Depression: Foods Linked to Depression – Part 4 of Top 5 Series

Just as food fuels the body; it fuels the mind.  And just as some foods have a higher vibrational and nutritional level; some foods have lower energy vibrations and contain unhealthy substances.  There are several articles that offer suggestions about what food and drink to either cut out altogether or to definitely reduce in one’s diet.

Many of these items have high sugar/carbohydrate content, so cutting them out – or cutting down on them – makes a lot of sense, since high sugar and highly-processed foods give us a temporary “comfort” feeling and then cause sugar crashes and chemical imbalances in the brain, which of course can lead to bouts of depression.

With chronic intake of these substances, there has been evidence to suggest that chronic depression can occur.  Aspartame seems to be at the heart of a lot of these warnings.  This chemical is foreign to the body and has been linked to causing the break down of the myelin sheath in the body – the substance that protects our spinal cord, nervous system and helps to promote strong chemical and neural connections in the brain.  Isn’t that reason enough to stop ingesting it?

In any case, I have included a couple of pertinent articles explaining how soft drinks (Soda-pop), high sugar foods and other foods are linked to depression or feelings of lethargy.  These are certainly worth reading; and at the same time it is always a good idea to track what we ingest and how it makes us feel on a daily basis.  This is being mindful of what we take as a mouthful!

What Foods Can Cause Depression: 

http://www.livestrong.com/article/378804-what-foods-can-cause-depression/

What Soft Drinks (Soda-pop) Do to Our Bodies and Our Minds:

http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/blogs/healthy-living/sweet-sodas-soft-drinks-may-raise-risk-depression-183000091.html

Next Post:  Part 5 of Top 5 Series – Healing Depression – Without Drugs

Healing Depression – E.F.T. Technique – Part 3 of Top 5 Expert Series

E.F.T.  stands for Emotional Freedom Technique.  It is tapping on a series of pressure points (much like acupuncture) on our hand as well as our upper body (head, collarbone, under arm) while saying a series of statements that are true for us regarding our emotions or beliefs about certain things, people or situations in our lives.  For example, we would begin by speaking the truth about how we feel:  Whether that is scared, angry, resentful or sad about the current – or past – situation in our lives.

Once we have gone through a series of tapping in this form; we would follow it by a series of  tapping on these same pressure points while stating – or replacing the first – with what we want to see, feel or create in our lives.  I have used it (you can visit E.F.T. practitioners in your community) and the great thing about it is, that it is one of the easiest methods in which you can help yourself move through stuck emotions and finally be free to explore new creativity and healthier beliefs – and therefore healthier choices – for yourself.   Stefan Gonick is an expert on the topic and the practical application of E.F.T.  Please refer to this site below to see a video tutorial to learn how to practice E.F.T. on yourself!  http://www.eft-alive.com/how-to-do-EFT.html – Stefan Gonick

Although you may feel silly doing it the first or second time, believe me, you will get over this resistance once you see and feel how beneficial and easy it is. There are many reputable people who can teach you and demonstrate the technique on the internet.   One of the most reputable healers I know is Louise L. Hay who is the author of “You Can Heal Your Life” which I read ten years ago and changed my thinking and the way I approach everything I say, think and do regarding my life.

Below is an actual interview with Nick Ortner – (The Tapping Solution) with Louise herself.  He offers this information below after spending an afternoon interviewing and using E.F.T. with Louise L. Hay:

“Louise has recently been using Tapping
in her own life, with amazing results.  I had
the opportunity to tap with Louise privately,
but in this video she was brave enough to tap
on camera so that we could share it with you!

I’ve got to tell you… what Louise shares
in this video is real, vulnerable, and
extremely moving…”

Watch it here:

http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=20835330&msgid=345958&act=KCWQ&c=758700&destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thetappingsolution.com%2F2013VideoSeries

 Next Post:   Healing Depression Without Drugs

Healing Depression – Moving From “Dis-ease” to “Ease” – Part 5 of Top 5 Series

 

Want to get over your depression?  Well, then, just enjoy the sunshine, get plenty of sleep – and be sociable!

