Beat the Blues

“Its like the grey clouds have set in and I’m feeling low. Nothing seems to interest me anymore.”

One in three of the clients I see in my practice suffer from the blues in some shape or form. It can be anything along the scale of being deeply upset about something, a period of stress leading to anxiety or the onset of depression. Concentration suffers, you feel as though you’re just about functioning, not wanting to engage with anything or anyone. It’s like a flower closing in on itself. These feelings are also most likely to appear with anyone suffering a long term illness.

The way we process emotions is extremely important to keeping well. We don’t often understand or want to know how to deal with feelings that we find uncomfortable. Most people prefer to put them to the side or push them away so we don’t have to face them until they bubble up to the surface or completely take over our behaviour.

Clients who come to me for stress, anxiety or depression want an alternative approach to the general prescription of antidepressants or want support to become less dependant on the drugs. The natural approach is to use a combination of biochemical, psychological and emotional treatments and techniques. A young accountant aged 28 years, came to see me for various conditions. She was suffering from headaches, bloatedness, depression, lack of energy and had difficulty sleeping. She was on anti-depressants and had been for about 6 months. The first thing we worked through was to ensure that she was getting adequate nutrition and that her diet was not suffering. She required supplementation of a good quality B-complex, zinc and essential fatty acids which I find are needed where any stress or anxiety is involved.

There are some wonderful herbs that work extremely well building, strengthening and nurturing a depleted nervous system. A formula I often use is called Chamomile and Vervain which also contains a variety of other nervine herbs including skullcap and Californian poppy herb. I do prescribe St John’s Wort where I feel I need to, but not when anti-depressants are still being used. You need to take care when mixing certain drugs with herbs, a qualified herbalist or naturopath will be able to guide you on this.

Emotionally and psychologically it is worth working through step by step how you deal with each of the emotions which cause you discomfort. Some of these can include sadness, anger, grief, jealousy, bitterness, etc. I highly recommend writing a journal and carefully noting your triggers and current patterns of behaviour to each one of these emotions. Once identified, you can then choose to adapt or change your behaviour accordingly.

Sometimes I recommend Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or CBT. Although there are lengthy waiting lists it may be worth asking your doctor to refer you to a CBT practitioner. Research has shown that CBT is just as, if not more effective than taking anti-depressants. Of course, if you can’t wait, then finding a good counsellor or life coach for further help quickly is the next step.

The important thing is not to feel stuck and know that there are alternative routes of help available.

Rumana Zahn is a Naturopath and Medical Herbalist. She runs her own Clinics in Newcastle (within a GPs practice), Darlington and the Serenity Spa at Seaham Hall. She is a leader within the field of Natural Medicine and extensively writes and speaks on the subject. She can be contacted on 01325 722803 or visit her website www.rumanahealth.com

Rumana Zahn is a Member of the British Register of Complementary Practitioners

 

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