HERE’S SOME DEPRESSING RECENT medical news: Antidepressants don’t work. What’s even more depressing is that the pharmaceutical industry and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have deliberately deceived us into believing that they DO work. As a physician, this is frightening to me. Depression is among the most common problems seen in primary-care medicine and soon will be the second leading cause of disability in this country.
The study I’m talking about was published in The New England Journal of Medicine. It found that drug companies selectively publish studies on antidepressants. They have published nearly all the studies that show benefit — but almost none of the studies that show these drugs are ineffective. (1)
That warps our view of antidepressants, leading us to think that they do work. And it has fueled the tremendous growth in the use of psychiatric medications, which are now the second leading class of drugs sold, after cholesterol-lowering drugs.
The problem is even worse than it sounds, because the positive studies hardly showed benefit in the first place. For example, 40 percent of people taking a placebo (sugar pill) got better, while only 60 percent taking the actual drug had improvement in their symptoms. Looking at it another way, 80 percent of people get better with just a placebo.
That leaves us with a big problem — millions of depressed people with no effective treatments being offered by most conventional practitioners. However, there are treatments available. Functional medicine provides a unique and effective way to treat depression and other psychological problems. Today I will review seven steps you can take to work through your depression without drugs. But before we get to that, let’s take a closer look at depression.
What’s in a Name?
“Depression” is simply a label we give to people who have a depressed mood most of the time, have lost interest or pleasure in most activities, are fatigued, can’t sleep, have no interest in sex, feel hopeless and helpless, can’t think clearly, or can’t make decisions.
But that label tells us NOTHING about the cause of those symptoms. In fact, there are dozens of causes of depression — each one needing a different approach to treatment. Depression is not one-size-fits-all, but it is very common.
Women have a 10 to 25 percent risk and men a five to 12 percent risk of developing severe major depression in their lifetime. (2) One in ten Americans takes an antidepressant. The use of these drugs has tripled in the last decade, according to a report by the federal government. In 2006, spending on antidepressants soared by 130 percent.
But just because antidepressants are popular doesn’t mean they’re helpful. Unfortunately, as we now see from this report in The New England Journal of Medicine, they don’t work and have significant side effects. Most patients taking antidepressants either don’t respond or have only partial response. In fact, success is considered just a 50 percent improvement in half of depressive symptoms. And this minimal result is achieved in less than half the patients taking antidepressants.
Food allergies cause inflammation, and studies now show inflammation in the brains of depressed people.
That’s a pretty dismal record. It’s only made worse by the fact that 86 percent of people taking antidepressants have one or more side effects, including sexual dysfunction, fatigue, insomnia, loss of mental abilities, nausea, and weight gain.
No wonder half the people who try antidepressants quit after four months.
Now I want to talk to you about the reasons why doctors and patients have been deceived by the “antidepressant hoax.” Despite what we have been brainwashed to believe, depression is not a Prozac deficiency!
How We have Been Deceived by the Antidepressant Hoax
Drug companies are not forced to publish all the results of their studies. They only publish those they want to. The team of researchers that reported their findings in The New England Journal of Medicine took a critical look at all the studies done on antidepressants, both published and unpublished. They dug up some serious dirt …
The unpublished studies were not easy to find. The researchers had to search the FDA databases, call researchers, and hunt down hidden data under the Freedom of Information Act. What they found was stunning.
After looking at 74 studies involving 12 drugs and over 12,000 people, they discovered that 37 of 38 trials with positive results were published, while only 14 of 36 negative studies were published. Those that showed negative results were, in the words of the researchers, “published in a way that conveyed a positive outcome.”
That means the results were twisted to imply the drugs worked when they didn’t.
This isn’t just a problem with antidepressants. It’s a problem with scientific research. Some drug companies even pay or threaten scientists to not publish negative results on their drugs. So much for “evidence-based” medicine! I recently had dinner with a step-uncle who runs a company that designs research for drug companies. He designs the study, hires the researcher from an esteemed institution, directs the study, writes up the study and the scientist just signs his or her name after reviewing it.
Most of the time, we only have the evidence that the drug companies want us to have. Both doctors and patients are deceived into putting billions of dollars into drug companies’ pockets, while leaving millions with the same health problems but less money.
The scientific trust is broken. What can we do? Unfortunately, there is no easy answer. But I do think functional medicine, on which my approach of UltraWellness is based, provides a more intelligent way of understanding the research. Rather than using drugs to suppress symptoms, Functional Medicine helps us find the true causes of problems, including depression.
I see this in so many of the patients I have treated over the years. Just as the same things that make us sick also make us fat, the same things that make us sick also make us depressed. Fix the causes of sickness — and the depression takes care of itself.
Taking antidepressants is not the answer to our looming mental health epidemic. The real cure lies in rebalancing the underlying systems in your body, at the root of all healthy and illness.
Consider a few cases from my practice …
A 23-year-old had been anxious and depressed most of her life and spent her childhood and adolescence on various cocktails of antidepressants. Turns out, she suffered from food allergies that made her depressed.
Food allergies cause inflammation, and studies now show inflammation in the brains of depressed people. In fact, researchers are studying powerful anti-inflammatory drugs used in autoimmune disease such as Enbrel for the treatment of depression.
After she eliminated her IgG or delayed food allergies, her depression went away, she got off her medication — and she lost 30 pounds as a side effect!
Here’s another story … A 37-year-old executive woman struggled for more than a decade with treatment-resistant depression (meaning that drugs didn’t work), fatigue, and a 40-pound weight gain. We found she had very high levels of mercury. Getting the mercury out of her body left her happy, thin, and full of energy.
Or consider the 49-year-old man with severe lifelong depression who had been on a cocktail of antidepressants and psychiatric medication for years but still lived under a dark cloud every day, without relief. We found he had severe deficiencies of vitamin B12, B6, and folate. After we gave him back those essential brain nutrients, he called me to thank me. Last year was the first year he could remember feeling happy and free of depression.
These are just a few of the dozens of things that can cause depression.