Ugh!  Okay, what if we don’t feel like going out in the sunshine; we can’t sleep because our minds are too busy stressing and we definitely do NOT feel like seeing or talking to anyone?

The bottom line is that depression or anything that affects our physical, mental and emotional well-being cannot be alleviated overnight.  It takes time.  It’s a process and rather than looking externally to drugs and pharmaceutical companies to heal us, I cannot stress enough that we must look within.

Our health and well-being is the most important aspect in our lives.  Why?  Because no amount of money, prosperity or possessions can replace, be traded for or buy good health.  How can we truly enjoy anything in life if we are physically unwell?  Louise L. Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life believes that every physical ailment is a psychological manifestation.  Her book outlines almost every possible illness that we can create within our own bodies, along with the root emotional cause and the affirmation which can help to alleviate it.  Of course, it is not simply our words that bring about good health, prosperity or love. It is the emotion and energy we attach to it and how often we practice self-love and positive thinking and speaking.

In order to be mentally, physically, emotionally and sexually healthy, is to first love ourselves.  We must begin to eliminate all negative self-talk and replace it with loving affirmations towards ourselves.  Positive thinking and speaking – some call this a form of mediation – has been scientifically proven to alleviate stress and negative moods and feelings, ultimately creating more serotonin and feel-good chemicals within our body.   This positive energy, in turn, can be as effective as chemotherapy or pharmaceutical drugs in that it can create positive chemical reactions in our bodies.  However, if we have spent a lifetime of producing negative alchemy within our body, then obviously it will take some time and effort regarding our affirmations to undo the harm we have – and perhaps our parents in what they taught us regarding ourselves  – created in our own bodies and ultimately in our lives.

How do we do this?

Again, major illnesses come from deep-rooted or chronic belief systems.

The Belief that Illness Brings Attention:

If we had a parent or sibling who had an illness while we were growing up and we associated being sick with receiving a lot of attention, we sometimes manifest illness or chronic illness (hypochondria) in order to get the attention we feel we need from our environment.

Chronic Stress:

Any amount of stress over time, if not released can cause toxins in our body.  These toxins accumulate very much like keeping a storage box full of anger, sadness, and unforgiveness towards others or events in life.  When we begin to free ourselves from these “stuck” emotions, we also tend to see symptoms of illnesses – as well as behaviours that can bring about illnesses such as over-eating or lack of exercise – alleviate and disappear.

Out of Ease:

When we find ourselves not at ease it often leads to some kind of “dis-ease”.  At times, we have moderate stress and it can manifest in a simple cold. We tend to recuperate at the rate at which we can reduce the stress or stimuli that is causing the issue in the first place.  However, if we look at pneumonia for example, it is caused by a buildup of infection that is “stuck” from chronic illness in our bodies.  We tend to have emotions that are “stuck” in our bodies and build up to the point where we sometimes need help from an external source to fight against it.

Over-Eating or Lack of Motivation for Exercise:

Anything regarding food and unhealthy eating usually has something to do with lack of self-love and not feeling safe in our environment.  I cocooned myself during my high school years by over eating in order to protect myself from the critical environment in which I found myself.  Interestingly enough, once I finished University and moved to another country, far away from the stimuli that was causing me to cocoon, I lost forty pounds which seemed to melt off of me with no work on my part.

I also felt empowered for the first time in my life and received a lot of positive attention as I was a stranger in a foreign country.  It turned out that my belief system about myself and the critical voice that I had internalized from my childhood began to give way to a more positive, self-loving voice.  I am convinced that this helped me to heal from long-standing criticism.  It was just the beginning and while my physical appearance looked great as I began to exercise and eat much healthier, I still had a lot of internal work to do to catch up.  Eventually, however, with the help of reading many books such as Louise L. Hay’s, I began to do the internal work that was needed to restore my complete mental, emotional and physical well-being.  I have not gained the weight back in fifteen years and probably look ten years younger now than I did then.

