Natural Remedies For Depression - Take Action

Reclaim your life by trying some of the Natural Depression Treatment Remedies discussed here

Who’s says there are no effective natural remedies for depression ?

Do you really have no other options for treating depression than to take prescription drugs when you feel down for more than two weeks? Do you wonder if there are natural remedies for depression ?

Your basic physical state has a profound influence on the way you function and feel, and so also an influence on depression too.

So it is obvious that -by treating the body and mind in a better way- you really can create the conditions to get out of that black hole we know as depression.

Exercise

There have been numerous natural remedies for depression studies to show that people who exercise regularly experience fewer symptoms of depression (and anxiety) than those who do not.

In fact some studies have shown that exercise of moderate intensity is an effective treatment all on its own for mild-to-moderate depression.

It has been shown that both aerobic exercise such as brisk walking or cycling or jogging and anaerobic exercise such as resistance or strength training have both been found to be one of the best natural remedies for depression.

• Exercise is thought to help in the following ways:
• Increases the level of serotonin in the brain
• Increases the mood lifting substances known as endorphins
• Increases energy levels
• Promotes good sleep
• Provide distraction from worrying and ruminating (ruminating is a big factor in depression and anxiety)
• Social support if the exercise is done with other people
• Increases self-esteem since taking an active role in own recovery

if all of the above is true (which it is) then not exercising makes absolutely no sense at all if you really want to get well from your depression and regain your quality-of-life and sense of well-being

Diet

As I have said before on my web site "we are what we eat".

Since one of the causes of depression is inadequate nutrition it follows that one of the natural remedies for depression for it is adequate nutrition.

A healthy balanced diet will help anyone generate a healthier brain chemistry including people with depression.

• Eat a good balanced diet and include
• complex carbohydrates from sources such as:
• whole grains
• vegetables
• legumes
• Complex carbohydrates are high in serotonin, which if you have read my natural serotonin web page; you will know deficiency will cause depression.

• Avoid any foods that you know you are sensitive or allergic to.

• Any foods can be a potential allergen, but we eat is often found to be the one that is most often linked to depression.

• Reduce massively your intake of hydrogenated and saturated fats as these are known to only increase fatigue and sluggishness and if you are depressed these are things that you are battling with anyway without the added burden.

• Avoid stimulants such as caffeine (found in tea, Coffee, Coca-Cola and chocolate for example) as well as avoiding sugar.
• The stimulation from these substances may temporarily cause you to feel better but your body will soon crash and then you will feel even more exhausted and irritable.
• These substances also known to deplete nutrients from your system so not only do they not help that actually cause harm.

• Alcohol is unknown depressant and so for obvious reasons all forms of it should be avoided.

St John's wort

This preparation is made from a common plant called Hypericum Perfoliatum to give it its full botanical name and has been shown in numerous studies to be effective for mild to moderate depression.

In fact so marvellous is this little plant that I have created a separate web page about the benefits of St Johns Wort, one of the natural remedies for depression and sleep problems.

Natural Liver Detox

if you are struggling with depression and have had a diet that is completely opposite from the one suggested above, or perhaps you have unknowingly been eating foods that you are sensitive or allergic to then it is possible that at least some (and in some places all) of your depression is caused by a build-up of toxicity.

If this is the case, then you really need to consider a some natural remedies for depression based on a liver detox.

If you feel sluggish and dull and lethargic and your physician has ruled out any underlying causes then a natural liver detox will be of benefit and may even turn things around completely.

Vitamins

Just in case you didn't spot it as you browse around my site, I have written a full page about vitamins for depression, based on supplements which I suggest you read in conjunction with the dietary and nutritional advice above.

SAMe

S-Adenosylmethionine (SAMe for convenience) is a naturally occurring substance in the human body and is normally manufactured by the liver for which it requires adequate amounts of folic acid and vitamin B12.

A deficiency of these will lead to lower levels of SAMe in the system, for which there is lots of documented evidence that this will lead to depression. Interestingly if someone happens to have osteo-arthritis as well as this deficiency, then they are likely to notice increased pain levels.

The way that SAMe works as one of the natural remedies for depression is to increase the concentration of the chemicals in the brain known as neurotransmitters, in particular those responsible for your mood.

Fortunately these days, we can boost our levels with a high-quality supplement. It is suggested to take 400 mg of an enteric-coated form, twice daily on an empty stomach. If, after two weeks there is improvement then stay on this dose otherwise increase the dose to 400 mg three times daily.

