How did you overcome depression without anti-depressants?
I have social anxiety and severe unhappiness(don’t want to call it depression) and my GP recommended anti-depressants but I turned them down, I see a councillor but I don’t find it helps much,
How did you overcome depression without medication? It seems so impossible overcoming this and I feel mad at myself for allowing it to consume me,
I am nineteen and feeling a bit lost,
thank you
Depends what the cause of your depression is. Your counsellor should be able to help you find that out, if the cause is circumstantial. But if there’s a physical cause e.g. diet or allergies, the counsellor won’t be much use.
What’s worked for me is being able to take control of things for myself. I reacted badly to all prescription antidepressants I tried & so gave up on them. Then I discovered you can get St John’s Wort without prescription & this allowed me to get in control of the medication. Victory number 1. Then, to overcome the lethargy of depression I looked up the food colourings that make kids hyperactive & took them in big doses. It kick started my drive to be active (victory number 2), but made me crabby tempered. So I stopped taking them & discovered I could be just as active without them (victory number 3). Having become active & taking mega amounts of exercise, I began to feel good when I exercised (victory number 4), but it didn’t treat the cause of the problem, which in my case turned out to be brain damage as a result of trauma. So I began to read up about that & found a specialist counsellor who could deal with the trauma (victory5), & also discovered my brain needed tryptophan & selenium to help it recover, so I looked up the foods that contain high doses of them (bananas, chocolate, fish-oil & marmite for the tryptophan, fruit juices with vitamins A, C & E taken 3-4 times daily for the selenium) & started using them (victory 6). By this time, I felt pretty "normal", but then while I was on holiday in Corsica I began to feel really good. I wondered if it was the food. I’d been eating pate tete on my sandwiches for 3 days & wondered if it was that. Tried iot again on my next visit & it worked again, then tried it again on a visit to France - still good (victory 7). Found the same in England is called brawn, so I’ve been using that ever since. The effect lasts about 2 weeks, but far better if I have brawn at least twice a week.
I’d recommend you get checked out to see if you’ve got any allergies - a kinesiologist will help there, then take charge of the treatment for yourself. You’ll discover what works for you & what doesn’t far better than anybody else will. Best of luck!
September 30th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
It’s a struggle to not get lost in feeling down. I make sure to get up out of bed everyday, take a shower, eat regularily and healthy, and get out of the house. Even if it’s just a ten minute walk, it’s a good distraction.
I’ve refused medication too after trying it and I wonder if it might not of been better by now if I had just stuck with it. Now it seems like it’s getting worse. I suggest a mild lowdose medication for you.
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September 30th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
You should consider seeing help from a good psychologist. They cannot prescribe anti-depressants. They will guide you with different techniques to change your different habits.
All the best. x
References :
Own experience.
September 30th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
Medication definitely has it’s purpose. It can help you through really hard times, however it can also be VERY habit forming and addictive (I know this from experience). I have been on Paxil for 2 years as well as wellbutrin, prozac, and some other medication that i cannot remember…anyway as of the present, I am trying to detox myself off of the stuff…which is NOT easy. If you are thinking of harming yourself or if life seems to have no joy, my recommendation is to see a clinical therapist who specializes in alternative treatments. Good Luck!
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September 30th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
Well, I’m 13. I got depressed a lot earlier this year, due to things going on around the house (arguments between stepfather and mother, and so on).
I didn’t really overcome it - I still go into a state of severe unhappiness every now and again. I can’t say wait it out, because it won’t go on its own. I talked to my mother about it and it did make things slightly better - at this moment I would advise you to do the same. I also get anxious in social situations (I have a phobia of social evaluation). Just talk to your mother/other parental unit about it. Things will look up eventually, trust me!
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September 30th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
i used to have a social phobia two years ago i found it really hard to get over it mostly because what helped start it was me lousing all my friends the way i overcame it was to build up my confidence wich can be extreemly dificult when you have lost it
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September 30th, 2009 at 8:17 pm
Hiya Hun sorry but you don’t overcome depression by yourself, i have been on anti-depression tablets now for 5 years, had counselling and if i don’t take them for a few days i crack up, if you are low which some people call depression then yes you get over it,but depression has to be monited by your GP as it is dangerous if you are having thoughts of self harm.
Please take your doctors advice that’s what they are there for.
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September 30th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
You really ought to try a mild anti-depressant for a short while, it will help you recover so much faster. Your GP was trying to help you with his offer, and if they are properly supervised can make you better really fast. I was really bad and on the dreaded Seroxat for 8 years until I decided enough was enough and slowly weaned myself off them. You aren’t addicted to them and a mild one wouldn’t affect you so much. Most people suffering with depression suffer from a lack of serotonin in the brain, I don’t know if there is anything available as a natural product you could take - you could always go and check out the shelves in Holland and Barret, they are usually good for stuff like that. Take care pet.