Mirror Work:

It is important that on a daily basis we look in the mirror and remind ourselves of the love we have for ourselves.

What if we do not feel loving towards ourselves right now?

#1:  Mirror Work does get easier the more you do it, but if you are not ready to say, “__________, I love you and I believe you deserve wonderful health in your life,” then begin with, “_________, I am willing to like/love you in this moment and am beginning to believe you deserve wonderful health in your life.”  As the words get easier – and they will get easier over time – readjust them to be more positive and direct.

#2:  If you are having a really difficult time loving your adult self, take some time to peruse some old photographs when you were a child.  Choose a photo of yourself as a child that you do feel compassion or tenderness towards.  Take it out and put it in a frame or better yet, enlarge it and put it somewhere in your home that you can be reminded of that innocent child that you still have within you that desperately needs to hear from your adult-self that you love him or her.

Repeating such statements as, “I love and approve of myself” daily can begin a healing process within our bodies that can astound us.  This is not only effective in our physical health and well-being but also for our emotional and mental health as well.  If you cannot say it to yourself yet; then say it your childhood picture – to your inner child for whom you do feel love.

Affirmations:  Sample Affirmations that You Can Use

Health & Well Being

“I am 100 % healthy on a molecular, cellular structure.”

“My face and body reflect the youthful child within me!”

“I love my body and am healthy, fit and feel great.”

“I am healthy and happy at ___ (your ideal weight) pounds.”

“I have lots of energy and exercise 3 times a week!”

I challenge you to begin doing this today and healing and well-being will begin to manifest within your body and your life!  You may even wish to give love to the certain body part of area that is inflicted with the illness.

Some other suggestions: (See website below for reference)

▶ Take 1,500mg of omega-3 daily (in the form of fish oil capsules), with a multivitamin and 500mg vitamin C and 1000 mg of Vitamin D ***Make sure you check with your doctor if you have never taken any of these or you are taking other medications – and it is NEVER recommended to go off any anti-depressants unless your doctor has been consulted.

▶ Don’t dwell on negative thoughts – instead of ruminating start an activity; even conversation counts.

▶ Exercise for 20-30 minutes a day when possible – even if it’s a walk in the sunshine.

▶ Get 15-30 minutes of sunlight each morning in the summer. In the winter, consider using a lightbox.

▶ Be sociable – even going for a coffee is beneficial

▶ Get eight hours of sleep

Related Articles:

( http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/jul/19/beat-depression-without-drugs )

Next Post Series:  Top 5 Expert Series – Intuition and Our 5 Senses – How to Use Them to Enhance Our Lives!

Healing Depression – Part 2 of Top 5 Expert Series

Previously, I discussed how essentially depression is a response to either repressed anger or sadness –  of course there are exceptions such as physical and chemical imbalances, although these too are often brought about by traumatic incidents in our lives.  Similarly, Deepak Chopra believes depression is often caused by external stimuli and most importantly, our response – our habitual thinking – in regard to that outside stimuli.

I have read and condensed his article entitled, “How to Heal from Depression” as it is seven pages long and I added below what I thought were the most important points.  However, I highly recommend that you read his entire article as it consists of many different components of depression with strategies to lift ourselves out of it.

What does Deepak Chopra say about depression, what it is and how to deal with it?

According to Deepak Chopra:

“…depression has three components:

• 1. An early outside cause.
• 2. A response to that cause.
• 3. A longstanding habit.

1. Outside causes: During the current recession, 60 percent of people who lost their job say it made them anxious or depressed. The number is much higher among workers who have been laid off for more than a year. Outside events can make you depressed. We all know that. If you subject yourself to enough stress over a long period of time, depression is much more likely—this includes a boring job, a sour relationship, long stretches of loneliness and social isolation and chronic disease.

2. The depressed response: An outside event cannot make you depressed unless you respond in a certain way. People who are depressed learned long ago to have the following responses when something goes wrong:

It’s my fault                                                           I’m not good enough.

Nothing will work out.                                         I knew things would go wrong.

I can’t do anything about it.                                 It was just a matter of time.

