Natural Depression Cures
Take a stroll around the world today and you will find people suffering. We are living in some of the toughest times in over half a century. Every day we are reading about some corporate bailout or how some poor family is losing their home. Unemployment rates are hitting all time highs. So with all of this negative energy around us is it any wonder more people than ever are suffering from clinical depression? Clinical depression shows itself in a variety of different ways depending on the individual person suffering but one thing almost all patients have in common is the want for natural depression cures.
There are natural depression cures available for some of the less severe forms of clinical depression many of which can be found at your local pharmacy or supplement store. One of the best features of these natural depression cures is the fact they are typically very inexpensive. There is no need to break the bank and there is no visit to a doctor required so nearly everyone has access to these types of natural depression treatments.
Probably the most well known of the natural depression cures, an herb called St John’s Wort ranks near the top of the natural treatments for clinical depression. There are many different studies on the effects of the herb but one of the most convincing arguments is the fact that certain countries in Europe such as Germany have been using this herb to treatment clinical depression for years. In fact, in one clinical study patients suffering from mild depression who were given St John’s Wort actually showed signs of improvement nearly equal to those administered prescription antidepressants. St John’s Wort is also known to have many less side effects when compared to prescription drugs. You should expect to see any of the nasty side effects such as uncontrollable weight gain. It is important to note however that these patients included in the study were not suffering from more severe forms of depression such as bipolar or manic depression.
Many times people suffering from these more serious forms of clinical depression will require some type of professional help and there may be a need for chemical mood stabilizers. Bipolar depression is a whole other animal when compared to standard depression. Bipolar depression carries with it violent up and down mood swings not normally experienced by someone who is suffering from mild or light depression.
The list of natural depression cures does not stop with St John’s Wort. Another natural treatment resides with Sam-e. Sam-e has shown very promising results in patients perhaps of which the biggest is its sheer speed. Many people using Sam-e report an improvement in their depression symptoms in just a matter of days rather than the weeks or months it would take a typical prescription antidepressant. Sam-e is not without its drawback unfortunately though. The active dosage requires a monthly investment of about $100. Now, especially with the times we are facing that might seem like a lot of money but when you break it down that is roughly $3.33 a day. Many of us likely spend that on our morning coffee.
We tend to think of pills or herbs we can put into our body when we think of natural depression cures but there are even cheaper methods of treatment available and they are so simple to do you can literally start today. Researchers have been able to show a strong link between improper diet and lack of exercise and depression. Yes, I said it. The two words we all love to hate, diet and exercise. You don’t need to go get your scales out just yet though. The diet part refers more to making sure you are getting proper amounts of nutrients and vitamins and has little to do with losing weight although as a side note you may want to consider that being overweight has a negative impact on self esteem which also can be linked back to a cause of clinical depression. Often times a healthy body does mean a healthy mind. As far as exercise goes, let’s face it. We as a people do not get the exercise we need which is really unfortunate because exercise is one of the best stress relievers out there.
So, the good news is even if you are suffering from clinical depression but do not want to take prescription drugs to combat it you may not have to. Natural depression cures are quickly catching on as an accepted alternative to common medicine and hold with them many benefits. With more time and research we may even find these natural alternatives are more effective than their modern day counterparts.
Natural Cures for Depression
If you are feeling down you are not alone. Millions of people just like you are affected by depression each year. New cases are on the rise and many experts believe depression could be the next major epidemic. Like me I am sure you sit down every night to watch a favorite television show only to be bombarded by hundreds of commercials pushing unwanted or unneeded items on you but you won’t find natural cures for depression among those ads. You are bound to see prescription drugs on there but never natural cures for depression. The reason is simple. It takes big bucks to advertise and natural cures for depression simply don’t bring in those big bucks. They are cheap, effective, and can be bought at your local grocery store in many cases. Where is the money in that?
The big company executives have a business to run and running that business means making sure only their medications get into your hands. Now I won’t go as far as to say they are comparable to the tobacco companies because a lot of their products do a very good job of treating depression which is exactly what they say they do. Of course they do so while costing you a ton of your heard earned money and they do it on a limited basis meaning that it is possible to build up a tolerance to these drugs just like any other so that they may not always work for you. Natural cures for depression are the perfect answer to this. Since they are cheap and easily available you can pretty much guarantee you will always be able to get your hands on them and because they are natural not chemical there is a good chance your body will not build up these tolerances previously mentioned.
So, now that you know that there are natural cures for depression out there how do you go about finding them? Well, just like everything else the internet is going to be one of your best resources but in the effort of saving you some time I have went out and found the top three natural cures for depression.
# 1) St John’s Wort – Significant testing has been conducted on this herb. Early on it was recognized to effectively treat less severe cases of depression but recently upon closer examination experts believe it may also be strongly effective in the treatment of those suffering from severe depression possibly even manic depression. The herb is highly touted as side effect free. Certain countries including Germany commonly prescribe this as treatment for different forms of depression.
