anti depressants vs natural products

[sienna]

Hi,
I am feeling a little lost and confused about this whole depression thing. I was on lexapro for a few months but didn't like the awful weight gain I have due to cravings I didn't realise I was having. 10kg in 4-5mths is ridiculous and even more annoying is having docs tell you its not the meds. Anyway, I have been off lexapro for 4-5 wks and have noticed the bad cravings have gone! But now I wonder where to next?
I saw a psychiatirst 3wks ago and he wanted me to try cymbalta. I did the usual thing of doing a bit of reading etc and discovered there seem to be some awful side effects from this med after a few months. So I feel that I don't want to go there just yet.
During the 4 wks off lexapro, I felt ok. less tired and got heaps more stuff sone. But after about 3 wks, I noticed some of my symptoms coming back and realised that I need to take something.

So anti depressants vs natural remedies eg st John's wort, sam-E etc.
Thoughts please. I started taking sam-E because it doesn't interfere with the pill. It's too early to tell but I have noticed some of the anxiety gone already.

Anyway, please let me know your thoughts and advice on this. Thanks

[CHANDLERS WISH]

Weight gain is usually from "depression" I think this is why you were advised that it was not the anti depressants...

It mean't that those weren't the right ones and maybe the ones that stopped you feeling hungry were better.

Sienna, what is it that makes you feel depressed? It's all well and good for everyone to treat you and rightly so, because you can't do this alone, but they also need to find why you feel this way and work with that.

We are not Doctor's here but we are friends and at least we can be there for you and hopefully also offer opinions on what upsets you at this point in your life.

Personally? I avoid medical /chemical stuff... why not try St Johns Wort and also books of self learning based on what upsets you, as well as being around only positive people not negative and as well as adding a hobby in that you love, that you forgot you loved, just to start with.

CW

[sienna]

Thanks for replying. Sorry I should have given more background.
I had been suffering from post natal depression for 18mths before I was officially diagnosed middle of last year. I just didn't know it. This is why I maintain that I gained weight from the anti depressants. My weight was stable until I started on them and then I all of a sudden had an appetite for food and junk food. Since coming off lexapro, my appetite has settled heaps and I don't crave the junk food anymore.

For me, depression is more about not sleeping well, overreacting, being bad tempered for no reason, feeling disconnected from people, and being really tired all the time. I also get some anxiety that hits me out of the blue about my young son and his safety. I don't feel sad, or put myself down or have thoughts of self harm.

Lexapro did work well for awhile and I got into cbt and broke some bad habits and thought patterns. But in the end lexapro was not quite right for me so I came off it. Since then, I have been feeling more awake and able to function better. This lasted up til last week when I again had a bout of anxiety while in bed, out of the blue. I then realised that I had been more cranky lately and short tempered and that I needed something to help.

But I just don't want to take chemicals if I can help it. I don't like taking stuff unless I really have to. I do understand that depression is a chemical imbalance in the brain and that it needs to be treated to help restore the imbalance. I'm baulking at anti depressants cos I've had enough trouble getting a decent pill and I've also had to deal with severe nerve pain and associated meds in the past.

That being said, I wanted to try something more natural.
So I started on sam-E, which is similar to st john's wort, but doesn't interfere with the pill.
I guess I just want to hear from people who have gone down this road and what they thought of it.

Thanks so much for your offer of support. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy

[hayleyf605]

HI,

I was in a very similar situation myself, I don't like chemical products either. 5HTP is very good and doesn't interfere with contraception. Things got worse for me and I started anti-depressants, I still haven't found the right balance but if you need them don't rule them out. A good high strength fish oil is essential along with B vitamins so I would suggest a combination of them and the 5HTP if you want to go down the natural route

[reilu]

my mom has been using flaxseed. its like this tiny lil seed that is dark brown and the shape and size of a sesame seed. she said its supposed to help with depression?? i dont know. ive never heard of that before, but maybe you wanna look into it for yourself. im not sure if she is seeing any results or not, but she said thats something that is supposed to help. i dont know though. it was just a thought!



there is also something in a book i am reading now. in that book it talks of this doctor who took three chronically depressed people and in a few months they became extreme optimists. the psycholosgists name is Dr. Robert Holden aka the happiness psychologist. and for these people he had them do three simple things.



(im typing this straight from the book btw)



1. take physical exercise: exercise has been conclusively proven to be a powerful natural antidote to depression.it releases the body's natural opiates, giving you a warm, comfortable, relaxed feeling for hour afterwards. over time, these positive feelings become the new default setting for how wonderful your body can feel.



2.laugh for twenty minutes everyday: laughter, even if initially it is forced and artificial, has been proven to lift our spirits and imporove our overall mood and well-being. as with physical exercise, it produces endorphins to make the body feel good. even just smiling releases serotonin into the bloodstream and acts as a powerful antidepressant.



3. force themselves to have positive thoughts: each of the participants in the study placed coloured stickers all about their home and work environment. everytime they saw one, they had to think of something that made them feel good. this strengthened the neural pathways in their brains associated with pleasure and reinforced the happy chemicals in their bodies.



within the first month, each of these new behaviors had become automatic and habitual.



at the end of the study, all three participants had changed to being extreme optimists.....and the other scientists demanded that this experiment be checked under different equipement, but even so the results were unchanging.



(this is from the book call instant confidence by paul mckenna)



maybe this is sounding like a load of to you, but if you are depressed, well, what do you have to lose?? isnt it worth a shot? i mean, if you want to be over this, you'd be willing to try jsut about anything. and it cant hurt. so maybe it can help.

good luck

[ztmaercs]

I had a problem with the bath cosmetics, that i bought from a hypermarket. I`m from Andorra, and my daughter Maria had an alergy inducted by a bath product. I went from town to town, and no one couldn`t help my little angel . I was lucky when a dr from Barcelona, Antonio Famagusta discover that the alergy is inducted by a parasite from a cosmetic company. I sue them .. but i-m to small for that mafia. Also Dr Famagusta helped me with Natural Bath Products
Now I'm scared about any food, any cosmetics what should i do ?

[happy ending]

google inositol for anxiety and depression, it is supposed to be the way to go.