Mental health is such an important issue to talk about. I see many levels of mental health issues in my practice - from the average stressed out person, to the very depressed and suicidal person. Traditional anti-depressants can be a miracle for many people, but unfortunately they don't work on everyone and seem to be less effective on those with prominent anxiety. Luckily, there are still options for those who don't want to or can't take anti-depressant or anti-anxiety medications.
Lifestyle behaviours are very important when treating anxiety and depression, though often the hardest for the patient to do as these mental health conditions can become almost paralyzing. Exercising, eating well, meditation, and therapy are all amazing ways to heal your body & mind.
St John's Wort is probably the most commonly know herb used for anxiety and depression. It can work really well but can also interact with some medications so should not be used by everyone. Acupuncture has also been studied and has been shown to be an effective treatment for anxiety & depression - both with and without the concurrent use of SSRIs. The last herb I'd like to mention is Curcumin - it's a herb that we normally cook with, but has been recently shown to be very effective in the treatment of depression.
There is no reason not to live a happy life - sometimes it just takes some fine tuning and a little bit of help to get there.
Please check out these links - and of course book an appointment with your Naturopath if you'd like to discuss treatment options for your mental health!
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/274719.php
http://naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2014-11/can-curcumin-solve-depression
Comments