Depression and How It Relates to Detox
The symptoms of depression, "a malignant sadness,"* are many and varied. There are mental complaints that include depressed mood, difficulty getting along with family, friends or co-workers, loss of interest or pleasure, feeling worthless, guilty, irritable or angry, and thoughts of death or suicide
There are physical complaints. Among them are persistent fatigue, lack of energy, inability to concentrate, loss of appetite or weight gain, unexplained headaches, backaches, digestive upsets, stomach pain, nausea, indigestion, and changes in bowel habits. Many of these symptoms are very similar to symptoms caused by toxins in the environment.
Depression can also be caused by physical illnesses including diabetes, and heart disease. It also often accompanies back injury or chronic back pain.
If you have the mental symptoms, in addition to the physical complaints, you have a serious condition and you will need professional help to sort it out. This is especially true if the mental symptoms reoccur, affect your ability to function at work, or you can't attribute them to a specific life event that may have precipitated them. Even if you do know what precipitated your feelings of depression, if they seeming to be worsening, you need to find help.
You need to sort out your options in a hurry. If you're experiencing suicidal symptoms, find out immediately what your health insurance coverage for depressive disorders is. If you don't have health insurance coverage, get out the phone book, or ask the operator to help you locate
– a suicide prevention hotline
– a community mental health center
– a family service agency, or
– a self-help group.
If you don't have the energy to act on your own behalf, reach out to some caring person and ask them to help you connect to professional help.
If you're depressed, though not suicidal, a good, holistically oriented physician may be able to help you sort out the source of the problem through testing and medical history. This is especially important if a physical problem is the source of your depression. A physician can prescribe medication, if necessary, and a holistic one will help you adjust your diet and exercise programs to improve aspects that are within your ability to control.
*"Malignant sadness" is the title of a book by Lewis Walport, a British biologist who has suffered from depression.
