What to do about depression

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There are several kinds of depression, and also anxiety and fear and

apprehension which

often come along with them.

The only one size fits all remedy is omega 3 oils. Good for all of it, takes

several weeks to

help.

Anxiety, fear, apprehension = low GABA problems.

Obsessive, compulsive, thinking about bad things, can't let things go, dream of

being run

over on the freeway and things like that, think of hurting yourself, lots of

psychic distress

and suffering = low serotonin problems.

Hopeless helpless crying depression = problems in the limbic system.

No motivation, no energy, don't enjoy anything, sit around like a bump on a log,

unaroused, unaware, but mood OK (you don't feel DEPRESSED, you just don't feel

much at

all) = low histamine depression.

Poor mood, attention deficit, emotionally flat, not much drive or focus =

catecholamine

depression.

If you have GABA and serotonin problems you have adrenal problems causing both

of

them. In this case you START with adrenal support, like adrenal cortex extract,

licorice,

etc. Often DHEA, 7 keto DHEA and pregnenolone may help - these should NEVER

EVER

EVER EVER UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES be used in children or adolescents. Sometimes

hydrocortisone itself may be needed, this must be used with care and sensibly.

THEN

when that is working worry about the rest.

Magnesium and taurine often help with spacey almost disoriented anxiety and

distress.

These usually go along with a high heart rate and not sweating much. Take them

several

times a day for best effect, magnesium in forms OTHER than oxide or carbonate or

hydroxide, if you use too much it is laxative. Most people tolerate somewhere

between

100-200 mg per serving of magnesium. 500-1000 mg of Taurine at a time is about

right.

Serotoninergic depression = use Inositol, 1-3 tsp a day as needed. If that

isn't enough,

add tryptophan or 5 HTP. If that still doesn't do it, consider asking doctor

for an SSRI if

you are not chemically sensitive. If you are chemically sensitive or if you

can't take

codeine you are very unlikely to be able to tolerate SSRI's. In this case add

adrenal support

whether or not you think you need it.

For GABA problems, try GABA (duh - it doesn't work for everyone though and has

to be

taken several times a day), theanine, eating protein at every meal, adrenal

support and if

that isn't enough ask your doctor about anxiolytics. If the doc is reasonable

they'll offer

you BuSpar and a valium like drug (a benzodiazepine) for a month or two until

the BuSpar

starts working. BuSpar does not always work, you have to see if it is good for

you or not.

Ativan and Xanax seem to be fairly well tolerated. If you need round the clock

coverage

then Klonopin is a good choice - also this is good if you have MS or mood

instability.

Some over the counter anxiolytics are Kava Kava and chamomile. Do note that all

anxiolytics are also sedatives.

For limbic problems make sure you have enough thyroid and sex hormones, try B-12

and

folic acid in large amounts ONLY if you are not prone to agitation, the

nutritional

supplement forskolin 10-30 mg 1-3 times a day, maybe try dl-phenylalanine 500 mg

3-4

times a day (if you have a lot of pain or malaise this is good), l-tyrosine 1-3

grams, or the

prescription drug selegiline 5-10 mg a day. All the stimulant medications work

excellently

for this but mostly it is not lawful to prescribe them for this purpose.

If you have low histamine depression, IF YOU ARE NOT ALLERGIC AND HAVE NO

INFLAMMATORY PROBLEM, try l-histidine 1-3 grams a day. If you are allergic this

will

make your allergies dramatically worse and you must NOT do it. In that case,

take a lot of

nonsedating antihistamines and other allergy medications, for example Allegra

(fexofenadine) and Singulair or Accolate and Nasalchrom as this may let your

body tolerate

more histamine. AVOID all medications that have antihistaminic side effects and

all

antihistamines that get into the brain (which is all the over the counter ones).

For catecholamine depression try l-tyrosine 500-3000 mg a day, and forskolin

10-30 mg

1-3 times a day.

If you have a lot of fear or apprehension sometimes beta blockers or the alpha

agonists

clonidine or guanfacine will releive that. These also lower blood pressure. If

your blood

pressure is already low you have adrenal problems and need to take more adrenal

support

before considering these.

If your mood is bouncing all over the place, you may have mood instability and

need

something for mood stabilization. Most doctors do not know that a lot of these

medications work well at lower than normal doses but with much less side effects

- the

first thing to do if you may need them and aren't in such bad shape you need a

lot right

away to keep yourself out of trouble is to try 1/4 or 1/2 of the usual amount

and see how

you do. Most of the choices are Rx, GABA being the most notable OTC choice.

GABA has

to be taken several times a day. the Atkins diet also helps with this.

If your mood is bouncing and the period is days or longer, it can be you are

reacting to

dietary issues you haven't figured out yet, or you are chemically sensitive. In

these cases

all of the above won't help much until you avoid the offending foods or

chemicals, then

you may not need much help.

As a rule, if you really hate the mood stabilizers and don't want to take them

because of

how " flat " they make you feel, you truly do need them and it is crucial to take

them.

If you find yourself changing your program around a lot because of what is

happening to

you and are never sure what is going on, try adrenal support, anxiolytics,

identifying food

and chemical sensitivities, and if those don't resolve it, then try mood

stabilizers.

Most MD doctors just hand out SSRI's for everyone no matter what kind of

depression they

have. This is not useful. FInd one who will at least try some different stuff.

If one or two

SSRI's didn't work, don't bother trying any more. Try different kinds of

agents. If the

doctor doesn't want to do that, go find a real doctor instead.

Andy