The roots of depression are found in the 7 keys to UltraWelless and the 7 fundamental underlying imbalances that trigger the body to malfunction. Taking antidepressants is not the answer to our looming mental health epidemic. The real cure lies in rebalancing the underlying systems in your body that are at the root of all healthy and illness.
Here are a few things you can do to start treating your depression today.
7 Steps to Treat Depression without Drugs
- Try an anti-inflammatory elimination diet that gets rid of common food allergens. As I mentioned above, food allergies and the resultant inflammation have been connected with depression and other mood disorders.
- Check for hypothyroidism. This unrecognized epidemic is a leading cause of depression. Make sure to have thorough thyroid exam if you are depressed.
- Take vitamin D. Deficiency in this essential vitamin can lead to depression. Supplement with at least 2,000 to 5,000 IU of vitamin D3 a day.
- Take omega-3 fats. Your brain is made of up this fat, and deficiency can lead to a host of problems. Supplement with 1,000 to 2,000 mg of purified fish oil a day.
- Take adequate B12 (1,000 micrograms, or mcg, a day), B6 (25 mg) and folic acid (800 mcg). These vitamins are critical for metabolizing homocysteine, which can play a factor in depression.
- Get checked for mercury. Heavy metal toxicity has been correlated with depression and other mood and neurological problems.
- Exercise vigorously five times a week for 30 minutes. This increases levels of BDNF, a natural antidepressant in your brain.
Overcoming depression is an important step toward lifelong vibrant health. These are just of few of the easiest and most effective things you can do to treat depression. But there are even more, which you can address by simply working through the 7 Keys to UltraWellness.
Now I’d like to hear from you…
Have you been diagnosed with depression?
How have antidepressants worked for you?
Do you plan to try any of the approaches mentioned here?
Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
References
(1) Turner EH et al. 2007. Selective publication of antidepressant trials and its influence on apparent efficacy. New England Journal of Medicine. 358: 252-260.
(2) Eaton WW, Kalaydjian A, Scharfstein DO, Mezuk B, Ding Y. 2007. Prevalence and incidence of depressive disorder: the Baltimore ECA follow-up, 1981-2004. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 116(3):182-188.
Thank you, James, for your message and your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. Your question and constellation of symptoms represents a complex medical condition. Questions regarding conditions like these cannot be answered in a responsible manner via the Internet.
If you would like information on becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center please see “How to Become a Patient” at http://www.ultrawellnesscenter.com. That site is designed to give prospective patients a comprehensive source of information about The UltraWellness Center. You may also feel free to call The UltraWellness Center at (413) 637 9991.
Regardless of becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center, it sounds like you need to consult with a doctor. Please seek medical attention for the issues that you outlined in your message.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Thank you, Gail, for your message and your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. Your question and constellation of symptoms represents a complex medical condition. Questions regarding conditions like these cannot be answered in a responsible manner via the Internet.
If you would like information on becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center please see “How to Become a Patient” at http://www.ultrawellnesscenter.com. That site is designed to give prospective patients a comprehensive source of information about The UltraWellness Center. You may also feel free to call The UltraWellness Center at (413) 637 9991.
Regardless of becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center, it sounds like you need to consult with a doctor. Please seek medical attention for the issues that you outlined in your message.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Thank you, Alison, for your message and your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. Your question and constellation of symptoms represents a complex medical condition. Questions regarding conditions like these cannot be answered in a responsible manner via the Internet.
If you would like information on becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center please see “How to Become a Patient” at http://www.ultrawellnesscenter.com. That site is designed to give prospective patients a comprehensive source of information about The UltraWellness Center. You may also feel free to call The UltraWellness Center at (413) 637 9991.
Regardless of becoming a patient at The UltraWellness Center, it sounds like you need to consult with a doctor. Please seek medical attention for the issues that you outlined in your message.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Thank you, Tara, for your message and your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. To locate a practitioner of functional medicine in your area see the “Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner” link at the Institute of Functional Medicine’s website. Here you will find a place to enter your zip code and look for practitioner’s in your area that have completed the institute’s five-day training course in functional medicine. Understand that not all of the doctors listed here will fit your particular needs. Many different medical professionals complete this training, and you will have to do additional research on your own regarding a particular practitioner’s approach and whether or not it fits your specific medical requirements. This may include calling the practioner’s office, visiting his or her website, and/or scheduling a consultation.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Not only do drugs for depression not work…they can kill. My 15yr. old granddaughter was put on first one and then another and another antidepressant, as they attempted to treat her deperssion with samples given by her Dr. rather than nutrition and counseling. Her depression as it turns out, was brought on by an encounter with a pedophile when she was fourteen. No one knew until just before she took her own life. My daughter was never given any information on the dangers of these “Big money making ” drugs. I will never understand how the people responsible for these “lies for gold” can sleep at night. Where are all the decent people??? Are none of them in the FOOD, FARMING & DRUG business??Don’t they go home at night to families they treasure & want to keep safe from the terrible things they are doing & promoting for profit.
To lose a child is always shattering, but to lose one due to many forms of evil leaves one with a life long struggle to keep grief, anger and bitterness at bay.
They worked for me after I became depressed caring for a loved one with a chronic illness and then his catastrophic death by suicide. They (anti-depressants) were the scaffold that held me upright until I could gather enough of my own strength to get out of bed. Following the list of suggestions would have been great but I didn’t have my own 24 hour caregiver to help me eat the right foods and supplements and exercising vigorously for 30 minutes is laughable when walking the dog was overwhelming.
In this article you recommend “B6 (25 mg)” but I couldn’t find anything less than 200 mg. Is this a type-o?
Thank you
Until a few months ago, I was on a daily “cocktail” of welbutrin, prozac, and lamotragine. I was diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome and clinical depression in August of 2004. I have been on a myriad of antidepressant drug combinations, none of which worked. As of April of this year, I went “cold turkey” and took myself off all these meds. Instead, I am now taking omega 3 oil, 2,000 mg, vitamin D, vitamin E, turmeric, cinnamon,and a pro biotic. I began this regimen 2 months prior to stopping the prescription meds.
