Depression- What’s the Real Issue?

Depression is a word used to describe a spectrum of feelings that range from mildly sad to suicidal ideation.  This can be a challenging thing to face at any stage in life.  

The purpose of this post is to give you lots of HOPE and practical questions to ask yourself as well as action steps you can take to start feeling better right away!

Too often when someone is feeling depressed (or any other symptom for that matter), we want to “treat the depression”.  I am often asked, “What can I take for depression?”  

But the depression isn’t what needs to be treated.  That would be like if the engine light came on in your car and you had the engine light repaired or replaced.  That light was just a symptom or indicator of something wrong in the engine!  It’s the engine that needs to be treated.  The whole person needs to be treated…but not in a “your broken” sort of way…it’s more of a “you need to be loved and nourished back to a place of feeling balanced and safe” sort of way!

Let’s start with a check list as it can be helpful to rule out some things:

1. Are you sleep deprived?  Sleep deprivation has been found to increase risk for depression.¹  If this is you, the answer to improving your symptoms would be to really focus on improving your sleep!  There are lots of reasons that people have trouble sleeping.  For more on that, check out our sleep blogs https://newhopehealth.com/sleep-like-a-baby/ and
   https://newhopehealth.com/self-regulate-for-optimal-health/
2. Have you recently gone through a difficult emotional circumstance?  Perhaps you started feeling depressed shortly after you lost a loved one, got divorced or received some other difficult news that was hard to process.  Stressful life events can commonly lead to depression.²  This can be a normal response but if it persists, the best thing can be to seek out a trusted therapist or counselor or even a wise friend who can help you work through things.
3. Do you feel better on the days where the sun comes out?  This is a condition typically referred to as “SAD” which stands for season affective disorder.³  It commonly causes depression to increase in the winter months when there is less sun.  In effort to address the real issue here, you may need to use sun lamps or increase certain nutrients such as vitamin D.
4. Do you have a nutrient deficiency?  The only way to know for sure is to get an intracellular micronutrient test  like the ones we use in our clinic.  There are several nutrients that dramatically impact the brain and nervous system and thus when they are lacking, depression can result.⁴  Deficiencies can of course be caused by a poor diet but that’s not all.  High stress, a lack of exercise, certain medications and a lack of sleep can all play a role in using up your nutrients quicker.  When this happens, you go into “nutritional debt” and to pay off what you owe, you often need to supplement for a time to really replete the needed fuel.  
5. Are you experiencing digestive challenges?  If your gut bacteria microbiome is not balanced, it can increase your likelihood for depression.⁵  In large part, this is because the vast majority of neurotransmitters are produced in the gut.  Supporting digestion is critical to optimal mental health!
6. Have you ever had a serious injury to the body?  This could include anything from broken bones, tattoos or surgeries to childbirth, sports injuries or car accidents.  Since everything in the body is energetically connected, a cut on the hand from 20 years ago, could potentially be the reason you have knee pain or headaches or depression, today.  The good news is that this energetic blockage can be remediated by a therapy called mud packing.  For more on mud packing, feel free to call the clinic.

The point in all of this is to really dig into WHY you’re feeling depressed and address that.  Too often in our culture we are conditioned to just find a “pill” we can take.  Many of these substances don’t work well or if they do, they have lots of ill side effects (including depression getting worse).  We don’t want to feel better in one area, while another part of the body gets worse!  

When you work with the root cause, you’re not just covering up symptoms.  You’re healing yourself!  Your body WANTS to heal you!  It’s so smart and so loving!

For the most targeted support, here are some recommended steps:

1. Schedule a consultation so we can figure out what’s going on with you.  This is the best way to get non-generic support.  We can figure out what your body needs, which is likely different from anyone else.
2. Get a strict but enjoyable bedtime routine.  This can be such a powerful practice.  
3. Get an advocate.  We weren’t meant to do it alone!  This could be a friend or family member or anyone who can support you.  It’s easy to isolate but that’s typically the opposite of what we really need.  
4. Get outside and move your body…any exercise can help but being outside can give you a serotonin boost from the light (even if the sun isn’t shining).  This could be a short walk, some stretching or any activity that you enjoy.  It might be hard to get started but no one ever said, “I should never have exercised”!
5. Do a micronutrient test. For more on figuring out what you need, check out this blog 
6. Support digestion by eating clean and taking digestive support such as
   1. HCL (hydrochloric acid, aka, stomach acid)
   2. Digestive enzymes: Premier Digest, Catazyme-7, Inflammacidin
   3. Probiotics- eat more fermented vegetables like kimchi or raw sauerkraut and/or supplement with probiotics. Symbiome CMF-50B, Probiotic Caps, Microbiome 

Please don’t suffer in silence.  If you’re struggling with depression, don’t wait another day.  Let us help!  You can reach out by calling the clinic today at 269-204-6525.

References:

1. Roberts RE, Duong HT. The prospective association between sleep deprivation and depression among adolescents. Sleep. 2014;37(2). doi:10.5665/sleep.3388

2. LeMoult J. From Stress to Depression: Bringing Together Cognitive and Biological Science. Curr Dir Psychol Sci. 2020;29(6). doi:10.1177/0963721420964039

3. Winthorst WH, Roest AM, Bos EH, et al. Seasonal affective disorder and non-seasonal affective disorders: Results from the NESDA study. BJPsych Open. 2017;3(4). doi:10.1192/bjpo.bp.116.004960

4. Zielińska M, Łuszczki E, Dereń K. Dietary Nutrient Deficiencies and Risk of Depression (Review Article 2018–2023). Nutrients. 2023;15(11). doi:10.3390/nu15112433

5. Liu L, Wang H, Chen X, Zhang Y, Zhang H, Xie P. Gut microbiota and its metabolites in depression: from pathogenesis to treatment. EBioMedicine. 2023;90. doi:10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104527

Nothing said or implied in this post is intended to treat, cure, diagnose or prevent any disease.  It does not take the place of a qualified health care practitioner and is intended for educational purposes only.