From Sounds True: Insights from the Edge:
Dr. James S. Gordon, the founder and director of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine and a clinical professor at the Georgetown University School of Medicine, speaks with Tami Simon about self-healing strategies for overcoming depression. Dr. Gordon is the author of Unstuck
, and with Sounds True he has created the six-session audio program Freedom from Depression: A Practical Guide for the Journey. In this episode, Tami speaks with Dr. Gordon about the actual research on antidepressants and their effectiveness, the importance of breaking the taboo around talking about our suicidal thoughts, and which mind-body practices are most powerful for helping people experiencing severe depression. (57 minutes)
Listen here:
–Another post that features James Gordon’s work on Beyond Meds: James Gordon—meditation and movement
Related information on Beyond Meds:
Contrary to popular opinion “major depression” can respond to non-drug options!
I’ll cut and paste the above collection from Beyond Meds below:
YES, thank you…don’t believe the hype about how essential drugs are in severe cases. It’s possible to make healthy choices and avoid neurotoxic and dangerous drugs most of the time. People need to be offered options as a very real possibility. As it stands now people are often misled to believe they need drugs when another method of care may actually be more appropriate for long-term positive outcomes. “Alternative” care needs to become mainstream so that people might become truly and deeply healthy.
From MedPage Today:
Major Depression Does Respond to ‘Minor’ Tools
Patients with more severe depression gain as much clinical benefit from low-intensity interventions, such as self-help books and websites, as those with less severe depression, researchers found.
In a meta-analysis, patients who were more severely depressed at baseline had larger treatment effects with low-intensity interventions than those who were less depressed (coefficient -0.1, 95% CI -0.19 to -0.002), reported Peter Bower, PhD, of the University of Manchester in England, and colleagues online in BMJ. (read more)
People have a right to know it’s possible to heal naturally from depression (and all psych diagnosis) so that they might find the motivation to try. As things stand right now far too many mental health services do not tell people there are many alternatives to drugs.
For many alternative modes of healing check the drop-down menus at the top of this page. It’s not exhaustive…there are many different things that can help different people. The above lists though can get you thinking outside the psychiatric box.
For more related information see this page on SSRIs and the risks involved in taking them.
and here are some posts with collections that might help one start thinking about alternatives:
- there is no such thing as a monolithic state called depression
- What if grief is the natural order of things, a way of loving life anyway?
- Fear and anxiety: coping, reframing, transforming…
- Dark night — healing the shadow and the dark emotions
- The anger and rage collection: what we don’t engage we cannot transform
- Conversations about Suicidal Feelings
- Reframe your experience
- Yoga for your health and wellbeing, helps with your heart and anxiety and depression
- Nutrition and gut health – Mental health and diet
Here is a place to start as well. Click here for a list of posts from the category depression in chronological order.
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