I have taken most dairy and all white sugar and flour from my diet. While I am loosing weight and feeling much better in some aspects, I am experiencing joint pain, periods of numbness in hands and/or feet and interrupted sleep. These symptoms have just begun to show themselves. My GP is pro pharma and doesn’t condone holistic or natural healing. I don’t have an alternative meds doc to turn to so I am my own experiment.
I was officially diagnosed with depression when I was 16. Three years later of being on Zoloft, I still do not believe the medication is benefiting me in any way. Until now, I didn’t think it was anything else but my own inability to get better. Also, I was diagnosed with PCOS less than a year ago, and finding more about having polycystic ovaries has seemed to cause a greater depression that I can’t seem to get a grip on. I’ve had my thyroid tested many times just in the past year, which have all returned as normal. However, I do plan to ask my physician about mercury testing the next time I make an appointment, and I will look in to finding vitamin supplements to substitute my antidepressant. As far as I know, I have no food allergies, and I do plan to begin an exercise routine step-by-step. Thank you for sharing this; it has opened my eyes and I am glad I’m not the only person who feels antidepressants have not been a beneficial treatment.
I have found that the supplement 5-HTP has helped with my mood and with getting better sleep. i take 50mg in the morning and noticed a difference the first day. those adverse to anti-depressant drugs might want to try this supplement. it’s derived from the seeds of an african plant. i have heard that you need to stay in the 50-100mg/day range, taking too much can cause problems.
definitely agree that adequate vitamin D and B vitamins and omega oils are important as well. taking care of stress in general through a healthy balanced diet, good supplements, exercise, and relaxation is essential to health and well being.
Doctors in not knowing what to do with me. I had inflammation of the entire digestive tape. Anaphylactic OKE. I do not want to do blood tests for allergies. Skin Sat buil negative. I was more destroyed each be unloaded and without power. Four years I was given antidepressants. I had a feeling that I experienced an attack of hysteria.
Half a year ago has been confirmed by an autoimmune disease – I have primary biliary cirrhosis. I threatened that I will be gone from the EU to let you know if your doctor does not do allergy tests on blood. Since May 2011 I have a confirmed allergy to all cereals (not gluten), all of animal origin (eggs, milk, meat,…), soy, nuts, yeast, seeds, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and much more.
My fatigue was gone in three days. Stop the passage of feces. Pain in the gut have disappeared.
Now we discover the consequences of erroneous diagnoses and treated. Liver is not able to heal. For liver transplantation do not know if I chose.
All that I made with your help dr. Hyman – what I learned from you, through your articles and publications. THANK YOU.
I mostly agree, however, I have direct personal experience with SSRIs working very well. I’ve had three major depression events in my life, triggered by demating/divorce. The first lasted 4 years unmedicated in spite of massive exercise and careful eating. The second, I sought medication after 3 months of dithering and got better after one month. The third I recognized quickly (inside one month) and got better inside of one week.
Perhaps SSRIs do not work on all brain chemistries, and I very much doubt they can work on long-standing depression (over 6 months) because brain chemistry is altered. They probably do not work without stressor reduction. But they certainly gave me some breathing room to think straight rather than in downward spirals. This I know. The chemical effects are different, but as recognizable as caffeine, sugar or alcohol.
15yr user Zoloft. Today moderate/severe Alzheimers. 65 yr old female from Short Hills NJ. Also today, undiagnosed small intestine severe pain.
After 2years no positive outcome from many doctors
Should I give up hope
Linda
These suggestions are wonderful, but it takes time to find a physician who will do the appropriate tests and then wait for the results. In the mean time, there is a wonderful herbal supplement that can be purchased from any health food store. It is called 5-HTP. Unlike St. John’s wort or pharmaceutical SSRIs, 5-HTP works quickly and without side effects by enhancing the body’s production of serotonin. It helps with both depression and insomnia. This supplement is used widely in Europe but seems to be almost unknown among American physicians.
I have done the things that Dr. Hyman suggests — mercury chelation, whole foods diet, exercise, etc. — but still have some difficulty with depression because of the after-effects of chronic Lyme disease (which from which I recovered using herbs, not antibiotics), including fibromyalgia and insomnia. 5-HTP is a lifesaver for me. But I have to fight for the right to stay off pharmaceutical anti-depressants. Recently I went to a psychologist who is associated with an “integrative” health practice, in the hope that he would not push drugs. But he was like the rest of them! I resisted, but it meant sometimes not revealing my most negative emotions. This prevented me from developing the kind of trusting relationship that is necessary to success in psychotherapy.
..have been on amitryptaline(elavil) for about 15 yrs. 50 mg. at bedtime.
was diagnosed with high anxiety issues and depression, also have hypothyroidism
for same amount of time. you state that anti-depression meds don’t help…but I can
tell you from experience that without it I couldn’t sleep,concentrate or function
normally. always sweating, fear of being alone etc. Now I sleep like a dead
person every night and all the other problems have dis-appeared..I would love to
know how to get off of it and live without it, but if I do slip up and miss a dose
I am groggy and fatigued all the next day till I can do next dose and sleep a good
nights sleep. ….any suggestions?
what food allergies would you say I have?….
“Have you been diagnosed with depression?”
Yes.
“How have antidepressants worked for you?”
I have tried several. mostly SSRI’s and bupropion. They helped with the dysthymia, but the SSRI’s had side effects that I did not care for, mostly drowsiness and loss of libido.
I am currently getting very good results with tianeptine, which is unfortunately not FDA approved.
“Do you plan to try any of the approaches mentioned here?”
I have tried items 2-7 and while some of them are good ideas for healthy living, they did absolutely nothing to help my depression.
It is indeed unfortunate that most practitioners of traditional psychiatry ignore the influence of diet and the potential value of vitamins and nutritional supplements in treating mood disorders.
