 mg 3x per day with meals for 2 weeks, then can increase to 100 mg 3x per day if lower dose not effective. S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe) (1200 mg/day to start, 400mg/day maintenance) and Phosphatidylserine (100 mg, 3x per day with 400 mg max) can also be helpful for depression. If you determine that you have food allergies, then the following supplements can help support the digestive system and to heal the gut in order to reduce or reverse these allergies: a good digestive enzyme tablet with each meal, L-glutamine powder (1-2 teaspoon per day), whole leaf aloe vera extract (0.5% aloe solids: 75-250 ml per day, 2.4% aloe solids: 25-100 ml per day). If you've had a lot of antibiotic treatments over the years, a Candida albicans overgrowth can also be an issue. A stool analysis can determine this. I can give some further advice on this - let me know if you need this information - trying to keep this (relatively) short. Your fatigue may be due to nutrient deficiency, adrenal exhaustion, underlying biochemical imbalances (as per Pfeiffer), and/or blood sugar imbalance (hypoglycemia), so any one supplement may not be that helpful. In my case a hair mineral analysis showed a severe chromium deficiency which also affects blood sugar control. If you have CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), you may wish to join the CFS_Yasko, to learn more about other underlying biochemical imbalances that may cause this. Vitamin C and pantothenic acid support the adrenal glands (1000 and 500 mg, respectively, 3x per day). For any herbal support, I suggest you seek out a qualified herbalist. Other general supplements I take (all with meals): [i know you might not be able to find some of these in the US, so I've included the website so you can see what the contents per capsule are to help you find a similar supplement]. - Essential Fatty Acid supplement with EPA, DHA, and GLA - 4x per day (Higher Nature Essential Omegas -http://www.highernature.co.uk/ShowProductFamily.aspx?ProductFamilyID=205) - B-complex 50 - 2x per day - Vitamin C 1000mg - 3x day - Multivit/min - Healthlink Magnesium Formula 1 (http://www.archturus.co.uk/Healthlink%20FormulaeMag1 & 2.htm) - 6x per day maintenance or Higher Nature Advanced Optimum Nutrition Formula (http://www.highernature.co.uk/ShowProductFamily.aspx?ProductFamilyID=211) - 3x per day. - A good quality probiotic supplement - Natren Superdophilus or similar - 1/2-1 tsp., 2x per day Apologies for this lengthy reply, but I hope you gain something useful from it. If you feel your depression is biochemically based, it could take you some time to track down the true cause(s), but hang in there - it IS worth it. I personally feel better than I have in over 20 years. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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