Originally published October 20 2011
How to avoid being like the 11 percent of Americans who now take antidepressant drugs every day
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
(NaturalNews) The admitted goal of the pharmaceutical industry is to have every man, woman and child in America taking at least two prescription medications every day of their lives (whether they're sick or not). Through Big Pharma's corruption of the FDA, medical journals, med schools and the mainstream media, it creeps ever closer to accomplishing that goal, and today it has been revealed that one in ten Americans are now on SSRI antidepressant drugs.
This is the conclusion of a survey conducted by the CDC. It also revealed that antidepressant use jumped 400% from 2005 - 2008, while women are 2.5 times more likely to use antidepressants than men. (And whites are far more likely to use them than blacks, the CDC found.) (http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/19/us...)
I could write thousands of words about the dangerous side effects of prolonged antidepressant use (diabetes, psychosis, detachment from reality, etc.), but for this article, I'd rather approach things from a solutions angle and share what I know about getting OFF antidepressant drugs using nutrition and holistic health principles.
How to get off the SSRI meds and save your brain
First, realize that the fictions being sold you by the false advertising of the pharmaceutical industry must be abandoned. Depression is not caused by a "chemical imbalance in the brain" that can be resolved by paying monopoly prices for a patented synthetic chemical sold by a local pharmacy. That's just a fabrication which was engineered to sell you more overpriced pills.
In reality, "depression" is the red flag warning that multiple areas of your life are out of balance and need to be brought back into balance before you'll really feel better. After talking with probably hundreds of people about their experiences with so-called "mental disorders" over the past eight years, I've come to the conclusion that there are at least four powerful strategies for permanently reversing depression without using any drugs whatsoever. They are:
#1) Spend more time in nature.
Spending time in nature reverses depression at so many levels it's almost difficult to overstate the benefits. Sunlight exposure beats back depression at the hormonal level. Breathing fresh air that's filled with negative ions from trees and plants prevents depression at a bioelectric level. Touching the earth with your bare hands, hearing the sounds of nature, feeling the bark of a tree or even just seeing lush green foliage is all vibrational, sensory medicine that also helps reverse diabetes.
If you look at most people who are depressed, they almost all have one thing in common: The LIVE and WORK indoors! They never get out. They never run barefoot in the grass. They are depressed because they are disconnected from the real world. And that's not what the human body and mind was designed to experience.
#2) Get some regular physical exercise
Did you know that when you exercise, your brain manufactures antidepressant drugs for free? No prescription needed, either. One walk on a treadmill might save you $20 worth of drugs!
Actually, your body's own brain drugs are better than any synthetic drugs, too. That's because your biochemistry has no negative side effects. You simply feel good after exercising, and the good feeling may continue for as long as 24 hours.
Your exercise doesn't have to be crazy to make a world of difference. Just walking 45 minutes a day can have a HUGE impact on your life. Don't have 45 minutes a day? I bet you do. I bet you watch 45 minutes of TV a day that you could ditch, or you spend 45 minutes a day engaging in pointless activities that don't contribute to your happiness in any sort of meaningful way. Why not spend those 45 minutes taking a walk instead? You'll not only feel happier, but your body will get healthier too!
#3) Eat more omega-3 oils and organic plants.
Depression also has a powerful nutritional component. Most "depressed" people are living on processed dead foods. They're eating way too much sugar, white flour, breads, pasteurized dairy and other depressing foods. No wonder they feel so blue!
To reverse all this, eat more omega-3 oils from dietary supplements, wild-caught salmon, flax seeds, chia seeds and other sources. Boost your mineral intake by consuming (or juicing) lots of fresh organic produce. Make sure it's organic, because that means it has a higher mineral content. Trace minerals drastically improve cognitive function and moods.
Finally, eat more living foods and less "dead" food. Living foods make you feel alive because they are alive! Dead foods make you feel dead. So get yourself a juicer (the Breville juicers are the best all-around, high-quality juicers), buy some organic carrots, apples, celery and parsley, and start juicing your way to a happier life! (Yes, it really does make you happier.)
#4) Find meaning in your work and in your life.
Many people who are "depressed" also work at a thankless job, or exist in a torturous personal relationship, and they typically live a life with no real purpose or meaning. Having a purpose in life is very inspiring. Pursuing it with daily action can completely reverse any signs of depression and help turn despair into positive, constructive action.
That's why I say if you feel depressed start searching for your real purpose in life!
I know my purpose. It is to protect the diversity of life on our planet and in our universe. Each day, I diligently work as the editor of NaturalNews toward that fulfilling purpose. This is what allows me to keep moving forward regardless of what happens in the world around me. I know that the universe has granted me the opportunity and the tools to live a life with purpose, in service of what I believe is the most noble cause in the entire universe: The protection of life and truth (against destructive forces, against darkness, against deception, etc.).
I challenge you: What can you find in your own life that is an important purpose serving a higher good? If your work is unfulfilling, can you find a way to transition to a more meaningful line of work that would make you happier? (Yes, it might mean earning less money, but you can't buy happiness, so it's priceless!)
Can you find a way to work in the service of others so that the people around you experience an improvement in their own lives? Can you teach others? Can you lead by example? Can you write inspiring books?
This may take some soul searching, but you may find solutions through meditation or yoga or even just taking long hikes in nature and thinking about your life for a change. I've never seen a purpose-driven person feeling depressed for very long. Once you find a driving purpose in your life, you'll be so busy pursuing that mission that you won't even have time to feel depressed!
Or you could just take SSRI drugs and fake like you're happy
Now, if you really can't stand going outside in the sunshine, and you absolutely love to eat donuts for breakfast and pizza for dinner, and you have no purpose in your life other than to inhale more snack chips in front of the TV set, then SSRI drugs may be the perfect thing. With one little pill, you can temporarily alter your brain chemistry to add illusion to insult, making you "feel" like your life is okay even though you know in your heart that it isn't.
Getting off SSRI drugs requires courage. Taking responsibility for your life may be the hardest thing you've ever done, but it might also be the most rewarding. Subsisting on mind-altering drugs while living a life of despair is no life at all. And the longer you take these SSRI drugs, the more detached you will feel, making you even more isolated and depressed.
That's why I say get off your meds NOW! Turn off the TV and take your life back! Get off the couch, out of the pharmacy and away from your toxic doctor with his deadly prescription pad that probably has a Pfizer logo on it. Get out into nature, eat real foods, get into regular exercise and find a meaningful purpose in your life. This will get you back on track to not just happiness, but spiritual fulfillment as well.
After all, being here isn't just about feeling happy all the time. It's about something far more important: Standing for something that matters so that your life is lived with purpose. Who's got time to be depressed when you're serving a higher purpose?
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