Natural Remedies for Depression
- February 1999 Issue of Nutrition Science News
- Altering the brain’s chemistry to elevate mood
- by two Naturopaths, &, one medical Doctor http://www.chiro.org/nutrition/FULL/Natural_Remedies_for_Depression.shtml

Who’s Depressed?
http://www.chiro.org/nutrition/FULL/Who’s_Depressed.html

5-HTP And The Serotonin Connection [Tryptophan] http://www.chiro.org/nutrition/FULL/5-HTP_and_the_Serotonin_Connection.html

You may also want to consider:

Depression & Mental Fatigue—Alternative remedies http://project-aware.org/Managing/Alt/depression.shtml

Depression - Foods that treat depression
http://www doctoryourself com/depression html

An amino acid –L-Tryptophan–
"Can Help the Treatment of Major Clinical Suicidal Depression":

"L-Tryptophan—A Must for Mental Health"
- for Depression
- Legal & Safe
- Now available in the USA, on-line & over the counter…
http://www suicide com/tryptophan/

"What is L-Tryptophan? How can it help?"
http://www suicide com/tryptophan/1 html

Toxicologists: "Caffeine poisoning masquerades as anxiety, manic depression, schizophrenia" ;
Medscape: “Patients who become caffeine-toxic may not even realize it.”
Renowned allergist:
"Thousands are in mental institutions because of caffeine." http://www caffeineweb com/

Mold in the Home Linked to Mood Swings, Depression:
"People living in a moldy home may be more likely to suffer from depression, according to a new study conducted by researchers from the Brown School of Medicine in Providence, R.I., and published in the American Journal of Public Health."
http://www newstarget com/022427 html

NOTE: to repair the broken links, simply replace each space within, with 1 dot, after copy-pasting them (seperately) into the URL (Web-site address) box. Then, click ‘Go!’.

(Tryptophan is available again in the USA at Health Food Stores.
Be sure –should you decide to try it– to get a quality brand, without fillers, as these can render it useless, or at least make it less effective.)
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Hang in there Sis, it will get better. Just know that Jehovah knows all the things that we are dealing with and He cares! Lean on Him.

Satan is out to persecute God’s people…..and the rest of mankind.
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I went to the doctors and there was a temporary woman doctor who was very understanding and prescribed seroxat/paroxatine. This is unsuitable for teenagers but for adults like myself it has been brilliant.

It really needs a doctor to precribe what is best for you and I realise your money situation is not good. However, if you put off the moment of sorting it out the problems can get more chronic and instead of a relatively short course you might need them longterm.

Something that I felt was most helpful was helping other people with their problems, in my case with adult literacy. There is great satisfaction in seeing people who struggle with spelling, reading and writing becoming more confident and realising they can get qualifications if they work at it.
There are obviously other occupations where you can volunteer or as with invigilating, earn a little money as well.

If you do some positive things it will lift your spirits if you stick with it. This will probably help with your daughter because the young pick up on our negativity and it affects them. We all like happy people around us.

As far as your problems accepting the love and forgiveness of the LORD God, do you doubt Him? If God says something we must have faith then we will have eternal life, if that’s our heart’s desire. It is those who have shown faith in God who have been commended.

As to size and shape you are magnifing that in your mind, look outside yourself at others if you can. Empathize with others and try and forget yourself a bit.

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What makes me different is that all the things you’ve described are now in my past.

And that is only because I will not allow the problems of the day to get the best of me.

I will not allow Satan to win.

Persevere in Prayer. Every time you feel you can’t take anymore .. pray for help and guidance … and then do what you know is the right thing and leave it in Jehovah’s hands. He wants you to. I want you to.

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I don’t have a lot of friends either, but the plus side is that there’s NO DRAMA. No gossip. No rumors. It’s kinda nice. Also if they don’t wanna hang out with you… Are they really worth it? You can also think about… What am I doing to be a friend? I takes a friend to get a friend. If you feel negative about yourself and that shows buy talking down at everything and feeling sorry for your self…No one is gonna wanna hang out with you.

I’m an accountant if you want help making a budget. You can also take some classes in budgeting. A lot of places have classes that are free. I know you don’t have a lot of money but you or your hubby could go to a technical school and learn a trade (there programs to help pay for it). Also there are debt programs that can help you out if you don’t mind your credit getting messed up for a while.