2) Change your diet – Studies have shown a direct link between a person’s diet and whether or not they suffer from depression. This stands to make sense as our bodies are more/less machines. Just like any machine they require certain components to work properly. What happens to a car when you run it without oil? It breaks down of course. Our bodies behave the same way. When you put garbage into your body and fail to consume required nutrients it can lead to a breakdown of bodily systems. One key component you want to make sure to include in your diet is Omega3 fatty acids. There are two great sources for this, the first of which is fish, and the second of which is hemp seed oil.
3) Exercise – The last one of the natural cures for depression I will talk about is probably people’s least favorite, exercise. We have all become so reliant on products designed to make our lives easier and by easier I mean lazier. How often have you drove to the store and watched people fight over a parking spot because they were too lazy to walk an extra 30 feet? Once upon a time I worked in a 4 floor office building and like most was too lazy to take the stairs. I worked on the 4th floor. It never seized to amaze me when I would get on the elevator with a few people and watch as they hit floor 2. I just wanted to scream. Are you kidding me I thought. You’re too lazy to walk from the 1st floor to the 2nd by stairs? Is it any wonder why 70% of people fall into the overweight category?
Natural Cure for Depression
With the amount of pharmaceutical drugs floating about the market today more and more people are turning to a natural cure for depression. The pharmaceutical market has become a multibillion dollar industry and the general public is smart to be skeptical. When the drug companies stand to make more money by prolonging your suffering instead of curing it there is bound to be an ulterior motive. A natural cure for depression stands to make much less money as it will remove the recurring income pharmaceutical companies generate from monthly antidepressant refills. What are the benefits of a natural cure for depression though?
First and foremost a natural cure for depression would mean a cure could be readily available to the masses even if you do not have medical or prescription drug coverage. The amount of money you make would no longer determine the quality of treatment you receive. If you could cure your depression for a one-time payment of $50 would it be worth it? What about $100? How about $1,000? You probably said yes to every one of those questions if you are suffering from depression right now. Now, if I could treat your depression for $300 a month for the rest of your life could you afford that? That is the boat that my wife and I were in not all that long ago. She had been diagnosed as bipolar and I had just started a new job. My new company did offer insurance but there was a six month waiting period so we had to cross our fingers and pray nothing happened before then. The major problem to all this was my wife was on what I refer to as maintenance drugs meaning she had to take them every day. They were not one or two week prescriptions like an antibiotic but instead had to be refilled every month. Just one of these drugs cost $315. We raised our concern to her doctor who informed us there was not a generic form of her medication but warned if she stopped it suddenly there could be devastating consequences. Well, at that point we are thinking this could be life threatening if she just stops so I fork over the $315 every month for those six months until my insurance kicked in. Luckily at that point it dropped to about a $40 co-pay. I was becoming concerned that my wife really didn’t seem to be improving so I suggested she see a different doctor. The very first time she went to see her new doctor he tells her she is on the wrong medication and stops it immediately. In fact he tells her he doesn’t feel she is even suffering from bipolar depression. What? You heard right all that time I was paying hundreds of dollars for fear of what might happened if I didn’t I was throwing money away. This is the problem many people face when they don’t have good insurance. You will go see a general practice doctor when you think you may be suffering from depression and not being a specialist in the field that doctor makes an educated guess and tosses you on the latest greatest antidepressant. This is not only dangerous it is irresponsible in my opinion. It’s my stand that only psychiatrist are qualified to be passing out any type of mental health pharmaceuticals. The great thing about a natural cure for depression is that you don’t have to worry about what any doctor thinks. You can make your own determination based on how you feel.
A natural cure for depression would keep your hard earned money in your own pockets instead of the big drug companies out there. It would also allow you and only you to take charge of how you feel. No one knows your body the way you do. You are the only one that can get inside your head. You are there when no one else is. There are no walls being built to fool yourself. A natural cure for depression could be all you need to see a real positive change in your life. Life is too short to be sad all the time. Whatever action you take, take some action to feeling better today!
Natural Ways to Cure Depression
As corporate America cuts health benefits out of the average worker’s benefit package more and more people turn to natural ways to cure depression. The rising cost of prescription health care has forced thousands to turn to a less expensive alternative. All in all I feel this could and probably will be a good thing for most as it is all too easy to walk into a doctor’s office and be prescribed chemical antidepressants you may or may not need. There are several natural ways to cure depression that show true promise. Four stand out more than the rest.
#1 St John’s Wart- The first of the natural ways to cure depression I’d like to discuss is one of the greats of the herbal world. St John’s Wart is known for its antidepressant capabilities. In study groups the herb has shown significant promise in treating not just mild depression but is also has been shown to trigger improvement in more serious cases of depression. The herb can be picked up at just about any local drug store or Wal-Mart. You can expect to pay less than $5 for a standard size bottle of St John’s Wart.