However, it is also unfortunate that advocates of “alternative” treatments seem to feel the need to dismiss all anti-depressant medications, the regulatory agencies that approve them, the companies that manufacture them and the physicians who prescribe them. Yes, in our capitalist system they are motivated by the desire to make as much money as possible for their shareholders, and this needs to be taken into account by consumers of their products when they are evaluating their recommendations for treatment. But it does not necessarily follow that the treatments are of no value for anyone.
Dr. Hyman, if it’s such a deception for drug companies to publish only the studies that indicate their products are effective, why in your list of “cases from my practice” anecdotes do you not include any where the patient didn’t improve drastically from your approach? Are you claiming a 100% success rate?
Don´t forget to make a test for Bornavirus, an agent which is involved in depression.
See FAQs:
1
FAQs on Human Borna Disease Virus Infection
for medical practitioners (family physicians, psychiatrists, pediatricians) and patients
by Dr. Hanns Ludwig
Professor of Virology at the Free University of Berlin, a University of Excellence
What are Bornaviruses?
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They are small, coated RNA viruses that infect preferentially brain-, but also blood cells, and are genetically related to measles and rabies viruses.
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They have been found in many countries, globally, and comprise a separate family of viruses (Bornaviridae).
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BDV (Borna disease virus) is persistently present in humans and many other mammals, and the recently discovered ABV (avian Bornavirus) infects exotic birds.
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They have zoonotic potential, i.e., transmission to humans from infected pets or other domestic animals, such as horses, cats or dogs, is possible but not usual.
What is different about Bornaviruses?
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In evolutionary terms they are among the oldest viruses, reproducing in the host cell nucleus (the only negative-strand RNA viruses to do so), and have been finding their way into our and our ancestors’ genetic material for at least 40 million years.
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They remain in the infected organism throughout their lifespan (no cell destruction).
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They primarily attack the older portion of the brain (the limbic system) and contribute to behavioral and mood alteration (it can be assumed that viral proteins disturb the neurotransmitter equilibrium).
How dangerous are Bornaviruses to human health?
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They are found in about one third (30%) of the adult population (as documented in Germany and Australia). In children the prevalence is about twice as high.
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Most of those infected (>80%) show no symptoms.
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Every sixth person infected (16-17%) has an increased risk of developing some form of mental illness during the course of his or her life. As a proportion of the overall population, one in twenty (5 out of every 100 persons, or 5%) is at increased risk of becoming ill.
What medical conditions are associated with a significantly higher rate of active Bornavirus infection than in the general population?
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Acute depressive episodes (uni- and bipolar), in 80-90% of patients.
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Chronic obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD), in at least 50-60% of patients.
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Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS/ME), in at least 40% of patients.
What symptoms are common to the majority of these patients?
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Cognitive deficits, bradylogia (abnormally slow speech).
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Reduced intellectual capability.
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Attention and concentration deficits (especially among children and young adults).
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Memory loss (not age-related).
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Learning disabilities (especially among children and young adults).
Copyright Prof. Hanns Ludwig. Berlin, 11.08.2010
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How can a Bornavirus infection be diagnosed?
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From a small blood sample (5 -10 ml citrated blood or serum, children 1 ml) using special assays (ELISA formats). May be transported without refrigeration.
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A screening test measures Bornavirus-specific circulating immune complexes (CICs) consisting of viral proteins and the patient’s antibodies, detectable only once the virus has replicated.
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In the case of an acute illness, it is necessary also to test for the viral proteins (antigens) that together with the CICs signal an acute episode of viral activation.
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The presence of antibodies is not an indication of viral activity. A negative antibody test does not rule out the possibility of infection.
Where can blood be tested for Borna virus infection?
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Accredited medical laboratory: DIAMEDIS, Virus Diagnostics, Dunlopstr. 50,
D-33689 Bielefeld-Sennestadt. http://www.diamedis.com Tel. +49 5205-7299-0
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Consulting service: Prof. Hanns Ludwig, cell +49 171 754 2997; hanns.ludwig@web.de
Is there a therapeutic option for patients diagnosed with a BDV infection?
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Yes, a drug that has been approved for the past 40 years for treatment of the influenza A virus (active ingredient: amantadine sulphate) has been shown both in vitro and in clinical studies to be highly effective against natural Bornaviruses (till now, off-label use).
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Amantadine sulphate (AS) is a virostatic agent. It inhibits virus replication and thereby the formation of harmful viral proteins.
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The majority (70 to 80%) of infected acute depressive patients derive a long-term benefit in the form of reduced symptoms (study results) in parallel with the disappearance of viral markers in the blood.
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AS can be prescribed as an add-on medication to antidepressants (no undesirable interactions).
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Dose level: 2-4 mg AS orally per day per kg of body weight. A patient weighing
75 kg would thus take 150 to 300 mg of AS daily. Initial dose of 1 mg AS per kg
of body weight for the first three or four days.
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Dosing interval: 1-1-0 or 1-0-0.
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Treatment duration: normally 3 months; clinical improvement to be expected in the first month (laboratory testing of the blood markers adviced).
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Tolerance: very well tolerated within the dosage range indicated. During the first week some restlessness and sleep disturbances are possible (in which case the dosing interval should be 1-0-0).
Which patients can expect to benefit from antiviral therapy?
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In principle all patients who have been diagnosed with BDV infection and mental disturbances (but not dementia):
o
In uni-/bipolar patients who have developed a tolerance for
antidepressants
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In patients with obsessive-compulsive or anxiety disorders, such as ADHD
o
In patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS/ME)
o
In patients with chronic-stress-induced cognitive deficits
How often should therapeutic drug monitoring be carried out?
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Optional after 6 weeks of therapy, in order to adjust the dosage if necessary.
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Obligatory after 12 weeks of standard therapy or before discontinuing medication.
Copyright Prof. Hanns Ludwig. Berlin, 11.08.2010
Copyright Prof. Hanns Ludwig. Berlin, 11.08.2010
3
What risk factors predispose to an activation of Bornavirus infection?
