A Different View of Depression

I have been blessed that my depression only lasted briefly, but it gave me an idea on what you all are dealing with. I have a strong background in microbiology so I looked there to correct my problem and it worked.

A pathogen causes my issues and may for some of you, but right now you need to worry about feeling better before you go any further.

I read the books "Super Immunity" by Joel Fuhrman and "The Swiss Secret to Optimal Health" by Thomas Rau and incorporated their techniques into Amy Yasko's "Autism: Pathways to Recovery." So far, it has served me well. I had to unblock my methylation pathway by removing any metals that that were blocking the pathway.

This came from changing the way I eat, taking products that help remove metals, and taking supplements that helped me function better. This isn't an infomercial, so I'm not going to go into everything I took, but each of you should look into bettering your GI assortment of bacteria and lowering your yeast content.

Serotonin is made in the GI tract and if your flora is skewed, absorption of nutrients can be an issue. Depression, IMO, is a manifestation of a blocked cycle and improper bacteria. Knowledge is the key, so read up on as much as you can.

Post Edited By Moderator (BnotAfraid) : 2/18/2015 7:27:48 AM (GMT-7)

hi gh. depression is caused by chemical imbalance, situational episodes, trauma and the like. definitely other medical problems as stated by myself09. i am happy that you have found things that have worked for you. some supplements may be beneficial-however scientific evidence shows that effective treatments are usually required, but not always, therapy, meditation and mindfulness practice is really helpful. thx for sharing and welcome.

GH, I can agree with you up to a point.

I have changed my diet to a whole food, no processed food diet. No artificial ingredients especially red and yellow food dyes.

However, with 15years of severe abuse from 4 members of my family I have to say that GI levels would not matter in some cases.

How would bacteria levels stop:
flash backs?
emotional tidal waves that overwhelm?
the dark thoughts that we battle due to threats from abusers?
negative thought loops from years of negative data input?

These are just a few questions I have. I am not being snarky. Just pragmatic. There are so many things with the mind that are NOT connected with the body.

I am so glad that you found an answer and thank you so much for sharing. I do hope that it helps someone.

Peace
Trina

-shrugs-

Already eat SCD, including home-made 24-hour yogurt.

Plus, I stand by what I wrote before. Man is not a collection of chemicals; We are irreducible to simple biology. We are far more than our bodies. In fact, I would argue that the thoughts and emotions that create our personality is far more relevant than the physical. The part of us that makes us US is greatly impacted by environment and experience.

I do not believe that difficult questions in our modern age can be answered simply. Diet change may help some, sure. I would never debate that point. But it's not the universal answer for every person. To argue otherwise is misleading.

I have to state that I am getting tired of so many people trying to push their view of eating onto others, under the guise of ending disease. Most health boards have various advocates that claim that their diet/treatment/regimen is THE one, and if we would only do what they say, the cure will be affected. I am so very glad that eating a certain has helped so many so effectively, but stating anything in absolutes and proclaiming a categorical result is just impossible.

So, offer the information as something that has worked for you, but don't overplay your hand and put forward your theory as fact. Frankly, it is kinda dismissive of genuine illnesses and pain.

For myself09 and THE HAPPY TURTLE, may I ask what your physicians have done to alleviate your illness? If it has worked, there is no reason to go any further unless you wish to educate others. My first post mentions 3 separate ways that I utilized to alleviate my sequela and I didn't go into details on what I took so it wouldn't seem like a sales pitch. As for scientific fact, I think you are missing the boat. When something is published in research, that just means it's published in scientific research. Scientific methodology can still be utilized by others to get factual concepts. It is done every day. There probably aren't many on this entire website that are more scientific than I am, but what matters is what is being done to alleviate your disease? I could go into heterozygous COMT and DAO genes but I don't think it would matter. If you are not willing to try different things to feel better when what you have tried hasn't worked, there is not much I can say that will help. Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. We are not insane, but it's pretty obvious that serotonin reuptake inhibitors don't solve the problem. I may have already stated, but genes, the environment, and brain chemistry probably all play a roll in depression.

Since there are approximately 25,000 genes in the human genome and over 1,000,000 bacterial and viral genes in our bodies, it kind of makes since that we treat these symbiotic bacteria just as we treat ourselves. What you eat affects these bacteria and it also affects your genes. The substrates and co-factors that allow the enzymatic reactions must be present in order for genes to be fully utilized. Eating affects this. Eating affects the glutamate/dopamine interaction as well.

Eating correctly is the first step IMO. Gene mutations must be overcome in some and supplementation must be done in some. There are no easy answers or everyone would feel fine relatively quickly. This is rarely the case. It's a systematic step by step approach to correcting depression IMO. In every physician I talk to, they want to mask the problem with medications. Medications are certainly necessary, but getting to the root of the problem as to why serotonin isn't utilized correctly should be paramount. It's often in the genes and this can sometimes be corrected.

THE HAPPY TURTLE said...
i think you should put your reviews in a paper-peer review. we are not scientists. that is rubbish that every doctor is masking the problem with anti-depressants. i use, therapy, mindfulness, dbt, music and yes medication. i was not born depressed. so are we going to get into genetic predisposition now!!! yes i am as i am told, believed to be so, but does that mean i suffer at the hands of abuse and bashings as a kid, forced into abhorrent things. is this because my symbiotic bacteria was having a bad day? i could go on. this is a peer based forum, we are not scientists. are you a scientist? we live with depression and have suffered with it. we are just everyday people. you pose to be scholastic in presentation, yet i feel that this conversation whilst interesting is still without any scientific validation.

No offense, but you are jumping to conclusions. I stated "every physician I talk to" and you take that as every physician. There is a huge difference. I am good friends with half a dozen physicians but I talk to other physicians on a regular basis. That is a long way from all of them. You may not have been born depressed, but SNP's and blockages to your metabolic pathways can cause you to be like you are. You live and suffer from depression every day and if I can help you get rid of those problems, I will try. I don't expect you to spend thousands of hours studying and researching like I have done over the years, but if you read and look beyond traditional therapy, you may find some benefit. I offer you nothing but the idea of hope of you getting better. When I had problems, I tried eating differently and it had a positive impact. I furthered this by educating myself on my genes and which ones had mutated and what I could do to change my enzyme levels. I then supplemented to support my deficiencies. Each of these steps showed progress and it's a step by step process that takes time. We are all different and may have to go down a slightly different road.