Twenty years ago, I was asked to work with a woman suffering from severe depression after her husband decided to divorce her. She was so desperate that she even considered ending her own life. Luckily, she sought help, but her persistent depression didn’t go away as much as she had hoped.
I offered to try a system I developed, which I feel has proven effective with clients struggling with despair. I believed I could help her. She is a therapist and the countless hours of talk therapy were not the perfect solution for her.In my opinion they are not the perfect solution to the problem of brain chemistry.
After showing her empathy and spending time understanding her symptoms, I explained how she could be cured.
I taught her that the problem wasn’t the divorce, it wasn’t the depression. It’s a cascade of emotions common to people suffering from changes in brain chemistry, and her biochemical changes were caused by a PTSD triggering event.
As I guided her to heal her biochemical symptoms, her thinking and behavior changed.
One way we have been able to help people who feel that conventional treatments are not working enough is by helping them understand the biochemical abnormalities that may be causing their unsafe moods. is.
At least as far as we know so far, brain chemistry is the underlying cause of depression and suicidal thoughts. The chemistry of the brain can also change. In other cases, the situation causes chemical changes in the brain. Either way, treatment has to start here — with brain chemistry.
Most of my clients who seem to suffer from PTSD and persistent depression have the same biochemical issues that underlie their depression. Their mindset changed as soon as they were addressed with the medical solutions solution.
They were then able to learn to control their old habits of mostly negative thinking.
How this healing system works
The first thing to know is that the adrenal system regulates the “fight/flight/freeze/fawn” behaviors associated with PTSD and other trauma-related reactions. A biochemical issue overlooked by many psychiatrists and doctors is adrenal cortisol.
I have found that nearly all of my clients need more adrenal cortisol at certain times of the day. Insufficient adrenal cortisol causes even more serious biochemical problems.
When adrenal cortisol is deficient, the body stops producing serotonin, dopamine, and other essential neurotransmitters that produce feelings of well-being, peace, and joy. It’s a slippery slope to depression, and what’s worse, it can and must be avoided.
Evidence points to the need for new treatments for persistent depression.
In a recent article, “What happens to your brain and body when you have suicidal thoughts,” author Ashley Broadwater writes. sensitivity. “
This article is incredibly helpful. Numerous data and citations support the importance of considering biochemistry as a factor in persistent depression and hopelessness.
Manage mood changes and distress associated with PTSD
Simply put, emotional reactions to stressful or traumatic life situations cause the body to deplete its supply of adrenal cortisol.
Soon, the demand for adrenal cortisol cannot be kept up, and extreme fatigue follows. When someone experiences fatigue and lack of inner joy for many days in a row, this experience turns into a depressed mood.
But in my opinion, this is not traditional depression. Fatigue caused by PTSD. When my clients realized this, a huge weight was lifted from their shoulders.It gave them hope. This helped motivate them to work with me to find the best supplements and other products to heal their body and mood.
To be clear, that doesn’t mean it’s less serious, it just means you may need another kind of treatment.
Our Mind Habits Determine Our Speed of Healing
Clients with a habit of complaining and blaming others needed more intense treatment to improve their brain chemistry than those who learned to control their minds.
Three skill sets that have proven effective are meditation, the self-soothing functional thinking tools I provided, and getting empathy from a trained professional every day.
Because we know that every time someone thinks of hopeless thoughts, it has a greater impact on that person’s reality.
Here are three key steps to follow for healing.
1. Understanding and evaluating chemical balance
Begin by referring your client to a trained and reputable professional who will assess adrenal cortisol, serotonin, dopamine and other neurotransmitter levels.
If someone is already on psychotropic medication, this is not my specialty or expertise and experts will advise on this. or have suicidal thoughts. In most cases, testing will prove that the drug is not working as expected.
However, if your client is switching to non-chemical options, you should do In a gradual and safe manner after 3-6 months under clinician supervision.
2. Understanding Trigger Events
The initial catalyst for the hopeless despair client mentioned in this article was her husband’s decision to divorce. But I don’t think her choice to leave him was the initial cause of her depression and her hopeless thoughts.
He decided to leave due to months of uncomfortable conversations caused by her mood swings.
Without adrenal cortisol, the body cannot produce enough of serotonin, dopamine, endorphins, and other “feel good” neurotransmitters, the body’s natural so-called “opiates.” She also lacked serotonin uptake, so her ability to utilize serotonin was minimal even when supplements were provided to help millions of people. it was done.
3. Exploring Potentially Inherited Biochemical Problems
The key to curing depression and preventing the darkest types of despair is understanding the frequency of genetic imbalances in adrenal cortisol, serotonin, dopamine, and other neurotransmitters.
Although it was found to be a common symptom among migrants from war-torn countries, the cause of PTSD is not limited to the environment. For many of these families, it is a challenge to connect multigenerational suffering long before any particular political issue.
Other families suffering from various countries of origin had both ‘situational depression’ and ‘biochemical depression’, which explain these causes, and were able to cope with each.
Wiring Your Brain For Inner Peace
Ned Harman said, “whole brain model.”
T.This tells us that only one quadrant of the brain is focused on emotions. So, when you learn to manage your mind, you can turn your attention away from your emotions and if you have facts/numbers/data or creative, artistic, peaceful ideas or action plans to achieve positive goals. , free yourself from suicidal thoughts, even for a few minutes at a time.
As we practice to strengthen our own brain wiring, our lives improve as we develop a more balanced brain.
When you’re doing important but non-emotional tasks around the house, you may be less aware of your depression. When you’re watching comedy, you may not feel depressed at all.
However, deficient adrenal cortisol, serotonin, and dopamine make it very difficult for people suffering from depression to engage in these activities.
By activating parts of the brain other than the emotional quadrant, you may feel relief from depression. This ability to turn your thinking around the corner may require supplements and other products, but it’s one key point for alleviating despair, depression, and suicidal thoughts.
There are various treatments that I recommend to my clients after their biochemical levels have been assessed.
These include supporting the adrenal system, serotonin and dopamine production, enhancing sleep, curbing alcohol and sugar cravings, and obtaining the support of a qualified clinician to manage medications differently. ingestible and wearable supplements.
The above information is not intended as a recipe for you to follow and expect the same results. can be given.
If you or someone you know has thoughts of self-harm or suicide, National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.
Susan Allan A certified mediator and coach, founder of Marriage Forum Inc and author of The 6 Part Conversation.© The 7 Steps to Marriage and Divorce training helps people understand their own needs and partners.
