by Mila McManus MD

As I was my first wellness patient, and depression was one of my many issues, I thought it would be appropriate to share my story this month since this newsletter focuses on depression.

I remember feeling depressed when I was in high school, but seemed mostly situational. College years were good, but developed anxiety. Two yrs into medical school, life was rough. I was exhausted and emotional and anxious all the time. I started on antidepressants and boy did it help a lot. I went from a lot of emotion to NO emotion. It helped anxiety as well. I craved carbs terribly and continued to have issues with insomnia which I first noticed in my early teens. I also had issues with terrible allergies, constipation, headaches, PMS, reflux, high blood pressure, unexplained 80 lb weight gain over a 5 year period, and eczema, just to name a few.

OK, so in retrospect, I had severe adrenal fatigue, low thyroid function, I was riddled with yeast, and was nutritionally bankrupt. Keep in mind that my labs were ALWAYS perfectly normal (so it had to be all in my head, right?). Over the years I tried several times to wean my antidepressant to no avail. Of course now I know that it’s because I wasn’t addressing the underlying causes of my depression and anxiety in the first place. Skip ahead to my first year in private practice as a family physician. I’ve now accumulated 12 prescription medications and I’m 30 years old, going on 90. I lived on diet soda and fast food. Nobody taught me in medical school that it wasn’t healthy to eat that way. Seriously!

Thank Goodness I found wellness, which is everything we doctors don’t learn in medical school. I was able to discover that the underlying causes of my depression and anxiety were due to nutritional deficiencies, abnormal gut flora, hormonal imbalance, and having toxic overload. Within 2 weeks of starting bio-identical hormones, changing my diet, and taking a handful of vitamins, I was well on my way to shedding all 12 of my medications. It did take about 6 months, but my antidepressant was the first to go.

I often wonder where I would be today, almost 11 years later, if I had not found wellness. My story is unfortunately a very common one, and I hope reading this story gives you hope. I feel so blessed every day that I get to pay it forward by helping other people overcome what ails them!

Overcoming Depression

Depression is a common disorder. While we all may experience temporary blues or discouraging setbacks in life, when these feelings persist and compromise our daily functioning, it can be a sign of a serious problem. Depression can take a major toll on our lives as well as the lives of those around us.

Depression is much more prevalent today than it was 50 years ago. Ten times more people suffer from major depression today than in 1945. Fifty years ago the average onset of depression was 29 years old and, sadly today, the average onset is just 14.5 years of age! Depression cuts across all ages, genders, every socioeconomic level, and it’s estimated that at least 1 in 10 Americans takes anti-depressant medication.

Symptoms of depression include:

Persistent sad, anxious, or empty feelings
Markedly diminished interest or enjoyment in nearly all activities most of the time
Excessive or inappropriate feelings of guilt, inadequacy, or unworthiness
Irritability and restlessness
Persistent fatigue, sleeplessness, or excessive sleeping
Increase or decrease in appetite
Recurrent suicidal thoughts or attempts
Constant pains, headaches, or stomach problems that do not respond to treatment

Every individual may exhibit different signs and symptoms with varying frequency and severity. If five or more of these symptoms apply to you or someone you know – it could signal depression.

Here is a list of possible reasons a person may be experiencing depression that you may not know about:

Imbalances between abnormal gut bacteria and healthy gut flora
Nutritional deficiencies, especially Vitamin D, B Vitamins, Omega 3’s and Magnesium
Hormonal Imbalances such as estrogen dominance, adrenal fatigue, chronically elevated insulin levels, and functional hypothyroidism.
Hormonal deficiencies including thyroid, DHEA, Estrogen, Progesterone, Cortisol, and Testosterone just to name a few. (Click here to understand why your hormone levels may appear normal on labs despite your symptoms)
Food allergies and sensitivities, such as gluten (wheat products)
Chemical imbalances in the brain and gut (80-90% of the body’s serotonin is made in the intestinal tract if it is healthy!)
Foods and additives including artificial sweeteners, sodium nitrate, monosodium glutamate, Acesulfame-K, some food dyes, aspartame (NutraSweet and Equal), alcohol, sugar, and grains.

The good news is that today we know much more about the underlying causes of depression and here at TWIHW we seek to find and correct the underlying causes of depression rather than band-aiding with antidepressants. Depression is NOT caused by a deficiency of Cymbalta, Zoloft or Wellbutrin. Through targeting the underlying causes of depression, which may be related to dietary habits, vitamin deficiencies, food sensitivities and hormonal imbalances described above, TWIHW helps you to overcome depression and get your health and life back on track. If you or a loved one is suffering from any form of depression, please call 281.298.6742 and ask to speak to a Wellness Consultant.

Click here to read a testimonial from a real patient.

References:

http://www.depressionperception.com/depression/depression-facts-and-statistics.html

http://www.clinical-depression.co.uk/dlp/depression-information/major-depression-facts/

Overcoming Depression Testimonial

Overcoming Depression