are there alternative herbs or vitamins for general anxiety and depression?

3 Responses to “are there alternative herbs or vitamins for general anxiety and depression?”

1. ♥Pamela♥ Says:
   July 29th, 2009 at 12:32 am

   St John’s wort is supposed to be very good, although I haven’t tried it I have heard good things about it.
   Get anything you can with Lavender and Rose scents, since they are good mood lifters, as is geranium oil, if you want to venture into the world of aromatherapy.
   Drink herbal teas, the ones with camomile in them are good, but the taste can be a bit strange at first. You can sweeten them with honey:)
   Omega 3 is very good for helping to lift depression, so my counsellor keeps telling me but I haven’t tried this yet either. I will though, since I have bought them, just need to take them.

   If you go into a health food shop they might be able to point you at things that I haven’t thought of.
   References :

2. Shan Says:
   July 29th, 2009 at 1:11 am

   Ask yourself: "Why do I feel depressed, and when did I first start to feel this way: can I associate this with any recent change in my life?" (if so, it is probably situational depression: counselling, such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is indicated). Or, was it a more gradual thing, with no apparent cause (endogenous depression, resulting from nutritional deficiencies, hypothyroidism, exposure to toxic chemicals, or reactions to some medications, etc., becomes more likely as the cause).

   Depression: I KNOW, from experience, how difficult it is, but once you drag yourself out of bed, throw on a dressing gown, and have a little time in the morning light, preferably doing easy stretching exercises, then have a shower, a cuppa, and either fish, or scrambled eggs, and possibly bacon for breakfast.

   These provide a lasting energy boost: no carbohydrates for 2 hrs, or extremely little; a teaspoon of sugar is OK, but Xylitol is preferable, (health food stores) or fruit sugar (fructose, such as "Fruisana", from supermarket sugar aisles) or even a LITTLE honey. Splash cold water on your face, to revive you, as needed. No daytime sleeping; only 8 - 9 hrs at night. Antidepressants work quicker than the following; 2 - 6 weeks, but you may have to adjust dosage, or types, whereas St. John’s wort is effective for most people, tolerance doesn’t develop, and the few side effects don’t occur often, and even then are normally not severe.

   It doesn’t cause sleeping problems, or weight change, but usually takes at least 2, and generally 4 - 6 weeks to become effective. A recent, independent German double blind study showed it to be as effective as Sertraline (marketed in the USA as Zoloft: a commonly prescribed antidepressant) in cases of major depression, with far fewer side effects, and those were generally better tolerated, with a lower rate of discontinuation. Unlike antidepressants, where sexual dysfunction is a common side effect, it happens much more rarely with St. John’s wort (I have noticed no effect in this area).

   A multidimensional approach to treating depression without medication follows. All except for no. (7.) are safe to use with medication, but not St. John’s wort, because of interactions, and it’s sensible to check out anything else first with your doctor.

   (1.) Take 4 Omega 3 fish oil supplements, daily: (certified free of mercury) it is best if consumed with an antioxidant, such as an orange, or grapefruit, or their FRESHLY SQUEEZED juice. If vitamin E is added, it should be certified as being 100% from natural sources, or it may be synthetic: avoid it. Also take a vitamin B complex which is certified as being 100% of natural origin; a deficiency in vitamin B9 (folic acid, or folate) is known to cause depression.

   (2.) Work up slowly to at least 20 minutes minutes of exercise, daily, or 30 - 60 mns, 5 times weekly. Too much exercise can cause stress, which isn’t wanted when dealing with depression.

   (3.) Occupational therapy (keeping busy allows little time for unproductive introspection, and keeps mental activity out of less desirable areas of the brain).

   (4.) Use daily, one of the relaxation methods in sections 2, 2.c, 2.i, or 11, and/or yoga, Tai Chi, and/or the EFT, in sections 2.q, 2.o, and section 53, at http://www.ezy-build.net.nz/~shaneris whichever works best for you.

   (5.) Initially, at least, some form of counselling, preferably either Cognitive Behavio(u)ral Therapy, or Rational Emotive Behavio(u)ral Therapy.

   (6.) Maintain a mood chart, and daily activities schedule, as per page R, in section 2, at ezy build.

   (7.) As options, if desired, either a known, effective herbal remedy, such as St. John’s wort, (the strength varies, but the supplier should be using a standardised hypericin content, so follow the directions) or supplements, such as SAMe, or Inositol (from vitamin and health food stores, some supermarkets, or mail order: view section 55).

   Also, 80% of people in the Western world have low magnesium levels, and these are known to cause depression & anxiety. Try the magnesium supplement types shown in http://www.real-depression-help.com/ Some of these will be available in pharmacies, or supermarkets.

   An improvement can be noticed in as little as a week, if a deficiency is the cause. Also, iodised salt is much preferable to regular salt (one of the treatments in books on depression is iodine drops).

   This is a shortened version of the much more comprehensive post, which may be seen on page R, in section 2 of ezy build, above, but to gain full appreciation, it’s really best to view the whole of section 2.

   Anxiety is addressed in section 6, (view page N first) at ezy build, and several herbal remedies are shown, but the wort is quite often effective as an anxiolytic, as well as a herbal antidepressant.
   References :

3. Riya Says:
   July 29th, 2009 at 1:45 am

   Treat Panic Attacks and Anxiety:
   http://treatpanicattacksandanxiety.blogspot.com

   
   References :

Leave a Reply

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website