[Midnightmoon]

Wondering if anyone has had success solely on natural remedies? My regimen is in the signature below, curious about other people who have had experiences.

[Midnightmoon]

All the psych meds made me way worse and really sick, especially to my stomach.

[sconnie892]

I've been doing a lot of reading on this lately. I'd much prefer a natural remedy to meds. Seratonin wrote a great post about beating depression and it includes some natural remedy info. It's on the Depression forum.

[eskielover]

For my depression since & had horrible side effect reactions to the normal AD meds & any other kinds my pdoc tried.....he finally suggested doing the fish oil with the Omega 3 (EPA....not DHA). The intake has to be over 1200mg of the EPA a day for it to work. What I found was that all the other Omega 3's that end up being a part of the fish oil helped with blood pressure, memory, & my energy.....so I got more than I bargained for with taking the Omega 3 EPA. I found a lemon flavored bottled oil that I mix in with a glass of OJ in the morning......which is healthy also.

It's amazing how much it helps.....can really see a difference when I don't take it.....& when I'm not sleeping, blood pressure goes sky high.....getting back onto it now because I haven't been able to sleep, my Dr did prescribe Tamazapam.....but am also trying a natural sleep aid before willing to take the med for fear of how I will react to it.

[fishsandwich]

Yep, I am. I never thought of it as 'all natural', but I had a diagnosis of schizophrenia and am going to stay off the psych drugs for the rest of my life, even if I die trying.

I eat vegan/gluten free except I do eat fish occasionally; I don't take any supplements but starflower oil 1000mg once daily. I do yoga and am a long (long) distance runner. I just started getting acupuncture, too.

I've been looking into taking more natural remedies but I still haven't figured out how to pick them properly and not get taken in by quacks. Any ideas?

[costello]

Originally Posted by fishsandwich

I've been looking into taking more natural remedies but I still haven't figured out how to pick them properly and not get taken in by quacks. Any ideas?

My son's pdoc recommended The Depression Cure: The 6-Step Program to Beat Depression without Drugs.

Very practical approach. Not a lot of surprises, but he's done the research to back up his recommendations.

From his website:

Here you can find the road back to lasting health by integrating the following 6 elements into your life: an omega-3 rich diet; exercise; plenty of natural sunlight; ample sleep; social connections; and participation in meaningful tasks that leave little time for negative thoughts—all things that our ancestors had in abundance.

[costello]

Went to read the reviews of The Depression Cure. I have a habit of reading the bad reviews first. This book as only one bad review, but I thought it and the discussion afterward was interesting.

http://www.amazon.com/review/RKGQZI5...#RKGQZI5EKJ5LJ

Edited to add: The good reviews are really good too. I've read about 10 of them so far, several people have said the book changed their lives. I wish I could get my son to actually implement these changes consistently in his life. His dx is some kind of psychosis, but he does have mood issues as well - mostly depression.

[fishsandwich]

Thanks for that, costello. I'll order it once i get paid
I don't mind bad reviews on a book so long as they're genuine. That reviewer seemed to have legitimate grievances with the book and was rational about them.

I've found that a lot of the "tricks" that work for depression have also worked for me with psychosis. I think part of that is because the tricks are pretty generic: try finding me an illness - mental or otherwise - that wouldn't be helped even a bit by good diet, exercise and a strong social circle. I wish your son would do the things, too. I would poke him with a stick for you if I could!!

And I'm looking to change my diet because I'm so hungry all the time, but I don't know to what? Wheat is out for sure; I think meat and dairy are too because they make me quite ill. But that leaves me back where I am now??

[costello]

Originally Posted by fishsandwich

I wish your son would do the things, too. I would poke him with a stick for you if I could!!

I wish you could!

He does take a stab at it occasionally, but things like this need to be done consistently. And they take time. It's not like taking a pill that changes everything fairly quickly. Lifestyles changes take effort applied consistently over a period of time. And they tend not to completely cure so much as to make things better. My son tends to be an all-or-nothing type of guy. If he's still struggling with issues, then "it didn't work"!

And I'm looking to change my diet because I'm so hungry all the time, but I don't know to what? Wheat is out for sure; I think meat and dairy are too because they make me quite ill. But that leaves me back where I am now??

It's surprising to me how many people who've used lifestyle changes to recover from MI say they don't eat meat. It doesn't make sense to me from an evolutionary point of view, but I guess you can't argue with success?

I don't know. Seems weird to me, but who am I to say different.