Meanwhile, do take a look at my vitamins for depression page, as clearly you need to work on increasing the levels of nutrition that are required to produce your own SAMe as you do not want to stay on supplements for the rest of your life as natural remedies for depression but indeed they are extremely useful as a quick short-term measure.

Note: if you are a person with bipolar disorder then you should only use this supplement with medical supervision.

Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP)

As you know if you have read my natural serotonin page, this chemical produced by the body works on our mood and a deficiency of it will lead to depression (and anxiety also in many cases).

In order to produce our own serotonin we need 5-HTP to be present in our system insufficient levels as this is a precursor to its production.

The natural remedies for depression with serotonin page discusses some of the foods that you should start to eat to raise your own levels right now but in the meantime you may want to give your system a fast boost and so a supplement may well be a sensible measure to take.

Do not take this supplement if you are already taking pharmacological antidepressants or anxiety medications.

If you do decide to take this as one of the natural remedies for depression then you must also compliment it with a vitamin B complex supplement as B6 is required to fully metabolise 5-HTTP.

Natural serotonin

This normally occurring neurotransmitter in the brain is such a big topic that I decided to give it its own web page about natural serotonin, one of the natural remedies for depression.

Ginkgo biloba

This herb is known to improve the blood flow to the brain.

It is also enhancing neurotransmitter activity which is why it is useful in depression, ADHD and other brain related disorders.

Natural remedies for depression based on this herb are effective for most of us.

Fish oil

as you will see if you have looked around my web site, fish oils seem to crop up quite often which only gives weight to the idea that natural remedies for depression with fish oil must be pretty essential for us and in fact are known as a brain food because they improve the function of neurotransmitters.

Consequently these natural remedies for depression are of value when dealing with the problem of chronically feeling down.

Try and get natural remedies for depression that contains both EPA and DHA fatty acids and of course you can increase your dietary intake of fish that contain essential fatty acids.

Flower Essences

When thinking of natural remedies for depression, I really like to use flower essences when dealing with any emotional, mental or brain related problems because they are extremely gentle, safe and effective as well as being inexpensive and incredibly easy-to-use.

The ones that I have the most experience with the Bach flower remedies and the Australian bush flower essences.

The idea is that you pick a single or combination of essences whose "mini description" seems to fit with your circumstances and how you are feeling.

They come in small dropper bottles and you take a few drops of each a few times a day, either directly onto the tongue or (as is usually recommended) in water and sipped. I have seen both methods work just as well.

A few suggestions for Bach flower remedies are as follows (but feel free to do your own research as there are others in the range):

• Mustard: Helps you when you feel suddenly depressed without reason. It feels like a cold dark cloud has destroyed all happiness and cheerfulness. The depression can lift just as sudden for no reason.
• Elm: You feel overwhelmed by your work load and matters of life and you feel depressed and exhausted.
• Sweet Chestnut: For those moments which happen to some people when the anguish is so great as to seem to be unbearable. When the mind or body feels as if it had borne to the uttermost limit of its endurance, and that now it must give way. When it seems there is nothing but destruction and annihilation left to face.
• Willow: Helps you when you have suffered adversity or misfortune and find it difficult to accept. You feel sorry for yourself and are grumble and sulky.
• Gorse: When you feel a great hopelessness, you have given up belief that more can be done for you. Under persuasion or to please others you may try different treatments, at the same time assuring those around that there is so little hope of relief.
• Gentian: When you are easily discouraged. You may be progressing well in illness or in the affairs of their daily life, but any small delay or hindrance to progress causes doubt and soon disheartens you.

Natural Remedies for Depression - Homoeopathy

Once again, there are many natural remedies for depression and sometimes a person symptoms and life circumstances and events that are contributing to the situation so complex that it will take a qualified practitioner to be able to work out what natural remedies for depression are the best for you.

That said, there are some commonly available homoeopathic remedies that if the circumstances seem to fit, they will most certainly then derived excellent benefit from.

Ignatia

Made from the St Ignatius bean, this example of natural remedies for depression is absolutely excellent for people who are stricken with grief and depression. These are the people whose reactions are extreme and they may cry and weep and wail a great deal although it is possible that their emotions will come out as anger.

The thing to look for is that the reaction to the events seems out of proportion to the events that are causing it.

By this I am not passing judgment for the emotions are extremely real for this person but rather I am saying that their reactions and emotions are at the extreme end of the spectrum.

As you can imagine this is a particularly useful remedy at times of acute grief such as at a funeral of a much loved one, or when a spouse unexpectedly leaves, or a child leaves home, or there has been an accident and now the person needs to have a foot removed or a leg.