#2 Diet – The second of the natural ways to cure depression is in your Diet. That single word holds fear for many. In today’s world it is estimated that’s as much as 70% of the population is overweight. The lifestyles we lead play a vital role in this. We want everything fast. We don’t want it later, we want it now and we’ll pay whatever price to get it. Fast food is perfect example of this. If you put that garbage in your body day in and day out what do you think you are doing to yourself? If you put poor quality fuel in your car what do you think will happen? It will break down of course and so will your body when you put poor substance in it. One of the most important ingredients in any diet is Omega3 fatty acids. There are two sources that I recommend for these. The first of which is fish but for those who would rather not eat fish hemp seed oil is just as good if not better as a source.
#3 Exercise – Exercise is quite possibly one of the best natural ways to cure depression. There is a well known commercial I often see on television that talks about the walk to the mailbox being the longest walk we take in the day. How sad is that? We question why our health continues to decline and our lives are getting shorter. For the first time in over 200 years children are not expected to live a longer lifespan than their parents. What are we doing to our children? There has been a strong link between the lack of exercise and depression shown in testing. What happened to children going outside to play? Video games and televisions have taken the place of fresh air. A little exercise can go a long way in fighting depression.
#4 Mindset – Mindset is in my opinion at the top of natural ways to cure depression. The human brain is a powerful tool. There isn’t a supercomputer on the world that can match the processing power of your brain. The brain has been shown to possess amazing power as shown in placebo testing. Just by fooling your brain into thinking you should be feeling better you may actually start feeling better. Mindset is the key to it all. Everyone has to face some type of adversity in life. What makes the difference is how you face this adversity. Take two children raised in a poor family in a rough neighborhood. One child takes the adversity and uses it to fuel is want to succeed. He works hard for his goals and is able to become a successful lawyer who then reaches out to help his old neighborhood. Now let’s takes a look at the second child. The second child uses his environment as an excuse to why he cannot succeed. Using this as a crutch he is able to blame all of his problems on his situation. When he is arrested and jailed for committing a crime he still blames it all on his situation. You see? It’s all about mindset.
These four methods are not the only natural ways to cure depression but I believe them to be the most effective. This isn’t to say that no one has to take antidepressants. It is possible these methods may not work for you if you suffer from severe depression but they are certainly worth taking a look at.
Depression Natural Cure
If you and I were to sit down and have a conversation about the different illnesses making their way around the world today what would you consider to be the most dangerous? How about the most common? Chances are you would say things like HIV or some form of cancer and you would be partially right. Those illnesses are deadly and they a major problem. Now what If I asked you to name a mental illness that was potentially life threatening? Would you immediately thing of clinical depression? I’d venture a guess that unless you have been affected by depression yourself you may not have known how to answer that last question. There is nothing wrong with that except that depression is poised to overtake more than 20% of adults at some point in their lives. Prescription antidepressants have been carrying on much of the fight against clinical depression by themselves but lately there is a new ray of hope in that fight. Many people have turned toward a depression natural cure instead.
There are actually several natural treatments for clinical depression but the first depression natural cure I’m going to tell you about is proper diet. Yes I know everywhere you look you are being told to eat better. Well, sorry to say it again but you have got to eat right. I like cars and as such like to use car analogies so how about this. If I drove a $300,000 Ferrari and I needed to stop and get gas do you think I would pump regular unleaded into that machine or would I go for that premium? Your body is so much more valuable than that $300k sports car so why would you mistreat it by not feeding it proper nutrition? Strong links have been shown time and time again between poor diet and both physical and mental health issues.
The second depression natural cure I’d like to tell you about is proper amounts exercise. Yep, another oldie but goodie you are probably sick of hearing about. We all work more than we probably should and our schedules are crazier than ever. What that means is we are eating a whole lot more junk food and getting a whole lot less exercise. I’d venture a guess not many of us crawl out of bed at 5 am to go for a 10 mile jog and realistically you don’t have to. You do need to include a moderate amount of exercise in your life if you can though as this is one of the top stress relievers you have. Nobody is immune to stress and it wasn’t until recently that medical science was able to discern the fact that stress actually has a physical toll on your body as well as mental. Built up tensions can lead to heart attack, stroke, anxiety, violent mood swings, the list goes on and on. Bottom line, get your rear end to the gym when you can or even exercise at home. Like I said you don’t have to be in shape for a marathon, you just need to blow off a little steam.
We have talked about both diet and exercise as a depression natural cure but one thing many people overlook when researching the cause of their depression is simple sunlight. Yes, that’s right not getting enough sunlight can actually lead to minor depression. This is an easy one to fix however and probably the most enjoyable. Step out in the sun a few extra minutes a day and you have your depression natural cure number three.
The last depression natural cure I want to tell you about is another very easy one. As I mentioned earlier many of us are working more than ever and leading crazier lifestyles which ultimately is sure to lead to a lack of sleep. I know I am guilty myself of cheating on a few hours a night but it is important to get the proper amount of sleep as much as possible. Sleep is your body’s time to repair and this goes for the mind as well.
So as you can see if you have just been diagnosed as suffering from any form of depression there are treatments available for you. If you prefer professional help there is nothing wrong with that. Every depression natural cure above is easily implemented in combination with professional treatment programs. Everything you can do to help is one step closer to recovery.