There’s also food stamps, WIC, Section 8, SSI, and programs that will help you pay your utility bills. There are also clinics that the fees are based on your income. A debt consolidation loan may help. Also, you may have to give up some stuff. I had to sell all my jewelry that I bought and some of my furniture I’ve saved for two years to buy.

Positive reinforcement can help you daughter. If she knows you’re stressed out she is going to take advantage of that to get what she wants. Knowing that you will give in. But I would not have anymore children until you and your hubby work things out.

Figure out what is worth having a ‘fight’ for with your hubby. Is it really worth it? I know he loves you very much and he’s your confidant and best friend. But people can only take so much. Unnecessary stress will tip him over the edge. (See my story below)

Look at my life. Me and my hubby were having the exact same problems as you except we don’t have kids yet. We stressed each other out so much that he pick up smoking and got disfellowshipped for it. So he gave up and joined the military cause he couldn’t find a good job. I didn’t even know he joined until he came home with the signed contract. We almost divorced. But since I decided to stay and work it out, I won him over without a word. He told me that only a true lover of Jehovah would have stuck it out. Now he wants to come back to the truth but it might be too late. How do you think I feel? My best friend might not make it into the new system even though he regrets what he’s done and is trying to get reinstated (stopped smoking, going to meetings, family study, told his captain he won’t kill, and he preaches to the Iraqis and soldiers about the truth etc). But I have to believe that God is forgiving and just. It’s the only hope I have. It really made me think what is really important. Don’t get that desperate. Not trusting in God is were we went wrong. Look at the price we have to pay.

We all have done things that we regret. But living in the past is not gonna help you move forward. God is very loving and forgiving. There are people who were murders, rapist, whores, druggies you name it who have learned the truth and have turned around. Beating yourself up is just gonna make you feel worse. Which is what Satan wants. He wants you to give up. Trusting in God will see you through. You know that God’s word is true. You know that everlasting life is possible. Satan is messing with your head. Those who ENDURE to the end are the ones that will be saved. Jesus didn’t say it was gonna be easy. He said the exact opposite. So you know you’re doing the right thing. We’re all feeling it from this system.

This system sucks, but everything in this world is so temporary why stress over it? Think about making your faith and family stronger so you can make it thru. I know your hubby loves you very much and will do anything for his family. Figuring out what is worth stressing over and what is not will help in not fighting so much. You will always have bills, you will always have your family, you will always have Jehovah.

Once you start feeling better about your life you won’t stress eat. The more stressed out you are the more weight you’ll gain. I gained 40 lbs. in 6 months over stress (I didn’t over eat either, I just gain weight by being stressed. A woman’s body will do that). I’m still fighting. We all are. Keep your chin up. You’ll make it thru.

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My life.

I went on a Bible study last night. I was there three hours. She is a pretty new study, just a couple months. The last hour, this person started telling me about her grown kids, her grandkids, how her mother died, her problems at work, etc. By the time I left, I felt better about what I go through every day.

It is overwhelming what some people have to go through. I wonder sometimes how they have enough mental capabilities and physical energy to even have a Bible study.

I have another study who has a husband with serious health problems, and a mother with Altzheimer’s who got away and was on the news for her mother being lost. The study has to lock up every door and window in the house, plus cabinets, sharp items, etc. And this woman has to work on top of it all. She has a grown daughter (37) who has had a stroke and can’t find work. And on, and on, and on. The Bible study wants to be a publisher but can’t figure out how.

And being broke? I have some horror stories I could tell you from personal experience. My husband has had health problems with a capital P. He has not worked more than he has worked in his life. He has been fired or had to quit numerous jobs due to the same problems.

Presently I am only working VERY part-time. Just got terminated from a major bank due to the work being moved to another state. Over 400 of us in one big swoop.

Right now these things seem big. But ask yourself if they will really matter 100 years from now.

And I will tell you. I’m at least twice as old as you are. Twice plus. And I have only seen 2 people in my WHOLE life that I would consider ugly. Most people "clean up" pretty good. And for being overweight? I am and have been for years. I work on being healthy and let the weight be what it is. I have gone to doctors, knowing that they were expecting poor results just from looking at me. Then they send my results with notes that triglicerides or whatever could not be better.

So don’t worry about that as long as your health is ok. Find a couple outfits of clothes (goodwill or your own closet) that you are comfortable in and go about your business.

A good night’s sleep and a tube of lipstick can do wonders.