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Significant risk: chronic stress, which weakens the immune system over time and allows dormant Bornaviruses to become active:
o
Chronic stress can be brought about by a systematically over- or underdemanding work life, psychosocial stressors (unresolved conflicts, loss of close friends or relatives) and poor coping strategies.
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A weakened immune system, whether medically induced (by corticosteroid therapy, for example) or as a result or illness, likewise increases the risk of virus activation:
o
At particular risk are adult oncology patients and children with leukemia, and patients with auto-immune diseases.
What preventive strategies could be put in place to combat Bornaviruses?
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Infection not easily prevented because
o
transmission occurs early and unnoticed (generally vertical, intrauterine or perinatal; sometimes horizontally through nasal secretions and probably saliva)
o
the prevalence of symptom-free carriers is relatively high (30% among adults, 60% in children on average).
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Disease quite preventable because
o
increased risk is testable from blood samples (high CIC values are an indicator)
o
prophylactic antiviral therapy is a short-term (4 weeks) option for patients in long-term care, and also for stressed healthy persons
I am greatful for this info to be posted. As I will religously follow these suggestions. I have suffered from gut issues and depression for years. I take Same supplement, for the last 5 years, 3 or 4 tablets of 200mg daily in separate doses. It is a natural antidepressant. Expensive. Though worth it. I have contemplated using regular antidepressant pharmaceuticals, I had a perscription but the first day I took it I was so dizzy I couldn’t walk straight, so there has got to be something wrong with the meds! I quit that. It is scary how it sounds like most of the sideeffects of antidepressants are characterized by effects that would seem to match the symptoms of being depressed! So then a person must get confused, what is them and what is the drug?! We need to be educated on how to treat our bodies in a safe and natural manner. Thanks for this info.
I completely agree with Karen S.Antidepressants do work well for many folks, myself among them.When you are alone and so unwell the task of getting out of bed and taking a shower is monumental let alone doing all the things recommended here.The medication can help you get well enough to implement them.I have been able to go off medication using natural methods but it is difficult.I did this with the help of a psychiatrist .Mental health issues are not toenail fungus and to tell vulnerable people their medication doesn’t work when they are getting better makes them doubt themselves and those trying to help them or live with them.Think about a mother with postpartum reading this going off her medication and then killing her infant and or herself. PLEASE think about what you say and how you say it.There is the ideal and then the reality of life for many folks.We are not talking about being sad here.I would not be here without the drugs.I love what you do so much but this seems out of harmony .
I have been searching for answers for the last few years. I finally found them! Thank you. I know part of my depression is situational, went through major trauma when I was 18, car wreck that killed my friend and me, but the emt’s and Dr.’s were able to bring me back. Chronic pain from major injuries and guilt since I was driving. But, it has been 13 years, 5 years ago I got really depressed..had gotten better since the wreck, then got really really bad. Dr. Tried several different AD’s on me and they all made me feel suicidal when I never was to begin with…and the Dr.’s keep pushing more on me.. I keep telling them no, but they keep trying. I just want to feel normal again. I did have a bad head injury too, in the top right front of my head and I have been getting these severe headaches in that spot in the last 3 years too. No Dr. Seems to want to help me…which is making me feel helpless and depressed. I’m to the point where I don’t know what to do anymore and am researching things myself. But when I go to a doctor with my conclusions, they act like I am making things up and don’t know what I am talking about because “they are the doctor” and I am just the stupid ignorant patient.
Dr. Hyman,
I do not have strong opinions about antidepressants, but I was experiencing chronic brain fog, and low eneregy. I bought your book, “The Ultramind Solution”, which had this same quote regarding antidepressant medications making it difficult at times to trust the other information in the book or your website: “The problem is even worse than it sounds, because the positive studies hardly showed benefit in the first place. For example, 40 percent of people taking a placebo (sugar pill) got better, while only 60 percent taking the actual drug had improvement in their symptoms. Looking at it another way, 80 percent of people get better with just a placebo.”. Actually, only 40% improved with placebo in this example. This error in interpretation by a physician looks like a case of interpreting what one wants to see rather than what is really in the data. I think you have a lot of relevant and important information. Will you please explain this interpretaion or post a correction? It would help me and my friends and colleagues gauge the other claims in your material.
Best regards,
Margaret Lampe
Dr.Hyman,
Do you know of any insurance carrier that covers any of the tests mentioned or of your treatment in general?
WBB
Are you kidding me? My mothers side has mental disorders. The eldest has bipolar and became a Pschyiatrist in Marco Island. Another from the family became a criminal, another a heavy drug user that o.d. another sister with sczheoprenia…. um, I watched my own mother sleep for 10 yrs….. My dad has terrible mood swings….. My parents eat clean food, including fresh water fish. Nutrition doesnt cure mental illness. My doctore is buying into your fine salesmenship- I bought your books. Your recipes are like reading a foreign language,. Of course if people eat clean and lose fat they will be healthy, um, that is not new news. of course people will have less problems….. That is why u r getting the results…. people are doing the nutrition and excersizing- which releases endorphins-as u know… hence people will feel better. Have u gone back 5 yrs later to see how they r doing? I personally had to go on prozac age 28. I am 46. I have gone on and off for years- and come back to it. If i dont take it, I have break downs literally– At age 28 I was a runner and shopped at whole food places…… Recently, my doc misdiagnosed me, thought I had the flu for 4 months. Thank God for experts at the UofM, who got me real medicine to cure my ailment. pooping 14 times a day wasnt being arrested by probitics and a diet change. Hereditary and Genetics are real. Diseases are real. U got a good game going………. u r making money off of the public because everyone buys into some new thing about how to lose weight and cure themselves of ailments. Where is your scientific evidence? I would love to review it myself. U say follow the money for pharmecuticals etc…. lets follow your money. What r u, the great doctor doing to help? what r u reinvesting your earnings with to back your new science? because u say scientific research is bunk…. u have discredited all sources. I hope people have enuf common sense to go to real doctors. I am not happy with your philosophy. You are infecting my doctors mind with your nonsense and I am not getting the proper medical care I deserve.
