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Depression
Why the silent epidemic?
Excerpt from: “When It
Hurts to be a Woman” by Dr. Diana Smith, CNC
Some depression is linked with
a woman’s hormones. An occasional “blue” day is part of a normal
person’s make up because hormones change from moment to moment. On the
other hand, when depression occurs for two-and-three week episodes, the chance
of the depression being caused partly by a serious imbalance of hormones is
very likely.
“Recent research shows
that endorphin levels are influenced by a change in the levels of the ovarian
hormones estrogen and progesterone.”
--Stanley
West, M.D.
Hormonal imbalance that
contributes to depression is a silent epidemic among American women. If you are
severely depressed and taking the Pill, consider changing your birth control to
another option. The Pill contains hormones that are not natural to humans. This
could be contributing to your depression.
If you are taking HRT (hormone
replacement therapy) ask your doctor how you can stop or take the minimum
dosage. Most HRT prescriptions are not natural and supply your body with the
hormones from a horse or synthetic chemical. Our theory is that progesterone
will replace HRT and help balance your depression.
One of my clients wanted to
stop taking her HRT. My advice was to talk to her primary-care physician and
ask for his expertise. I made a further suggestion that she gradually go off
her hormones and not go “cold turkey” (meaning to stop all medication
on one day). She had been taking her HRT for 13 years—a long time.
I wanted her to decrease her
dosage over a several-month time span. She did not seek her doctor’s
counsel nor take my suggestion. Instead, she took herself off of the medication
in one day. Within a short time following her abstinence from the drug, she
developed a blood clot in her leg. Is stopping her medication all at once
connected to the blood clot? I am NOT a medical doctor. I do not know. My
theory says to be kind to your body. Give it the opportunity to adjust. All
medicines are dangerous and should be treated that way.
WARNING: Don’t stop
taking your hormones cold turkey! You must consult with your physician!
Using natural progesterone
crème should help you with depression by helping to balance your
hormones. This balancing usually takes a minimum of three months.Preservatives,
additives and other chemicals in your food can also contribute to depression.
One client had propylene glycol in his salad dressing and was depressed for
weeks.
Simple Lifestyle Changes to
Feel Better
- Adding progesterone
crème is a simple lifestyle change.
- Taking less prescription
drugs can only be accomplished with the advice from your primary care
physician. It takes some planning, but is a simple lifestyle change—a good
goal—taking less pills.
- Eliminating chemicals in
your diet will take more planning. My book, “Feel-Better-In-48-Hours
Plan” makes this change a little easier because I have simple,
additive-free recipes for you in the book.
Each change is simple in
itself. All the changes in a week is probably impossible and may cause you to
become overwhelmed and fail completely.
Make the changes slowly and
carefully. When you fail, (I didn’t say, “if”), get up, brush
yourself off and try again. Each attempt should take you further until you
eventually will feel better.
I am available for email or
telephone consultation: email: DrFeelBetter@juno.com telephone:
407-297-9048 |