When a child has this response because something goes wrong, it can make sense. Small children have little control over their lives; they are weak and vulnerable. An unloving parent can create any of these responses, and so can a disastrous family event like a death.  But if you have these responses when you are grown up, the past is undermining the present.

3. The habit of being depressed: Once you start having a depressed response, it reinforces the next response. Did your first boyfriend dump you? Then it’s natural to fear that the second one might, also. For some people this fear is minor, but for others it looms large. They keep having depressed responses, and after a while these turn into a habit.  Once it turns into a habit, depressed people no longer need an outside trigger. They are depressed about being depressed. A gray film coats everything; optimism is impossible. This defeated state tells us that the brain has formed fixed pathways.”

Below, Deepak Chopra delineates a list of ways in which we can begin to empower ourselves regarding depression – what things to do and what not to do:  

Inner work:

• Meditate
• Examine and change your negative beliefs
• Reject self-defeating responses to life’s challenges
• Learn new responses that are life-enhancing
• Adopt a higher vision of life and live by it
• Recognize self-judgment and reject it
• Stop believing that fear is right just because it’s powerful
• Don’t mistake moods for reality.

Outer Work:

• Change stressful conditions
• Find fulfilling work
• Don’t associate with people who increase your depression
• Find people who are close to who you want to be
• Learn to give of yourself, be generous of spirit
• Adopt good sleep habits and exercise lightly once a day
• Focus on relationships instead of distractions and endless consumerism
• Learn to re-parent yourself by finding people who know how to love, who are accepting and nonjudgmental.”

Read more of Deepak’s article:

http://www.oprah.com/spirit/How-to-Heal-from-Depression/2#ixzz2Hh5iNMlm

Next Post: Healing Depression Without Drugs

Depression – Part 1 of Top 5 Series – Lifting Ourselves Out of It

Depression is defined as:

