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I’ve read quite a lot of self-help books and I found one that I consider very unique. It’s about a drug-free treatment to depression and anxiety. In general, we try to avoid drugs as much as possible. For some, they resort to alternative medicines, while the others are still cautious about it. The Chinese and Indians use a lot of herbs to treat the common colds, flu, cough, simple diseases, and even depression. Exercise, proper diet, meditation, counselling, chiropractic treatment, and the like, work for others. Mindfulness exercises are also effective.
Unfortunately, it’s not a one size fits all thing. Each one would need a different or unique mix of treatments to be able to effectively manage depression and anxiety. It’s like a hit and miss thing. We continue to find the treatment, of course with the right amount of precautions and understanding of what we are going into, until we find the ones that will work for us.
This book about drug-free treatment to depression and anxiety was written by a medical doctor in family practice and anti-aging medicine. He claims to have seen a dramatic rise in both depression and anxiety in his patients in his more than 25 years of practice.
The following are sample statistics on depression, based on www.healthline.com:
- 80% of individuals affected by depression do not receive any treatment.
- Depression is a condition that affects 1 in 10 Americans at one point or another.
- The number of patients diagnosed with depression increases by 20%
each year.
In the book, the following facts about mood disorders and depression are presented:
- Some people suffer from one disorder at the same time
- Major depressive disorder is more prevalent in women than men
- Major depressive disorder is the leading cause of disability in the United States for ages fifteen to forty-four.
- Dysthymic disorder, or mild depression, affects approximately 11.5
percent of the U.S. population, or 3.3 million American adults
A startling realization I had while reading the book, albeit I’ve known all
along before, but had a total disregard to it, is that depression affects all three parts of a person’s being – body, spirit, and soul. We must be aware that most of the time, depression begins in the emotion and mental realm. Then, it starts affecting the physical body, and finally, it affects the spirituality. Usually, the problem actually begins in the mind because of a chemical imbalance. And that is the only thing treated by prescription drugs.
Here is what I think about it based on my experience. The problem with prescription drugs is how fast or how slow it curbs the depression at the mental level before it starts affecting the person physically, then, spiritually. Anti-depressants are not like a pain killer that can eliminate pain in one take and the pain goes away and won’t recur, at least not immediately. Anti-depressants need to be taken continuously over a period of time, maybe at least a month. And in a month, vulnerable as a
depressed person is, the condition can get worse with a slight negative circumstance – a hostile behaviour of an acquaintance, conflict in the family, interest and penalty fees of an overlooked credit card bill, or a child falling ill. A depressed person usually magnifies the negatives, and hardly sees the positives. And that makes depression perilous. A dysthymic disorder can possibly quickly snowball into a major depression, affecting the person’s body, spirit, and soul, before it is treated at the mental level.
Realizing or remembering this may be the first step to a total, drug-free treatment to depression.
There are a lot to read about serotonin, the body’s “feel good” chemical. It also helps us feel both calm and relaxed. It is when serotonin is low that depression starts. This is what is treated by anti-depressants. Depressed people probably and already knows this by heart.
But what about the spiritual factors of depression? The book states that the common spiritual thread of depression is the lack of God’s joy in our lives. Some of us may have thought that we have strong faith, yet, we are depressed. That we pray a lot, yet, we are still depressed. That we do good to others, but we are still depressed. That we hear mass or attend Sunday service religiously, but we are still depressed. That we donate generously to the Church and charity, but we are still depressed.
These are why we forget or dismiss the fact that we lack of God’s joy in our lives.
The book further explains that we forget that God promises to make our joy full. We forget to trust His promises and seek His overflowing joy through:
Reading the bible daily and meditating on His Word
Being filled daily with God’s Holy Spirit
Memorizing scriptures (and reciting silently it when applicable)
Practicing thinking according to God’s Word, speaking faith-filled words, casting down thoughts that are contrary to God’s Word, and practicing gratitude
Have we been doing the above, on top of what we claim we already do? Perhaps, yet again, I thought, here are other questions that I asked myself: Have we cast down our thoughts and habits contrary to God’s Word – gambling, cursing, ignoring the needy, thinking ill thoughts about others, gossiping, patronizing people who display a complete disregard to God such as singers who promote evil, sex, adultery, and cursing in their songs?
Regardless of our religious beliefs, our resistance to admit our weaknesses, mistakes, and failures will not help us in treating our depression effectively, at least at the spiritual level. Accept it, embrace it, confront it, and work on it. Helpless as it feels, a depressed person would always have a strength and will to do this. This is a very auspicious time to do what we can to use it.
Allow me to conclude this article with a quote from the Bible:
“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tender-hearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peach that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” – COLLOSIANS 3:12-15