I have sent some notes to you- i am sure u r too busy to respond…but if u come across them….that would be nice…. I am a believer in Modern Medicine. I have concerns about this Functional Medicine philosophy….. Only my opinion… Medications have improved the quality of my life. Along with the vit. regimen, diet and exercise ( the basics ) one is bound to have a better quality of life. So I dont understand how ppl r thinkin this is news…..I will keep an open mind. I have all your books… Not convinced tho. (yet)….. def. a skeptic….. glad ppl r heeding to the advice of the basics. thank u
i have been dianoigsed with GAD and depression. i have been on multiple anti-depressants and all they do is give me a tremendous amount of pressure in my head. i was on one and it gave me suicidle thoughts. they do relieve alittle of the anxiety, but still need to take xanax. i have been charting my basel temp, it doesnt get above 96.9, all day i stay around 97.4 or so. i noitced that my outter eyebrows are almost gone. i have high colesterol and tri’s, i am always tired and have no drive. i have a very lo libido. i have almost no short term memory. i am scared to make a decision about anything. my TSH ie a 2.5. does anybody have any suggestions.
Thank you, Linda, for your message and your interest in Dr. Hyman’s work. To locate a practitioner of functional medicine in your area see the “Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner” link at the Institute of Functional Medicine’s website. Here you will find a place to enter your zip code and look for practitioner’s in your area that have completed the institute’s five-day training course in functional medicine. Understand that not all of the doctors listed here will fit your particular needs. Many different medical professionals complete this training, and you will have to do additional research on your own regarding a particular practitioner’s approach and whether or not it fits your specific medical requirements. This may include calling the practioner’s office, visiting his or her website, and/or scheduling a consultation.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Hi Martha, we thank you for you comments and interest in Dr. Hyman’s website. We cannot provide medical advise over the Internet. You may want to consider seeing a functional practitioner for assistance, please refer to: http://www.functionalmedicine.org/findfmphysician/index.asp.
Wishing You the Best of Health!
Until December 2010, I’d been on various different antidepressants for almost 10 years….but I weaned off of them and started taking amino acids instead….and I’ve been surprised at the difference, on the antidepressants, I was basically numb…not “depressed” but I realize now, looking back, that I was just numb and felt very little….so while I do still sometimes have “the blues,” I am feeling again…and I’m now starting the UltraMind program (prep week this week) to see how changing my diet may impact things (I already do supplements including extra B vitamins, D3, and omegas)…I admit to some anxiety about going without sugar for 7 weeks (I know I’m a sugar addict, particularly chocolate) and dairy for 6 weeks, but I’m going to do it and see…interestingly enough, I’m not as anxious about going gluten free, but I have been tested and know that I’m not celiac so I know it won’t be forever and when I cook/prepare my own meals, it’s not too hard for me to avoid gluten (dairy and sugar on the other hand are trickier for me)….
Mark,
While much of what you say is true, it is absolutely not true that on one needs antidepressants. After thirty-five years of clinical experience, twenty of which were at the outpatient psychiatric clinic at Yale-New Have Hospital where I was also an Assistant Clinical Professor of Social Work in Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine, I know that MOST people with a genetically-based illness such as bipolar disorder, recurrent depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and severe anxiety disorder, to mention a few, will need some psychiatric medications for some portion, if not all, of their lives. It is important that doctors like you who are in a position to reach and influence many people stop disseminating this misinformation, based on some questionable studies. There is research that shows that in these kinds of disorders, medication is not only helpful but often necessary. Further, most people with depression, only half of whom receive treatment, are unlikely to follow the expensive and complex protocols you suggest. I commend you for offering alternatives for those who have the time, energy, motivation and resources to try them, but to suggest that medication is only hype from profit-seeking drug companies is absurd. Talk to some of the people whose lives have been saved by medication.
I was diagnosed with depression about a 1 1/2 years ago although I have experienced symptoms to varying degrees throughout my lifetime. I also suspect that, although un-diagnosed, my mother, grandfather and sister have experienced depression also. Although I believe ‘we are what we eat’ at the time of diagnosis I was not paying much attention to my diet. “Citalopram 20mg” was prescribes and it has kept my black moods at bay quite successfully, thankfully without noticible side affects. I’ve never felt that prescriptions were a total solution, so over the past year I also made other changes to my diet with the help of a nutritionalist and increased my excrecise with the goal of terminating the prescription. In short, even though I’ve experiences emotional upsets over the past year, I’ve coped well and I feel stronger and more balanced than any previous time in my life. Now I’m ready to take back control of my wellness. I already take the suppliments you recommend and my diet is very good but I still have an excess of mucus in my system. I was able to reduce it a great deal by eliminating dairy products, but I wonder if this is similar to or even a type of inflamation. Is it something that would benefit from your anti-inflammatory elimination diet? I plan to see my physician about terminating my prescription so finding your website has been very timely. Thank you for being so passionate about a this type of medicine that resonates so clearly with me.
If it sounds too good to be true, it is. I am a very healthy eater, take vitamins, watch my sugar intake and exercise 6 days a week. I wish it were this simple. I’ve tried going off my meds three times in the last 8 years only to enter a dark tunnel where I again turn to meds, and it again helps, and has saved my marriage. This only makes those of us who really need meds and benefit from them feel guily for turning to them. If it were as simple as diet and vitamins I wouldn’t have these problems. And to the person above who said her doctor is now taking this advice and she is now suffering because of it, switch doctors! Depression and anxiety are real. A good diet and healthy living are of course good for you, unfortunately it doesn’t cure many of the things that ail us, including mental disorders.