1.  Severe despondency and dejection, accompanied by feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy.2.  A condition of mental disturbance, typically with lack of energy and difficulty in maintaining concentration or interest in life.However, Depression Doesn’t Exist!     Now that I have your attention and possibly your anger, please, keep reading! For anyone who experiences depression or has come through it, the feelings associated with it are very real.  However, one of the most valuable lessons I learned from my four years of Gestalt Psycho-therapy training was that depression in and of itself does not exist – it is a mental and physiological response to one of two things:  repressed anger or repressed sadness. Think of it as holding a ball full of air underneath the water.  Everyone knows that it is difficult to do because the displaced air within the ball forces it to ascend upwards and we have to forcefully hold it to keep it under the water. When we do eventually let it go; it flies out of the water upwards proportionately to how deep we were holding it under. This is very similar to what happens when we are holding anger or sadness within us – it wants to come up and be expressed – but we may not want to see it on the surface.  The problem with this is, the more we repress our anger or sadness, the less we can actually feel joy or happiness.  This is why it is crucial that we allow our anger and sadness to come to the surface so that our hands – and our entire being – is open to experience the joy and happiness life has to offer as well. The fact that depression in most cases is a result of holding on to negative feelings – and negative energy – is very good news.  While depression feels like a heavy weight upon our shoulders or quicksand that we feel powerless to become free from – anger and sadness are simply emotions that have been trapped within our bodies in response to an experience – and we can be free of them, which in turn will eventually help lift the feelings associated with our depression. How do we do this?    I am certainly not going to advise for or against anti-depressants; but  sometimes they can be a TEMPORARY solution to severe depression until we can process and deal with the sadness or anger in which we are holding.  Times in my life that I have experienced depression I did not take drugs and I was able to work through it and come out the other side and that is what I want to share with you today.   The truth is there is no quick fix to dealing with depression.  If one is in this state, even affirmations and trying to lift our vibrational energy may not work – although they cannot hurt either! Step # 1:  We need to first identify what emotion is causing the depression – is it anger or is it sadness?  And very often, even behind our anger lies sadness or disappointment over something that has happened to us.  For example, if someone has said or did something very hurtful to us, we are likely to have felt sadness but masked it with anger very quickly in order to deal with it and ‘feel stronger’.  Often we mask our sadness with anger in order to have the strength to stand up to or say goodbye to a particular person or situation in our lives.  How many times have we thought we originally felt anger towards someone and then a few days later, realize that we are actually sad about what happened? Step # 2:  What are we feeling sad or angry about? The problem with trying to discover what and why we are feeling what we are is that many times by the time our bodies have gone into a depressed state, the actual original hurt or event has long since passed.  It may even have been something in our childhood originally and has been triggered again by something in our adult lives. So how on earth do we get to the heart of the issue and figure out how and why we are feeling this way?  It isn’t easy. This is the step at which most people feel the most resistance – especially if the hurt did originate – and most do – in our childhood.  We have buried it so deeply and so strategically in order to not have had to deal with it – usually because we were too young to do so or simply not equipped – that there are a few layers that we have to peel away first.  It is necessary that we realize this is a process – and that is what I want to stress here – growth and healing of any kind is a process.  When we cut our finger, our bodies have a wonderful – some would even say miraculous – ability to heal the wound.  This does not happen overnight however; but we can apply ointments that expedite the process.  This is where therapeutic modalities come in – they can include anything from journaling, talking with a friend, talking with a trained psychologist, E.F.T (Emotional Freedom Technique which I will be writing about in a later blog as part of this 5 part series), Reiki, Acupuncture and many more.  You need to discover which one works best for you. In the meantime, I will share with you some practical techniques you can do in the privacy of your own home. Step # 3:  Writing to Heal  I have done this several times and I cannot stress enough how powerful – and effective – a technique it is to get at the heart of many of our repressed emotions and physical ailments.  What we do is actually journal with the Depression – almost as if it is a person – or the physical issue – directly.  Why not give it a try? If it doesn’t work then you haven’t lost anything; if it does, I would love to hear back from you as to how it helped. Dear Depression:  You have taken over my body, slowed me down, made me feel lethargic and really awful some days.  You must be doing this for a reason.  Please, what is it that you are trying to tell me?  What real emotions are you trying to hold onto for me?  I know you are not my enemy.  I know that you are attempting to protect me from my real emotions.  Please help me to figure out what these are. Take a few seconds and then respond from the Depression’s point of view – in other words, give it a voice. Dear (Your Name): Here is where you allow – freely and without judgement – your Depression (and you do not have to be severely depressed at all, you may just simply feel down or not so great) tell you what is really going on with you.  You may be surprised by what it tells you or it may make a lot of sense.  The trick is to allow it a voice. This is the same for ailments in the body – another manifestation of repressed hurts, emotions or beliefs that have surfaced in a physical form. Please refer to my Blog # 17:  A Disclaimer about Hemorrhoids and other Annoying Manifestations about this very thing.  It does not matter if this is a small annoyance such as a hemorrhoid or if it is cancer.  Our bodies are the mediator between our core inner self – our subconscious – and our minds.  They are constantly giving us messages. When our leg falls asleep and we begin to feel pins and needles, our body is communicating to us that we need to move and stop cutting off the blood supply to our extremities.  Why does it do this?  To protect us.  Why do our bodies develop “dis – ease”?  Because we are “out” of “ease” with our true selves and our bodies want to return to homeostasis and ease again – and it will help us do this if we are willing to give it a voice. Dear Hemorrhoid/ Dear Cancer:  Again, allow yourself to be really honest about how you are feeling towards it.  Maybe you hate your cancer or your disease.  Tell it that.  It can handle it because it is in your body to tell you something as well.  Then let it. Give your depression, anger, sadness and your pain – whether it be emotional or physical, a VOICE today.  Let it communicate to you in plain language what it has been trying to tell you silently.  Once you “hear” it – you may well be on your way to recovery and freedom. Below is a website that delineates the Myths and Facts regarding Depression:    http://www.webmd.com/depression/ss/slideshow-depression-myths Next Post:  Depression – Top 5 Experts/Techniques Series – Deepak Chopra