I feel most sated on a diet with adequate protein and lots of fat. The "healthy" diet currently pushed by dieticians would make me feel hungry all the time because it would keep my insulin levels too high. I'm insulin resistant and would be diabetic pretty quickly if I ate that way. Since I've been eating more fish, I've been hungry more, so I added back in quite a few carbs (last night I had chowder, for example, and the night before that tuna casserole - potatoes and noodles). I've gained weight and my energy level - which is never high, in the best of times - has slumped.

In short, I don't know what to tell you about that. I've played with my diet a lot, and I'm still stratching my head. Of course, I'm a 50 year old menopausal woman. My hormonal challenges are going to be different than yours.

Good luck!

[fishsandwich]

Originally Posted by costello

I wish you could!

He does take a stab at it occasionally, but things like this need to be done consistently. And they take time. It's not like taking a pill that changes everything fairly quickly. Lifestyles changes take effort applied consistently over a period of time. And they tend not to completely cure so much as to make things better. My son tends to be an all-or-nothing type of guy. If he's still struggling with issues, then "it didn't work"!

I said it in your other thread, but I don't think you should have to help people who aren't helping themselves. It's not your battle; you can only be an ally.

Originally Posted by costello

It's surprising to me how many people who've used lifestyle changes to recover from MI say they don't eat meat. It doesn't make sense to me from an evolutionary point of view, but I guess you can't argue with success?

I don't know. Seems weird to me, but who am I to say different.

I've been a vegetarian since I was 9 or 10 years old; long before any mental illness. Well, I was diagnosed with Autism/Asperger's but the vegetarianism was because I just flat-out refused to eat meat. It gives me a terrible stomach ache; I've never figured out why.

Originally Posted by costello

I feel most sated on a diet with adequate protein and lots of fat.

I do too. It's perfectly possible to get enough protein on a vegetarian diet. I also eat some fish, but eh. I still get very hungry.
I think part of that is that I'm convinced (though medical science is not) that anti-psychotics mess with hunger hormones. Some of those drugs were like on-switches for my pasta gene.

Originally Posted by costello

In short, I don't know what to tell you about that. I've played with my diet a lot, and I'm still stratching my head. Of course, I'm a 50 year old menopausal woman. My hormonal challenges are going to be different than yours.

My hormones are little bastards. I'm considering using a diet recommended for women in the menopause because I just don't know what else to do.

[costello]

Originally Posted by fishsandwich

My hormones are little bastards. I'm considering using a diet recommended for women in the menopause because I just don't know what else to do.

What diet would that be? Maybe it would help me.

I have a book called The Brain Trust Program: A Scientifically Based Three-Part Plan to Improve Memory, Elevate Mood, Enhance Attention, Alleviate Migraine and Menopausal Symptoms, and Boost Mental Energy. It includes a recipe for a ketogenic cocktail which he recommends for menopausal women. It includes, I think, MCT oil, flaxseed oil, and a third one - maybe fish oil? I used it for a while, but I find that MCT oil gives me a tickly feeling in my throat. Really unpleasant. I still put coconut oil in my coffee every morning; that's a medium chain triglyceride. The MCT oil was too much for me.

[fishsandwich]

I've only ever put coconut oil on my skin and hair! Wouldn't it be very slimy in coffee? How much do you put in?

I recently read this book:
It must be my Hormones! by Dr Marion Gluck and Vicki Edgson
http://www.amazon.co.uk/It-Must-Horm...7370976&sr=8-1

There is no specific diet I was thinking of, but that book is PACKED with advice. It was a fantastic read and I'm nowhere near the menopause. Some of the book is about medical alternatives to HRT and infertility (neither relevant to me!); the rest is written by a nutritionist/dietician (whichever one is the registered, trained kind) and gives different kinds of foods for different kinds of hormone problems.

A lot of it was based on anti-inflammatory diets. I'm looking into those now.

[costello]

Originally Posted by fishsandwich

I've only ever put coconut oil on my skin and hair! Wouldn't it be very slimy in coffee? How much do you put in?

I've tried to respond to this twice now. Both times lost. Maybe one of the links is being rejected?

I wanted to say that I put about 1 to 2 teaspoons per cup. It's not slimy, but it does leave an oil slick on the top. When I can afford it, I like the unrefined kind. It has a nice taste.

[fishsandwich]

I made some of that coffee this morning, with the coconut oil. I added some coconut milk, too. Trying to get off the soya because it tastes so slimy to me nowadays. It was a really nice coffee!!

I've been curious, what do you eat in the mornings? I bought some eggs at the market today and I'm going to see if they make me unwell -- I just can't think of any other breakfasts that are neither carbohydrate-laden or meaty!