Learn How to Stop Depression with Dr Janelle Sinclair

Depression has many causes- emotional, spiritual and physical. I believe that any treatment of depression that doesn't look at the whole person is incomplete. The mind and body are intricately connected.

The area that I however want to bring more attention to is the physical or biochemical causes of depression. The reason being is that they are too often overlooked but if investigated properly can bring some simple effective solutions to so many people that are suffering.

It is my desire to help share and make known these physical causes of depression to help stop depression affecting so many.

You're probably familiar with the most popular theory of the biochemical cause of depression. That low levels of serotonin (a neurotransmitter,) also known as 'the happy brain chemical' in the brain leads to depression. Serotonin is a 'happy' neurotransmitter and standard antidepressant medications work on increasing the level of this chemical in the brain to help improve mood.

This is a well known biochemical cause of depression but this isn't the only biochemical cause of everyone's depression. There's so much more to this common, yet devastating problem. Let's explore these lesser known factors that can contribute to your depression now.

Biochemical Imbalances Causing Depression:
o Nutrient deficiencies
o Hormonal imbalances
o Food sensitivities and allergies
o Exposure to certain toxins

Yes there are at least 20 biochemical causes of depression which are so often not considered and investigated. That means the cause of your depression, and so many other people with depression all round the world, go undiagnosed.

I know you're probably thinking how can I find out whether I have any of these biochemical imbalances? Well one of the keys is to finding out what type of biochemical imbalance is contributing to your depression is by understanding that the causes of your depression are unique, and also understanding its trigger. Let's take a look at what I mean by this.

Each case of depression has a unique set of characteristics, of causes. All you have to discover is your own causes or the causes of the one you love. We are all unique creatures. You are unique, and you are biochemically unique. Of course you know that but sometimes we tend to forget it, especially after being offered just one option for the treatment of your depression - the same option given to the person sitting next to you in the doctor's waiting room. You get treated the same as the next person when it comes to depression and that's why so many people stay depressed. It doesn't have to be that way anymore!

Maybe you know someone that has come through the other side of depression, finding a therapy or supplement that has been an absolute God-send for them. But now they are telling everyone, including you, that you should do what they did too. There's no doubting their motives and desire to help others, it's absolutely fantastic. But what happens when the thing that helped them, doesn't help you? What do you do then? Where do you turn? That's why I've put all the biochemical causes of depression in one place - to give you options - options for resolving your depression based on your biochemical uniqueness.

Let me ask you a powerful question for finding out the trigger of your depression.

'Looking back, when did you experience the first signs of depression? What age were you? What was going on in your life? Menopause, male menopause (yes male menopause exists- it's known as andropause!), pregnancy, a stressful event, or would you say you've had it all of your life?

The reason that asking this question is so important is that it can help reveal some of the triggers of depression, especially whether there are any hormonal triggers. For example, if women experience their first bout of depression during their forties, it is highly likely that the hormonal imbalances, brought on by menopause (or peri-menopause), is the cause. The same goes for men in their forties, fifties, and sixties - they may also be suffering from a hormonal imbalance. As men age their testosterone levels decrease, and when testosterone is too low men can experience depression. If women experience depression after the birth of a child, it can also indicate hormonal imbalances, in addition to essential fatty acid deficiencies.

If you've had depressive feelings from a very young age it can indicate that there may be either a genetic weakness (that you can compensate for), been exposed to a toxin early on in life, or had a hormonal or nutrient deficiency from early on.

It is known that stressful events are the most powerful risk factors for depression. Stress is powerful. It weakens the body's adrenal glands. The role of the adrenal glands is to respond to and deal with stress. When the adrenal glands get wound up or worn out depression can result. There are powerful herbs, supplements, and medications that can feed and fix the adrenal glands. This can resolve and eliminate fatigue and depression. There's also a biochemical imbalance that people with depression often have which means they don't deal with stress well. This biochemical imbalance seems to run in families too. If your depression started after a stressful event in your life, or stress triggers relapses for you, it's possible that this biochemical imbalance or hormonal imbalances involving your adrenal glands are involved in your depression.

Let's now discuss the last key for finding an effective treatment to stop depression affecting you. The key is to make sure that the treatment you choose, specifically addresses the cause of your depression. This might sound obvious- but if it is, then why does everyone get the same (or similar) treatment for depression?

Let me show you another way to look at this. Let's take a look at a car that has stopped working. What do you do? Do you automatically go and full up the gasoline tank? No of course you wouldn't. You would check the fuel gauge first and only put gasoline in if the car needed it. You wouldn't go topping up the water and oil to try to 'fix' the car if it had a flat tire would you? No, you would change the tire.

So why with depression does everyone get the same treatment? Why does everyone get antidepressant medications and counseling when they may need their 'oil topped up', may need their 'spark plugs cleaned' or may need a 'nail removed from their tire and the tire repaired'?

As I revealed above, depression may be caused by nutrient deficiencies, hormonal imbalances, toxic overload or food sensitivities. It's therefore logical that if your depression is caused by a nutrient deficiency, that you treat the depression with a supplement that contains that nutrient. The same goes for hormonal deficiencies. Like for women that have suffered from depression during the 10 years before menopause, their depression can be lifted by using the right hormonal treatments. It's powerful stuff! I've seen studies involving women with major depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, and minor depressive disorder, and 68% have their depression go into remission (i.e. their depression is 'cured').

The same sort of strategy goes for toxic overload and food sensitivities or allergies. In contrast however, rather than giving the body what it needs, you remove what is detrimental to the body. If you remove the toxin that is negatively affecting the body and brain, the healing process is able to begin. Likewise with food allergies and sensitivities, if you remove that food that affects you from your diet, your immune system, brain and moods can normalize.

Wouldn't you agree that these are pretty simple strategies when you know what you're looking for? Believe me, they are really effective too.

I trust this information has been helpful. If you or a loved one is suffering from depression, make sure that you investigate a physical or biochemical cause. Also realize that the treatment you need to help resolve your depression may be different from others, and make sure the treatment you choose specifically addresses the cause of your depression. It's definitely the best way I know to find an effective treatment for depression and stop depression ruining your life.