Before we get to this week's very important topic, I have two brief announcements!

#1 We are growing and I need to add a part-timer for the following hours: 9-12:00 or 1:00 PM Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3:00-5 or 5:30...there may be more hours if desired!  Please have any candidates contact me at: 847-577-4455 anytime...the sooner the better!!

#2 I am considering publishing a quarterly or monthly newsletter geared towards chinese medicine only. If you would be interested in receiving it by email please let us know by email or phone. You can opt out if you do not find it useful but I think you will!

Okay, on to this week's topic, natural healing for emotional disorders.

I remember being very surprised a few years ago at the sheer percentage of clients who were taking psychoactive drugs. It was

70% or even greater!!! Patients were taking antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, sleep drugs, sedatives, and of course this didn't include all those using abusing alcohol or recreational drugs, or painkillers to get through this thing called life.  It also didn't include those taking the medications to get through a stressful time such as a divorce.  I truly was stunned!!! Also, true to myself, I also wondered how much of these difficult emotions needed to be medicated or medically managed.  I had come through some extremely difficult times in my life and had struggled with major emotional turmoil and felt it had served a purpose in my personal evolution. Would I be the same individual if I had obliterated the signs that I was out of balance?  Would my growth had been compromised?  Does suffering serve a purpose?

The first item to establish is if someone is in crisis.  If the emotional load is debilitating and one cannot function it may need to be treated medically in the short run.  The same is true if it is due to major biochemical swings as in post partum depression.  In cases like that it may be impossible and even very dangerous to avoid treatment and try to tough it out...in the short run. In other cases, it may be a lower grade problem, that has become a chronic state of affairs. In the long run, I would like to see some real healing occur, and I have seen time and time again that that is really possible.

The armamentarium of dealing with emotional disorders is not all that different from dealing with physical disorders.  The most important aspect is to establish what is out of balance and why.  After establishing that, selecting appropriate natural treatments is much easier, and more likely to work quickly and effectively.

First and foremost, getting personal habits in line is very key.  A nutritious diet that is individualized to one's personal biochemistry is very important to getting balanced emotionally.  Also, developing a personal exercise program, since over 2,000 studies support a link between exercise and depression for example, as well as appropriate sleep hygiene, help to significantly reduce stress on a person and strengthen their healing powers.  Dietary allergies, and physical problems such as a low thyroid or poor digestion or blood sugar imbalances can and often do manifest as anxiety or depression or agitation, or even hyperactivity. Seasonal Affective Disorder affects many people in our area and is treated with light therapy.

Nutrient deficiencies and biochemical imbalances often cause emotional symptoms. For instance: a vitamin B-12 deficiency can cause severe depression and is very common in older people.  Some people are lacking serotonin due to conversion problems and can be helped with substances such as 5HTP.

Occasionally, a traumatic event or life event can throw someone's balance completely off leading to a chronic emotional problem.  In those cases  I may use acupuncuncture and chinese medicines to balance the seven emotions.  It has been so effective that I have been able to help people avoid institutional interventions in some cases!

In deeper cases I am a big proponent of flower essence therapy  which is a form of homeopathy that focuses on the emotional health of a person.  It works by selecting and balancing deeper issues and can be subtle for awhile.  As things progress, it is akin to peeling away at an onion skin getting ultimately to deeper healing from deeper issues.  I have used flower essences for 10+ years in my practice.  These can be combined with even heavy duty medications, as they have no interactions with either western or herbal medications!  Visit our emotional health aisle for more information and to purchase these products:

I rarely prescribe herbal treatments for mood disorders due my commitment to getting to the root cause and treating it.  This has meant that my clients often in a short time are not needing to take anything because they no longer require treatment!!! In my opinion that is the best possible outcome.

Best of Health!

Visit our Natural Product Pharmacy for great prices and FREE SHIPPING on hundreds of natural products from professional brands like: Metagenics, Douglas Laboratories, Pure Encapsulations, Integrative Therapeutics, Thorne Research, and Carlson Labs!

Taryn DeCicco, ND, LAc, LDN

Naturopath

Acupuncturist

Clinical Nutritionist

Professional Vitamins and Supplements

Chinese Herbs

Natural Skin Products

Arlington Heights, IL

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