Jehovah has picked me for one of the greatest honors he could ever bestow on a human. And it surely was not based on my looks. Or how much money I have or don’t have, or how many friends I have or don’t have, or the kind of job I have or used to have.

It was because of me, my inner self, and I don’t even know what that is. He obviously knows me better than myself. As the apostle Paul said, I have nothing to boast in other than Jehovah himself.
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DEPRESSION is an experience common to all humans. When it occurs only occasionally it is no cause for alarm. Rather, it is a signal to do something constructive to dispel the depression. These brief periods in which we may feel very “low” are not normally the true depression. Calamities such as the death of a loved one, loss of a job, financial reverses, accidents, and so forth, are generally overcome by most persons in a relatively short period of time. But they trigger real depression in a few people.

An article on depression in Science World of December 16, 1975, cites Dr. Nathan S. Kline, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University in New York city, as saying that the most common symptom of true depression is not depression itself, but anhedonia (from the Greek), which he defines as the “absence of joy and pleasure. The inability to appreciate things which really make life worth living.”

The article goes on to say that the loss of interest in eating, resulting in weight loss, is one symptom of depression. The person finds it difficult to sleep, and even if getting a good night’s sleep, he still feels tired. He or she cannot concentrate and loses the ability to work. On the other hand, some oversleep, spending most of their time in bed. For them, sleep becomes an escape from life.

In order to fight depression, first try to analyze the reasons for your condition, and examine your own inmost feelings and motives. See if your situation is really “all that bad,” if circumstances warrant your depressed feeling. Also, since depression can have a physical cause, check to see if you have some metabolic disturbance, low blood sugar, anemia, mononucleosis, diabetes, or some other disease that might contribute to weakness and discouragement. Discern how much of your depression lies in your own mental attitude, and what influences bear upon you to produce that “down” feeling. You may even find that you are manifesting an “escapism” reaction or that, in a morbid way, you even “enjoy” your depressed state—a sort of self-pity.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

What can you do, especially if you find no medical basis for your depressed condition? While psychiatry may be able to give help in some cases, the very best and the really lasting help can be obtained from the Bible and from the Christian congregation. Why? Because God created the human body and mind and he knows the human makeup. The psalmist says: “O Lord, you have probed me and you know me; you know when I sit and when I stand; you understand my thoughts from afar. My journeys and my rest you scrutinize, with all my ways you are familiar.” (Ps. 139:1-3, The New American Bible) God’s counsel is, therefore, the best mental therapy.

The foremost need for the depressed one, then, is prayer to Jehovah God. God’s servant David was more than once in a greatly depressed state, sometimes because of his own errors, and again because his enemies were about to close in with the intent to kill him. In these situations he always prayed fervently. On one occasion he expressed his dejection in his appeal to God:

“Show me favor, O Jehovah, for I am fading away. Heal me, O Jehovah, for my bones have been disturbed. Yes, my own soul has been very much disturbed; and you, O Jehovah—how long? Do return, O Jehovah, do rescue my soul; save me for the sake of your loving-kindness. For in death there is no mention of you; in Sheol who will laud you? I have grown weary with my sighing; all night long I make my couch swim; with my tears I make my own divan overflow.”—Ps. 6:2-6.

We know from the Bible record that God answered David’s prayers and strengthened him to go ahead and accomplish something worth while. Even if we feel that no human understands, we know that God does. He says of himself: “There is no searching out of his understanding. He is giving to the tired one power; and to the one without dynamic energy he makes full might abound. . . . Those who are hoping in Jehovah will regain power. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not tire out.”—Isa. 40:28-31.

The apostle Paul counsels: “Be persevering in prayer, remaining awake in it with thanksgiving.” (Col. 4:2) But you may feel overwhelmed, everything seeming to be closing in on you. If so, recall Jonah sinking down into the sea, with seaweed wrapping around his head. His ‘soul was fainting away.’ But he prayed. Later, he was greatly angered and dejected through his own wrong attitude. He felt that dying would be better than living. Nevertheless, he prayed. In both cases he was delivered.—Jonah 2:5-7; 4:1-8.

But you may get so depressed that you feel that you cannot pray to God. You may feel that you do not qualify to approach God. For our comfort in this situation, the apostle John wrote:

“By this we shall know that we originate with the truth, and we shall assure our hearts before him as regards whatever our
References :
Watchtower 5-1-77