Fighting Depression Safely and Effectively - Fighting Depression

Written by HealthyPlace.com Staff Writer

Natalie: One of the things I'm gathering from our conversation and your book is that treating depression EFFECTIVELY is more than just taking an antidepressant or even vitamins or supplements. It's really an entire lifestyle issue too.

Dr. Schachter: Yes. I believe this is correct. For example, exercise is extremely important. Some studies show exercise to be more effective and longer lasting than antidepressants. Fresh air and sunshine also appear to be important. Looking at one's eating habits, exercise patterns, supplements, exposure to sunlight and fresh air all are important in an overall approach to managing depression.

karenblibra:How does a person find a trained professional like yourself who can treat depression naturally / holistically?

Dr. Schachter: Our book has an appendix which lists some resources. Many well trained naturopathic physicians and integrative physicians use the approach we discuss in our book. We also mention some websites that list practitioners who try to practice using these principles. One organization that I have been involved with for more than 30 years is the American College for Advancement in Medicine (ACAM). You can go to their website at: http://www.acam.org/, click on find a physician and put in your zip code. Various physicians will come up and there will be codes indicating the kind of work they do.

Natalie: Dr. Schachter, what about people who have been on antidepressants for many years, 5+ years. Can they possibly be taken off the antidepressant and put on your regimen and have it be effective?

Dr. Schachter: This is an excellent question. Whether or not there may be some permanent and irreversible changes in the brain when someone is on an antidepressant for many years is controversial. What often happens when a person is on an antidepressant for a long period of time, is that they may develop severe deficiencies of certain neurotransmitters. These can generally be improved by giving the neurotransmitter precursors (certain amino acids) to build up these neurotransmitters. Sometimes when the antidepressants stop working, building the neurotransmitters will help them to work again. Whenever someone tries to go off an antidepressant after many years, it is crucial that this is done very slowly with nutritional support at the same time. Otherwise, severe withdrawal effects may occur in some cases. In almost all cases, the antidepressant medication dosage can be lowered. In some cases, it may be stopped completely; but, in other cases a low maintenance dose will be necessary.

Natalie: Dr. -- one audience member wanted to know if your book also talks about the causes of depression as well as the treatment recommendations?

Dr. Schachter: That is the subtitle. The full title is: What Your Doctor May NOT Tell You About Depression: The Breakthrough Integrative Approach for Effective Treatment (Warner Books). The book is all about the possible causes and how to evaluate them. It begins with a few chapters where questionnaires are used to help determine what causes may be present. It is important to think about depression in a multidimensional way. Is it related to fatty acid deficiency? Could a low functioning thyroid (even with normal thyroid function tests be involved? Is the adrenal gland weak and stressed leading to depression? Could the toxic mineral mercury either from dental fillings or too much sushi playing a role in the depression? The book tries to address all of these factors and helps the reader to recognize what factors may be important

Natalie: Our time is up tonight. Thank you, Dr. Schachter, for being our guest, for sharing this information on safely and effectively treating depression and for answering audience questions. We appreciate you being here.

Dr. Schachter: Thank you.

Natalie: Here's the link to the HealthyPlace.com Depression Community. There's a lot of info there on depression and antidepressant medications.

Thank you everybody for coming. I hope you found the chat interesting and helpful.

Thank you again Dr. Schachter and good night everyone.

Disclaimer: We are not recommending or endorsing any of the suggestions of our guest. In fact, we strongly encourage you to talk over any therapies, remedies or suggestions with your doctor BEFORE you implement them or make any changes in your treatment.

next: Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You
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