The common theme is that something is lost and the person is in acute distress.

Ignatia will not take these feelings away and in fact it would become natural to do so. It is normal to grieve and be depressed about the situation. What it will do however, is take the edge off the degree of extremeness of your emotions. You will still feel them. You will still have to go through them. But it will allow you to do so in a calmer way. In other words, it enables you to feel that you can cope better.

Believe it or not, this example of natural remedies for depression may also on occasion be useful for people who are still acutely grieving for something or someone from many years ago. If it feels to them, lack it happened only yesterday, then this remedy is definitely still worth considering and can actually work miracles.

A 200c potency twice a day will help move things along nicely. In a crisis situation, it may be taken more often but as things calm down it should be reduced in frequency again.

A 30c potency taken at night is useful for people who are having trouble sleeping because of depression and it tends to enable them to get to sleep quicker.

Natrum Muriaticum

Nat Mur for short is made from salt which ordinarily would of course be inert medicinally, but since it is prepared homoeopathically, it has many profound health benefits mentally, emotionally and physically.

In terms of depression, this example of natural remedies for depression is good for people who are "stuck" and are not moving on but their emotions are not displayed outwardly very much.

These people are grieving and hurt and in pain but they bottle it up and outwardly they will carry on with their life and unless you know them very well, you would never guess that there was anything wrong. They are good and kind people who are very sensitive inside and easily hurt but may give the appearance of being brusque and prickly.

These people may cry but they will do so privately and quietly and will go to great lengths to make sure that no one knows that they are crying. If someone happens to find them crying and offered to console them, this person will become irritable and shrugged off and be embarrassed and pretend that they are all right now.

These people can be stuck like this for many years. They are like elephants in that they never forget and so they will constantly dwell on the very things that upset them and make them depressed.

Think of people who personify the "stiff upper lip" mentality and you will have a good idea of what this remedy is all about.

For people like this, I would suggest a 30c potency twice a day, probably for some time. They may feel some improvement quite quickly but it is likely that they will need it for a good while longer to get the full benefits and to allow them to be maintained.

Do not underestimate the power of these natural remedies for depression as I have seen many miracles with this one. In fact, if I were only ever going to have two remedies in stock ever again I would have to pick both of these remedies and leave the other 3,498 also out of the equation.

Natural Remedies for Depression - Therapy

There are some people who find various kinds of therapy such as psychotherapy and counselling extremely beneficial.

However these approaches do take time and require a lot of commitment. But if you have had a particularly troubled past, and it is important to you to get to grips with it, and you are prepared to devote that time and energy to it then this may well be a suitable avenue to follow.

If you would like some natural remedies for depression to help move you to a better place emotionally, but do not particularly wants to go back and analyse the past in any great detail but are more interested in just changing things from this point forward then there are two therapies that I can recommend, both of which tend to bring speedy results (weeks rather than months or years generally speaking although there are always exceptions)

The two natural remedies for depression that I am referring to our:

• Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP)
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

If you are interested in following any of these routes then it is vitally important that you get somebody highly qualified and experienced to help you on your journey. Each of these therapies has its own regulatory bodies, which a quick Google search will reveal, and I suggest you start your search there for a qualified experienced practitioner.

As well as being qualified and experienced there is another factor that is at least equally, if not more so, important and that is that you feel comfortable with them. I always encourage people to make a phone call to a potential new practitioner (whatever the therapy) and have a conversation.

If you find that you are feeling at ease with someone, and the conversation is flowing freely and you are feeling comfortable then choose this person over the one where you feel awkward and uneasy.

I know this sounds obvious, but you would be amazed how many people just pick someone out of the phone book with enough letters after their name and don't actually check out that they can relate with this person and vice versa. For the therapeutic relationship to work and be of benefit to you this is essential.

If you are interested in obtaining an Online Therapist , please visit this website and privately consult with a licensed psychiatric professional.

Natural Remedies for Depression - Final Note

So I hope my information on depression warning signs and natural remedies for depression are of help to you but please don't forget none of this information is intended for diagnostic purposes.

If you do feel that you are depressed, then you really should consult your physician alongside of any other measures that you may choose to adopt.

He can best assess and advise you appropriately, but do make sure you inform him that you want to try some natural depression remedies and ask his opinion.

With his support, it is both possible and safe to not only address your problem with natural depression treatments, but selected well and taken correctly, they will help to in treating your depression too.

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