Natural Depression Treatments

Depression is a problem that affects millions of people worldwide and can range from being fairly mild to completely devastating. While there are a variety of drugs available to help control the symptoms of this disease, they often have nasty side effects and can be hard to tolerate for many sufferers. On top of this, antidepressants often carry a stigma with them, causing users to suffer harassment and possibly lose potential jobs.

To avoid the problems associated with poor mental health and the side effects of traditional medicine, many depression sufferers decide to go the natural route. They look for alternative treatments to use in place of regular pills.

Natural depression treatments have several advantages to them. One is that they tend to be cheaper than the average antidepressant. Also, they are available without a prescription, which means instead of having to see your doctor for a refill, you can simply head to the nearest natural supplement or health store to get what you need, depending on the treatment you have chosen.

One of the most renowned natural antidepressant is St. John’s Wort. This herb has been used for centuries to treat mild to severe depression, ranking in studies on the same level as Prozac. It comes in capsules, tablets or in a tea. The tea is probably the weakest of the three choices, but it is easy enough to replace your morning Earl Grey with a cup of depression treatment! The downside to this natural treatment is that it can affect your oral birth control and several women have found that the Pill is no longer effective when taking this herb.

Ginseng and Ginkgo are two other herbs that have been proven to relieve depression symptoms, particularly in the elderly. They can be used separately, but are best together. The herbs come in capsule or tablet form as well and are pleasant smelling as well as fast working. They may not be quite as effective as St. John’s Wort, so this natural therapy is better used for mild depression.

Other natural remedies for depression include an amino acid called 5-HTP, which helps your body produce more serotonin, the happy hormone. Since most antidepressants help boost serotonin levels (low levels have been linked to depression), it makes sense that 5-HTP would work just as well. This treatment is effective, but made more so by combining it with St. John’s Wort.

Depression has also been linked in some cases to a Vitamin B deficiency, so this is another natural treatment. When a deficiency is indeed the cause of the depression, then taking a supplement and increasing intake of foods that contain the missing nutrient should help clear up the problem. It is a good idea to check with your doctor on this one first since this may or may not be your particular problem.

Antidepressants are often considered to be a last resort and many people who suffer from depression would much rather take a natural supplement than admit to friends and family that they are suffering from a mental illness. Natural treatments have become more and more popular over the years as people become more familiar with their options and realize that the side effects associated with typical antidepressant medications do not need to be tolerated in every case.