I can add a number 8 to your list that you seem to have FORGOTTEN. Having a job is very important. FIND A JOB AND KEEP IT. I’m not on SSI, I don’t qualify. I’m not on unemployment, that ran out in Feb 2010. I have no income now. Everything I have is being paid, phone bill, internet. If it wasn’t for my mom, I’d be homeless. That’s right. homeless. I was diagnosed at age 16 with depression due to questioning my sexuality. (the doctors didn’t know this, but that is what was making me so depressed, I was confused). I didn’t start taking an SSRI until I was about 27. I took it for high anxiety levels, not depression. I’ve been on it since 2003. I’ve been chornically unemployed since March 2007 and I have an MBA. I can’t seem to get a job for the life of me and I’ve had 6 interviews this year alone. I went throughout most of my 20′s with no SSRI meds. Now I’m 36 and I know that my brain is “Used to” the SSRI and I know if I stop it, I will probably feel “bad” more days than not. If I get a job, I’d be cured of my depressed feelings and I’d be able to afford a weekly holistic psychologist to help me wing myself off of this drug that I should have NEVER started in the first place. Don’t believe you have to be “happy” everyday. Being happy happy happy every day is not normal. People experience sad moods once in a while and this is normal and healthy.
Dr. Hyman,
I suffer from ‘Medication Resistant Depression’ My psych RN has tweaked a few things here and there, but made no significant changes. She prescribed long acting Ritalin to see if it was ADHD, I was not, though I felt better for about 2 weeks. Since then all she has done is crank the dosage on that. My chiropractor believes that I may have a wheat intolerance, and did a kinesthetic test that showed I have a negative reaction to wheat. He also tried the same method with a supplement called Min-Chex. That showed I had a favorable response. Unfortunately I am a vegetarian and this supplement contains animal organ extracts. What is your opinion of these types of tests, and though I have had most of the tests for Celiac disease, they have come back negative. My psych nurse wants me to try Electro Convulsive Therapy, but I am not convinced that is safe.
Hi. I am a 14 year old diagnosed with MDD and bipolar disorder as of October last year I have been on trileptal and a new medicine. I can’t even name. I have 2 psychiatrists and a counseler that I ocassonally talk to. I’ve been to 2medical institution s in and I attempted suicide twice before. Nothing really dramatic. Happened to me just one day I started feeling horrible. I had already had a low self esteem still to this day no matter what I do. .wrote down eat excercise. Anything I still have restless nights excruciating. Headaches loss of interest indecisive. Can’t do anything. Without panicking. And crying myself to sleep the only reason I can go to school everyday is because of my medication. Otherwise I’d just lay in my bed and stare at my walls stressed out. I used to smoke marijuana. Ti take my mind off things. Like school and everything. Else and from my experience. If it wasn’t for my. Medicine and the sound of my mom drymouthed barely breathing. Trying to explain. To people why I am the way I am with tears in her eyes I’d probably be laying in the ground. Right now
Hi Quiana,
Thank you for sharing your story. We want you to get the best care to restore your health. For local practitioners of functional medicine in your area see the “Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner” link at the Institute of Functional Medicine’s website. Here you will find a place to enter your zip code and look for practitioner’s in your area that have completed the institute’s five-day training course in functional medicine. Understand that not all of the doctors listed here will fit your particular needs. Many different medical professionals complete this training, and you will have to do additional research on your own regarding a particular practitioner’s approach and whether or not it fits your specific medical requirements. This may include calling the practioner’s office, visiting his or her website, and/or scheduling a consultation
In good health
Hello Dale, your message and questions are beyond what we can address over the internet as we cannot give medical advice. We hope you find the right medical advise for your condition. Take good care,
Wishing You the Best of Health!
I have been on paxil for many years. The results have been good, but I would rather treat my depression naturally, however, I have found alternative practitioners to be
extremely expensive. I guess they like to make money just as much as drug companies do.
Sometimes it’s unnecessary for people to be on antidepressants, but to say they don’t work or help people with depression, bipolar disorder, and anxiety disorders is a lie. Many, many people have benefitted from these meds and no longer suffer from their illness because of them. It’s just a matter of finding the right one or right combinations of some. People respond to these meds differently, and what works in one person does not mean it will work in another person. And sometimes the side effects a person has out-weighs any benefit the medication can offer.
The meds are NOT happy pills though. They just help us from being over-whelmed by our illness so that we can feel other emotions and thoughts and not to remain stuck in never-ending torment. They also make it easier to learn the coping stragies so that we can function and cope in life. It’s kinda of hard to do that for people who are so trapped in a negative frame of mind that they are completely unresponsive to such advice or who are unable to implement it. I’ve found that trying to convince people with depression that our emotions and thoughts are wrong isn’t helpful in the least; it only makes us feel worse about ourselves. There’s a point in treatment where we can handle advice about changing that prespective, but it depends on where the person is in the recovery process. The antidepressants speed the process up so that the person is responsive to such therapy.
I’d rather not be on my medications, but I can’t function well without them because eventually I end up stuck in a negative mood and frame of mind again. I guess my brain just doesn’t function right in that regard, and my meds help correct the problem somehow. Even though I’m on meds, my emotions are still my own. I’m not happy all the time. I can still feel sad or down when something warrents it. It’s just that my emotions are flexible again and I can ‘get over it’ whereas before I couldn’t… even though I really wanted to and tried everything to do so.
I tried so hard to overcome my depression without my medications. It’s just that whatever I tried didn’t work. I tried excerise; but I felt worse for not having the energy to do it. I tried changing my diet and adding supplements; neither made a difference in my mood or how I saw things negatively all the time. Meditation gave me more opportunity to dwell on my negative thoughts… because I couldn’t relax or clear my mind.
I had my thyroid gland checked and had the levels of those horomones measured– both were completely normal. Mercury wasn’t an issue and neither was sensitivities to certain foods. I no longer eat the food I’m allergic to. My diet is fine and nutriently complete. (Honestly in theory those sorts of things are supposed to be ruled out before you get diagnosed with a mental illness. That doesn’t always happen though.) My depression just isn’t a symptom of some other disease or a diet problem. It’s a disease in its self.
Saying the meds are not helpful is also dangerous. It can stop people who genuiely need them from considering that treatment option. Most people who have mental illnesses balk and resist the idea of going on medication. We feel shame that we can’t manage or overcome our problems on our own and that we need to rely on a pill. We think we won’t be ourselves, that our meds will control our emotions completely. It does not help when people without these disorders say the exact same thing. It’s only after we get on the right medication(s) that we realize that those ideas are not true, that the meds merely let us be who we are supposed to be.
