9 Natural Ways to Help Depression

By Daniel Amen, MD

[Excerpted from Change Your Brain Every Day]

Depression is not one illness. Like anxiety, the pandemic spawned a whole new level of people being diagnosed with depression and placed on antidepressant medication, without ever getting a proper evaluation or trying simple fixes.

NATURAL SOLUTIONS FOR DEPRESSION

Here are 9 common things I do for patients before prescribing antidepressant medication.

1. Check for and (if necessary) correct thyroid hormone abnormalities.
2. Work with a nutritionally informed physician to optimize your folate, vitamin B12, vitamin D, homocysteine, and omega-3 fatty acids. I’m convinced that without doing these nutritional fixes, patients are less likely to respond to the medications.
3. Try an elimination diet for three weeks.
4. Add colorful fruits and vegetables to your diet.
5. Eliminate the ANTs (automatic negative thoughts).
6. Exercise—walk like you are late for 45 minutes four times a week. This has been found to be as effective as antidepressant medication.
7. Add one of the following supplements to your daily routine: Saffron 30 mg/day; curcumin, not as turmeric root but as Longvida, which is much more efficiently absorbed; zinc as citrate or glycinate 30 mg (tolerable upper level is 40 mg/day for adults, 34 mg/day for adolescents, less for younger kids); or magnesium glycinate, citrate, or malate, 100–500 mg with 30 mg of vitamin B6.
8. Consume probiotics daily.
9. Try morning bright light therapy with a therapeutic therapy lamp of 10,000 lux for 20–30 minutes.

TRY THESE DEPRESSION SOLUTIONS BEFORE MEDICATION

If someone comes to me with depression, I order screening labs, teach them not to believe every negative thought they have, give them basic supplements (saffron, zinc, curcumins, and omega-3s), and encourage them to exercise. Many people never need medication if they follow through with the program. If the above interventions are ineffective, I’ll try other nutraceuticals or medications targeted to their specific type of depression (take the test at brainhealthassessment.com).

Today’s Practice: Get treated for any depressive symptoms. Early treatment can be key in preventing long-term health issues for your brain.

In Change Your Brain Every Day, psychiatrist and clinical neuroscientist Daniel Amen, MD, draws on over 40 years of clinical practice with tens of thousands of patients to give you the most effective daily habits he has seen that can help you improve your brain, master your mind, boost your memory, and make you feel happier, healthier, and more connected to those you love.

If you want to join the tens of thousands of patients at Amen Clinics who have already learned how to change their brain every day and have a better life, speak to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or visit our contact page here.