Depression

Life was meant to be enjoyed, but sometimes it can feel like too much trouble to even get out of bed. If you suffer from depression, you are not alone. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), one in every ten adults in the United States suffers from mild to severe depression in today's fast pace/ high stress world. This doesn't mean that you have to accept depression as a fact of modern life. There are options available for treatment and prevention.

According to recent research by the NIMH 19 million adults are attempting to combat depression using methods such as prescriptions drugs. Western medicine views depression as a disease that must be treated with medication.

However, if you are among the growing population of Americans who are looking for alternatives to medications, Eastern medicine may be for you. Eastern medicine views depression as a symptom, not a disease. Practitioners analyze the entire body in order to pinpoint the systems or functions that are literally depressed or "lowered in force, energy". Then they customize herbal, acupuncture, and lifestyle recommendations to suit your unique needs.

Here are some tips from Dr. Wonson to help you ward off and/or jumpstart your recovery from depression:

• Eat nourishing foods high in protein and vitamins, vegetables, nuts, meats, etc.
• Avoid sugar (this includes fruit). The last thing you need are the false highs and too real lows of a sugar wave.
• Eat enough food for the amount of mental and physical work you do. Most people fail to eat enough. They count calories but waste those calories on low nutrition food. Be wise. Eat a lot, but eat healthy.
• Exercise, but be smart. If you increase your physical activity, increase your food intake also. Think of your body in terms of your checking account- if you don't put enough money in to cover the amount of checks you write, some checks may bounce. The bank charges you a fee, ultimately putting you in debt. If you donšt put enough food in your system for the amount of energy you expend, then some part of your body will suffer. Your body collects its "fee" from one of your vital functions, thereby depressing your system.

• Learn to relax and meditate. The banking analogy works here too. Your brain requires an incredible amount of energy to function efficiently. So, not only should you eat enough to support all of that activity, you also need to give your brain periods of rest to recoup, organize, and simply relax. Take at least 15 minutes a day to clear your mind.

• Most people who tend to suffer from depression give too much of themselves. Learn how much is too much. In fact, get an objective viewpoint of what is too much since you may not be in tune enough with yourself to know.
• Do not push yourself too hard. If you have taken on too much, ask your boss, coworkers, or family for help. Do not overextend yourself because your health will suffer.

• Acupuncture gets your energy flowing to the areas that desperately need it. After depleting your body over long enough periods, there are some areas that may literally be starving. Your body may go into survival mode by slowing or shutting down some essential functions. Individualized acupuncture and herbal treatments may help your body to efficiently redistribute energy to these blocked and depressed areas.