Depression: The Most Important Thing You Need To Know to FINALLY Feel BETTER.

[Guest guest]

I began to struggle with depression twelve years ago after the birth of my first

child. It was controlled through medication and counseling, and I never did get

truly suicidal. Then a couple of years ago, I went down again. But this time,

medication just made me sick, due to the fact that my energetic system is SO

much more sensitive now, and the depression was FAR worse, to the point where I

wanted to kill myself all day every day.

I have a degree in psychology, specializing in depression, two years' graduate

training in counseling, and ten years of work experience in mental health,

working with severely clinically depressed (often dual-diagnosis) patients. So I

knew the psychological side of what was happening to me. That didn't help,

though. I had also left all that to become a Reiki Master and intuitive

counselor and so I researched and learned the spiritual side of what was

happening to me. That didn't help enough either, to my great disappointment.

(Hah! Disappointment?? I used to visualize ways to die all day long.)

It wasn't until I made the connection between what I was eating and my

depression that I FOUND THE ANSWER. When I put into practice what I learned

about how to heal myself with real food, I finally came out of the 2-year-long

struggle with depression that nearly claimed my life over and over. Yes, the

psychological/emotional side is important, and so is the spiritual, but you

cannot get healing with those until you build the physical foundation. PERIOD.

This has had such an impact on me that I have gone back to school to get my M.S.

in Holistic Nutrition to specialize in getting America off anti-depressants. And

sure enough, what I'm learning is that Americans, specifically, eat what can

hardly be called food, and it is killing us, to put it bluntly.

The one thing you must know, in order to climb out of a depression pit, is this:

YOU NEED PROTEIN.

The body cannot make seratonin without tryptophan, and tryptophan is in protein.

You need about 20 grams per meal, and it is MOST crucial that you have that much

for breakfast, since that is when most of the seratonin for your day is made.

Once you have addressed that FUNDAMENTAL issue, you also need to know:

PROCESSED CARBS and SUGAR will set you up for the fall.

Both cause drastic rises in blood sugar and then crashes, setting up a cycle of

addiction and exhausting your nervous system, which leads to depression. And

both deplete your body of minerals it needs in order to feel good. Also, both

are completely deficient in the vitamins you get from their whole, natural

replacements, and which are VITAL for nervous system functioning. It is NOT that

difficult to replace the white flour and processed sugar in your foods with

whole grain, and natural alternatives, and you will NOT feel deprived, trust me.

Another thing you NEED to know:

MOST AMERICANS ARE VITAMIN AND MINERAL DEFICIENT.

Our bodies, and our BRAINS *require* certain vitamins and minerals that are NO

LONGER present in our food supply in adequate amounts to keep us well. If you

are struggling with depression or any other health challenge, supplement your

food with a good, bio-available source of vitamins and minerals. Powders,

capsules, or liquids are best. Tablets mostly go undigested.

I know it's HARD to make yourself do ANYTHING good for yourself when you're

depressed, but if you make it a point to start with just eating enough protein,

you WILL feel better, and that will allow you to make other changes that have

you feeling better and better and better.

The way I did this is with protein powder, which was all I could motivate myself

to fix when I was in the deepest depression. Whey protein is good, as is hemp

protein. I stay away from soy, for various reasons. You can also get rice

protein. Try a few until you find one you like. THIS IS YOUR LIFE. You're worth

it! Get one you like the taste of, and add then anything that will make you

drink it, including sugar, ice cream, chocolate syrup...whatever.

*PROTEIN IS STEP ONE and is more important than anything else.*

Personally, I mixed chocolate Instant Breakfast (which is a weak vitamin and

mineral supplement, by the way) with a sweetened vanilla protein powder from the

health food store (you can get some that also include vitamins and minerals),

put it in 2% milk, and sometimes blended in a few chunks of pre-frozen banana

(because I don't like warmish smoothies, I like them cold and slushy.)

That got my protein levels up to where I was motivated enough to do other things

to feel better, but when I skipped that step, the day was a total dark hole for

me.

And even now, when I skip my morning protein, I feel awful all day long and it's

HARD to come back, even with protein and vitamins later in the day.

So start with protein. Then add a good vitamin and mineral supplement. Then

switch out your sugars and carbs. Then add in some Omega-3's for brain health.

THEN address your depression emotionally and spiritually once you've taken care

of that physical foundation.

If you need help, visit my site: http://www.dharmawork.com I do private sessions

over the phone.

Wishing you LIGHT and LOVE,

Satina