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September 30th, 2009 at 9:35 pm
I have suffered social anxiety like you. The best way is to confront your fear and you will get better. We all have a fear of something know matter who we are or how confident we might appear to other people.
I was on prozac until the end of last year.
I stopped voluntarily after taken them for a year and going for counselling like you.
I take no anti-depressants now, i exercise a lot and feel a lot a better after a good workout than any anti-depressants i have taken.
You have your whole life in front you. Give yourself challenges to overcome, do the things you enjoy most.
Good luck.
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September 30th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
i happen to suffer from "light deprivation" or "the winter blues". when i’m not subject to sun light my brain goes into a chemical imbalance that manifests itself as depression, sometimes to "clinical" levels.
like you i refuse anti-depression medications, i know in the spring i get to go out side i’ll come back to "normal" (for me that’s a happy go lucky personality).
i wish you the best of luck with you personal battle. take care!
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September 30th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Try some of the hypnotherapy Cd’s you can get at Waterstones, and try positive thinking, or meditation. I am currently reading a book by Paul McKenna on "How to Change your Life", it comes with a CD which gives you a hypnotherapy session.
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September 30th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
you may never be relived of deppresion,you just got to learn to live with it …i find that nice quite walks or drives in the country a bit exercise to take your frustration out on . works well but takes time can be a long time but it helps .take care.
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have p.t.s.d.
September 30th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
I am 24 and I have been suffering from depression since the age of 17. I know what I have to do to alleviate it but sometimes I cannot find the motivation. I have been on meds and I am now completely off them, hopefully for good. If there is no need for them, I think you are better off fighting off your anxieties and general sadness by doing things. Medication can lead to dependancy! Accept who you are and ask yourself what you want to do with your life. It may be that you are finding yourself. Good luck and remember what’s good about life when you’re down!
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September 30th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
Depression is caused by the reactive mind–the hidden part of the mind that stores painful memories and then uses them against you later. Dianetics sessions address that and can give you relief from unwanted feelings/emotions and restore your happiness and well being without drugs. I have given Dianetics auditing (auditing is to apply the techniques and listen to the person). and I have seen it help people with different things.
Just getting some info on the mind and what is happening can help, too. Check out http://www.dianetics.org for some info on it. Take care and feel better!
References :
http://www.dianetics.org
September 30th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
you need to talk about what you are going through to someone that can help you and not swallow drugs right away. my advice is do it now because i had it in your age and i didn’t get treatment and it got worse.
anyway, my recovery started when I accidentally started going to a swimming pool and gradually got involved more in sports and i did only things i really had fun to do; but i don’t know if you can benefit from this. you will have to seek help not from GP but from specialized doctor, a therapist.
this doesn’t mean you’ll have to take drugs (i never did). all you need to take all these things you feel out and talk honestly without feeling threatened.
OK. i said too much. but please do something for yourself. it’s a shame to feel unnecessary pain when you can get over it and understand a lot of things about yourself. good luck!
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September 30th, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Depends what the cause of your depression is. Your counsellor should be able to help you find that out, if the cause is circumstantial. But if there’s a physical cause e.g. diet or allergies, the counsellor won’t be much use.
What’s worked for me is being able to take control of things for myself. I reacted badly to all prescription antidepressants I tried & so gave up on them. Then I discovered you can get St John’s Wort without prescription & this allowed me to get in control of the medication. Victory number 1. Then, to overcome the lethargy of depression I looked up the food colourings that make kids hyperactive & took them in big doses. It kick started my drive to be active (victory number 2), but made me crabby tempered. So I stopped taking them & discovered I could be just as active without them (victory number 3). Having become active & taking mega amounts of exercise, I began to feel good when I exercised (victory number 4), but it didn’t treat the cause of the problem, which in my case turned out to be brain damage as a result of trauma. So I began to read up about that & found a specialist counsellor who could deal with the trauma (victory5), & also discovered my brain needed tryptophan & selenium to help it recover, so I looked up the foods that contain high doses of them (bananas, chocolate, fish-oil & marmite for the tryptophan, fruit juices with vitamins A, C & E taken 3-4 times daily for the selenium) & started using them (victory 6). By this time, I felt pretty "normal", but then while I was on holiday in Corsica I began to feel really good. I wondered if it was the food. I’d been eating pate tete on my sandwiches for 3 days & wondered if it was that. Tried iot again on my next visit & it worked again, then tried it again on a visit to France - still good (victory 7). Found the same in England is called brawn, so I’ve been using that ever since. The effect lasts about 2 weeks, but far better if I have brawn at least twice a week.
I’d recommend you get checked out to see if you’ve got any allergies - a kinesiologist will help there, then take charge of the treatment for yourself. You’ll discover what works for you & what doesn’t far better than anybody else will. Best of luck!
References :