Yes these meds are over-prescribed to people who don’t need to be on them and yes the drug companies do push them (they are a business after all). Yet many people who are on them are on them for legimate reasons. Our diseases are worse than being on a pill.
Just thought I’d include this perspective given how common it is to hear crap about how these medications are harmful all the time. (I realize this article is pretty mild in comparsion to others though.) Sure these suggestions can help people. That’s why they can be considered treatment options in those with these disorders. Other non-medical suggestions also be helpful… esp. in those with fairly mild depression. Medication is just another option.
Whatever works– it doesn’t matter how the person overcomes these disorders so long as they go into remission. That’s the important thing.
Side note:
I’ve been on Paxil, Prozac, Effexor XR, Lexapro, and Pristiq (in that order… not counting being put back on Effexor XR after Lexapro didn’t work). Only Prozac worked, but dad made me switch antidepressants anyways. I didn’t respond to any of those new medications. Since my first epsiode in middle school, my depression has become treatment-resistant (as in resistant to 2 or more antidepressants) and I had to be put on Lamictal as an adjunct when I relapsed. I’m not bipolar though.
I’m also on Adderal XR for ADHD-PI (that’s the form where inattentiveness is main and sometimes only characteristic). I wasn’t diagnosed with it until high school because 1. it’s often diagnosed late in those who have it (it’s easy to overlook because we’re not really disruptive, hyperactive, or impulsive) and 2. I had to wait until my depression was in remission since depression also causes concentration problems.
Trust me– being on medication is the lesser of two evils!
Have you been diagnosed with depression?
I was diagnosed with ADD, PTSD, and major unipolar clinical depression
As a result of ADD, difficulty in focusing and multitasking, and lack of organization:
family members took it in their own hand to take most of my belongings to the dump, and some to storage ( i having to pay $100 a month). The night this
happend i was traumatized, and fell into a major clinical depression, which i have not overcome since it happened 5 years ago.
I was diagnosed as Add by a psychotherapist, but psychotherapy ( i spoke to several) did not help much. I could not focus on assignments, and felt worse becoming more fixated on what happened as i attempted assignments.
How have antidepressants worked for you?
I participated in an investigational study. The antidepressant ‘savella’ did wonders and i was able to feel better moodwise, focus and better put into practice the assifnments given by a psychotherapist. However, i also suffered side-effects: high blood pressure, high pressure in the eyes, itching/ burning in the feet, pain when urinating . I was weaned off the medicine, and instructed to find a psychiatrist and an antidepressant known to have fewer side-effects.
However, no psychiatrist in my location/ insurance is currently taking patients.
Do you plan to try any of the approaches mentioned here?
I attempted on several occassions alternative treatments, without much success. Each of my attempts , treatment worked for a while, but then required greater and greater amounts to again work. Also, they also had side-effects. John’s Wort caused a rash, and Sam-e produced stomach cramps. I don’t know if 5-htp did anything. good or bad.
I would like to attempt the approaches i have not yet tried.
Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
I have a thought/ question: What research is there on the approaches you recommend, and which approaches would best help me with my problems, and help me to stop thinking about the past, and start to live again?
Have you been diagnosed with depression?
I was diagnosed with ADD, PTSD, and major unipolar clinical depression
As a result of ADD, difficulty in focusing and multitasking, and lack of organization:
family members took it in their own hand to take most of my belongings to the dump, and some to storage ( i having to pay $100 a month). The night this
happend i was traumatized, and fell into a major clinical depression, which i have not overcome since it happened 5 years ago.
I was diagnosed as Add by a psychotherapist, but psychotherapy ( i spoke to several) did not help much. I could not focus on assignments, and felt worse becoming more fixated on what happened as i attempted assignments.
How have antidepressants worked for you?
I participated in an investigational study. The antidepressant ‘savella’ did wonders and i was able to feel better moodwise, focus and better put into practice the assifnments given by a psychotherapist. However, i also suffered side-effects: high blood pressure, high pressure in the eyes, itching/ burning in the feet, pain when urinating . I was weaned off the medicine, and instructed to find a psychiatrist and an antidepressant known to have fewer side-effects.
However, no psychiatrist in my location/ insurance is currently taking patients.
Do you plan to try any of the approaches mentioned here?
I attempted on several occassions alternative treatments, without much success. Each of my attempts , treatment worked for a while, but then required greater and greater amounts to again work. Also, they also had side-effects. John’s Wort caused a rash, and Sam-e produced stomach cramps. I don’t know if 5-htp did anything. good or bad.
I would like to attempt the approaches i have not yet tried.
Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
I have a thought/ question: What research is there on the approaches you recommend, and which approaches would best help me with my problems, and help me to stop thinking about the past, and start to live again?
Hi Cal,
We appreciate your response and are sorry for the pain you have been in. It is definetly a struggle you can help yourself with and we are happy to try and guide you in a new direction. The idea that food lifestyle can improve mental health has been gaining momentum in scientific literature now for some time. Dr. Hyman’s work gets at the root cause of the issue and shows you how the food we are designed to eat contributes to our health and by straying from this intended diet we are depriving ou body from assuming its natural, healthy biology. His book, The UltraMind Solution is a great resource to understand more about the plethora of foods and supplements available to you in a safe, medically sound and researched plan. Check it out: http://www.ultramind.com/
In good health!
Lizzy
Most of us have had times of depression in our lives. I must confess that I have never been so depressed that I sought out traditional medicine for anti-depressants. As there are many causes for depression (no one with depressive symptoms is the same), there are also many natural solutions for helping you get to the other side and see the world through different eyes.
As a holistic medical doctor practicing homeopathic medicine and offering neurofeedback (as a special tool to help with depression, ADD and many other brain problems) to our patients, we are continually looking for resources to help patients with any problem heal. It requires support from your family and community to be willing to try something natural that will not harm you.
Blessings to all those who suffer from depression.
Wanda Bedinghaus, MD