doctoroxygen said:
Nutritional deficits can have a deleterious effect on mood, for sure. But they're not the only cause of depression (I know my depressive episodes lasting for months at a time weren't food-related), so I think consultation with a psychOLOGIST (I don't trust psychiatry in general) is more in order than the same with a nutritionist.
Basically, you probably know if your eating habits are so bad as to be causing depression.
I agree with you on the harmfulness of psychoactive drugs, BTW.
Well, I made a point to say that I was talking about reactive depression, NOT clinical depression, which are two entirely different monsters. Exercise will most certainly help with any kind of depression, as will diet...but if it's very serious then medication is likely in order. That being said...MOST people who suffer from depression don't fit into the major depression category. Those folks can fix what ails them with some serious lifestyle changes.
I've probably gone through more sheeit in the last 7 years of my life than most people will in a lifetime. My fiance was murdered, both of my parents died, my best friend died, I am a single mom who doesn't usually get child support and end up having to bust my patootie to make ends meet. Hell, in July I was renting a place and the septic tank collapsed and the landlord wouldn't fix it and it got condemned. We had 7 days to pack everything and move...and we had 3 pets...one a therapeutic dog for a kid with Oppositional Defiant Disorder...but the dog didn't have a certificate and no one wants to rent to dogs...or a single Mom with dogs. My kids and I ended up living in tents for a month and then a motel room for 3 weeks until we found the place we are in now. I've felt low at times during all that stuff...but I'm a stubborn chicky and instead of letting it get to me I made sure I ate as well as possible, took vitamins and got plenty of exercise. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger and you grab life by the balls and have at it. The minor depression from the bad crap can be worked through without meds IF the person genuinely wants to work through them.
A lot of those medications screw you up far too much to be worth taking if it's not a severe situation. I especially feel bad for people who take medication for ADHD because that stuff is basically pharmaceutical crystal methamphetamine. My best friend was an addict who also happened to know everything about any drug known to mankind. He went to a Psychiatrist for anxiety and she prescribed him so much crap he didn't need it wasn't even funny. She gave him stuff for Narcolepsy for cripes sakes. He didn't have Narcolepsy...he was zonked out of his head from all the freaking drugs she put him on. And the opiates...lots and lots of opiates...which eventually killed him. So yeah...I tend to be VERY suspicious of medications prescribed for psychological issues.