Anxiety

Having anxiety can feel a lot like being tightly wound all the time. Anxiety is a taxing tension on the body. The sympathetic nervous system – the part of your nervous system that’s turned on during stress is on overdrive leading to fatigue.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder where a person worries about several areas of life. This usually interferes with life quite a bit: people with GAD typically worry about money, relationships, work, and death. Physical symptoms include restlessness, trouble concentrating, irritability, insomnia, fatigue, and muscle tension. This may sound like a lot of us but a person must have these symptoms for more than six months for an official diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.

Social Phobia

We can all get a little awkward and shy now and then. Social phobia is when a person has a specific anxiety about some or all social situations. Officially called social anxiety disorder, it is the most common kind of anxiety that people experience. Symptoms of social phobia are similar to GAD but occur in anticipation of social scenarios. It can also include sweating, nausea, palpitations, and may lead to panic attacks in some cases.

Panic Attacks

Whether you think you’ve had one or actually have, panic disorder or frequent panic attacks can severely limit your life. People who are having a panic attack for the first time often think they’re dying or losing their mind. A panic attack can feel like a heart attack: palpitations and rapid heart rate, along with shortness of breath and chest pain all mimic a heart attack. Panic attacks are more common in people who have other anxiety disorders, and may be a symptom of a physiological disturbance.

Stress

As we’re all familiar, times of high stress can cause anxiety. Low grade or short-term anxiety that doesn’t qualify for a formal diagnosis can still be distressing, and is still worthy of treatment. When you’re under stress, you produce cortisol, which can cause symptoms of anxiety. People who are experiencing life transitions, like moving, divorce or a change in their job might have short-term anxiety, and it can lead to longer-term health consequences. If you’re interested in the naturopathic way to manage your stress, we have a lot more information in this article about stress management.

Physical Causes

Sometimes anxiety is as simple as an underlying health condition, and finding what’s at the root of it can take care of your nervousness. Hyperthyroidism, overactive adrenal glands, and low blood sugar can all cause symptoms that look like anxiety. Certain nutrient deficiencies can cause anxiety, and food sensitivities can contribute as well, so it’s important to find out what the exact cause is.

How Can Naturopathic Medicine Help?

Naturopathic medicine has many approaches to treating anxiety. Whether it’s short term or chronic, there is a lot that can be done to help calm your body and mind to support you with nourishment.

Herbal medicine can be a big help in treating anxiety and sometimes even the act of taking herbs in the form of tea or a tincture can be enough to calm you. There are two main groups of herbs that are used for this:

• Nervines – This is a group of herbs that helps calm you down, often by acting directly on receptors in your brain that help you relax. It includes lemon balm, chamomile, passionflower, and lavender.
• Adaptogens – These help your body respond better to stress. Some of these include Ashwagandha, Rhodiola, and licorice root.

Herbal medicine isn’t the only tool: there is a strong connection between the brain and the gut. A proper diet assessment that identifies deficiencies, removes allergenic foods, and supports proper bacterial balance that can make a world of difference for your anxiety. Acupuncture is an excellent way to help you relax and manage stress too.

Let’s help calm you down together, book an appointment now.

Depression

Depression is a common mood disorder, an unhappy an unfun one at that with least 12% of Canadians meeting the criteria for major depression at some point in their lives. When you’re depressed, even the smallest tasks can seem impossible. Believe it or not, naturopathic medicine has some very simple, well-studied, natural answers that can help get you feeling alive again!

What is Depression?

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, one of several chemicals responsible for passing messages between nerve cells. Serotonin has been popularized for being the culprit in depression, but depression is more than just a serotonin deficiency- it is a complex syndrome that involves both your brain and your digestive system. Depression is diagnosed when some or all of the following symptoms are present:

• Being sad or depressed most of the time
• Loss of enjoyment in things that were once enjoyable
• Weight loss or gain
• Changes in sleep (insomnia or excessive sleeping)
• Restlessness
• Fatigue
• Feelings of guilt, hopelessness, or worthlessness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Thoughts of suicide

The number of the above symptoms you have, along with their intensity, helps describe how severe your depression is. No matter the severity, it’s important to know that if you have one or more of the above symptoms, you don’t just have to suffer through it. Asking for help takes courage, and getting the support you need to manage your depression to make life enjoyable again is an absolute must!

It’s common for people with depression to experience suicidal thoughts, and if this is the case for you or someone you love, it’s important to get help right away!

How is Depression Treated?

For a long time, pharmaceutical antidepressants like selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) were the go-to medications for depression. Now, they’re only suggested as the first-line treatment for major depression. For mild to moderate depression, psychotherapy is the first choice. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) are two effective techniques commonly used by therapists and naturopathic doctors alike.

With naturopathic medicine, there are many things that can be done either in addition to psychotherapy or as an alternative. As naturopathic doctors, we are intimately familiar with the connection between the gut and your mood, as well as things like your stress levels and adrenal health! There are several herbs and supplements like St. John’s Wort and SAMe, that have been shown to be as effective as SSRIs at helping lift depressive symptoms.

The Gut-Brain Connection

Up to 95% of your serotonin is made in your gut, meaning that if your gut isn’t functioning correctly, you’re not making enough of this important neurotransmitter. While low serotonin isn’t the only cause of depression, getting your gut healthy will certainly help your mood! If you’re eating foods that you’re sensitive to, it could be causing inflammation in more than just your digestive tract. We know that mental health conditions often have an inflammatory component, so cleaning up your diet can really help.

It’s also very important to have a proper balance of good and bad bacteria, as clinical trials have shown improvements with probiotics, meaning more than just eating yogurt or kefir, clinical grade supplements make a difference!

Herbs Can Help

Lots of people have heard of St. John’s Wort- it’s a beautiful yellow flower that acts like an SSRI and works just as well as prescription drugs for mild to moderate depression. Saffron is a Middle Eastern herb used in cooking and has some evidence for its depression-fighting ability. Sometimes using herbs to help calm the nervous system works, such as Lemon Balm or Passion Flower. Sometimes herbs that help adrenal function help, like Licorice Root and Ashwagandha. There are many other herbs that can help, and naturopathic doctors are trained to help you choose the right combination of herbs and supplements that will work for you.

Help us help you with the heavy lifting of depression, call or book an appointment today!