Overcoming Depression Naturally. I've Done it. Although I've now overcome depression, I’ve suffered from it for as long as I can remember. While I was a loved child and had many happy memories, there seemed to be a predisposition to depression from the very start. Things were manageable for some time, but in my early twenties some life changes proved to be difficult enough to cause a depressive episode. I moved to Denmark and lived in a small, rural town several hours from Copenhagen. I was studying Danish, with a very small network of friends, most of them non-English speakers. For me, feeling connected to others is a crucial component to feeling good. Living in a foreign country with little connection to my family, good friends, and not enough meaningful work proved to be a bad combination. Not knowing what else to do,I began seeing a psychiatrist. Unfortunately, his approach left me feeling even more depressed than before I came in. He suggested medication, which I refused. However, I was left with very little information about overcoming depression naturally. For the next few years I began trying various natural methods, such as St. John's Wort (which worked well for a while, then suddenly stopped working), and reading everything I could that might help me.
While in Denmark, I noticed that much of the diet advice that I had been conditioned to in the U.S. didn’t seem to apply there. For example, I noticed that they had a relatively high-fat diet, yet the people were overwhelmingly slender and their rates of heart disease were similar, if not lower, than those found in the U.S. I returned to the United States and met a therapist who was very supportive of natural methods of depression treatment, and while working with her, I faced a lot of the painful issues that were contributing to my depression. She also introduced me to
"My favorite oil is Joy. I have used it many times to dispel discouragement and depression. It really does put a song in my heart as I will often spontaneously break out into song while wearing it. I also smell it every night before bed and it gives me sweet sleep." --Trudie Crawford "My work is with women after childbirth. When added the basic depression protocol which uses valor, harmony, joy and white angelica oil blends to my care for women who were slipping into depression but not yet on meds, I find they are able to work with the other needed measures more clearly, their spirits change in MINUTES, and of course they LOVE the oils. I always carry them with me for client work. Some women just need one application, many want their own and use them several times a day or have me use them every time I give their postpartum home spa care program. I have seen dramatic results with the two suicidal clients also who came to me. One was postpartum, the other an older professional artist. " -- Martha Oakes "I have been using essential oils since 1998 and I tried Ylang Ylang when I underwent chemo 5 years ago. It saved me from the depression that women seem more suscepible to while undergoing chemo. I had been given a presciption for an anti-depressant but decided to use Ylang Ylang instead. It was my saving grace and it smells so good!! When I am stressed, I put some in the palm of my hands and inhale. It is one of the very best therapies I know." -- Mary Starnes Click to read about my own recovery from depression using Young Living Essential Oils I returned to school for my master’s degree in education, but I continued to learn about nutrition and natural health. I read Weston A. Price's Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, and as a result, I changed the way I eat, switching to a whole foods diet that included saturated fats from organic, naturally raised animal products. Click here to read more about nutrition for depression. Some of the choices I made included a cod liver oil supplement rather than generic fish oils -- because cod liver oil contains high amounts of vitamin A and D as well as DHA. I added real bone broths to my diet for their high amounts of minerals and gelatin, which helped me sleep better and also soothed my digestion. I drink raw milk from grass-fed cows. Raw milk contains numerous vitamins and enzymes as well as natural probiotics that are not found in pasteurized milk. Raw milk supports good gut health. Our gut health and our moods are very intimately connected. Fast-forward to the present... I married and had two children, had great pregnancies and did not suffer from post-partum depression, even though it was my worst fear. I'm raising my children without having to deal with depression. I'm teaching them effective ways to deal with their emotions so that they don't develop depression themselves. The cycle has stopped with me. I'm proud of what I've researched through the years and I believe that these methods can help you. Please read this important disclaimer
here.
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