Can anyone help me with ways to deal with depression and stress without meds??

Depression can be a terrible disease. People who have never experienced it have no idea. I have had one bout with it and was put on paxil, I had insurance which paid for it but didn't want to take medicine everyday so I eventually weaned myself off of it. Today I am happy and healthy, the things that I find that changed my life were taking a walk everyday for about 1/2 an hour, starting to look for the good things in my life, appreciating the small things, my kids smiles etc and eating more fruits and veggies than junk food. Every time negative or anxious thoughts come my way I tell myself I'm only thinking good thoughts today. It's like a little mantra to me, only good thoughts. I am one of the lucky ones, obviously if it were that easy there wouldn't be medication for stress and depression. I wish you the very best, think positively about it and try to retrain your thinking.

there are 2 herbs that help, valerian root, and saint john's wort. valerian root is good for stress, i love it, but some people say it puts them in a fog... saint john's wort is more mild, it helps but i never heard of anyone being in a fog from it. try to look for positive things in life too, if you work very hard to laugh even at the worse things that happened you will end up having less depression. try conditioning your self, just keep smiling no matter what, at first it will be fake and you will know it, but at the end it will grow on you and you will actually feel like smiling more often.

There Are quite A Few Depressed People On mylot .. Please Don't mistake me .. I just advised Somebody on mylot around an Hour Back .. You People Have to First Understand - Depression Is a State Of Mind .. You have to keep on Telling Good Things about yourself Consciously .. You First have to feel Good About Yourself .. You should Never get any Negativity Across Your Mind .. And Lastly Never Question Yourself .. You are Absolutely Normal .. What You do Is Always Right .. I Think I Have Given you Good Advise .. Wish You The Very Best .. Take Good Care Of yourself ..

I've never had severe depression, but I have had bouts of depression. It is not "all in your head", I believe that it is a physical affliction. Many of the suggestions I've read here are good. Prayer, meditation, exercise, journalling, St. John's Wort all are good to try, all will help balance you. Learn to meditate and clear your Chakra's, you can find info about both on the internet. If I have your permission I can send you Reiki, might help, but I need your permission. Reiki is a wonderful healing method, perhaps if you learn and get an attunement for Reiki that would help you even more. One thing to try, when you are feeling anxious, take a few slow, deep breaths, envision roots growing from the soles of your feet, let the roots grow down into the earth, deeply down to the earth's core. When your roots reach the core, imagine all your anxiety and negativity flowing through the roots to the core where the earth will burn those energies, recycling them into positive energy and removing them from you. This is grounding, often when I am feeling flustered I use this technique, to settle me down. I can do this quickly so I can instantly deal with what is agitating me. I hope this helps. I know how I feel when I'm feeling depressed, I can't imagine having it continually, the closest I came to that was when my doctor put me on Zoloft, for menopause symtoms. I hated it so much I weaned myself off and it was weeks before I could shake that feeling. Good luck and I'm praying that you will find a solution.

I have Fibromyalgia and I go through bouts of depression and anxiety. I take Walgreens brand "Finest Natural" St. Johns Wort- any other brand seems weak and doesn't work for me. I also take Sundown brand Super B Complex. It has 1000% of all the b vitamins. Other brands only have 75% or 100% which is not enough. My doctor told me to also take vitamin D3 1000 I.U. once per day. That vitamin alone did wonders for me! My attitude changed right away, after only a few days. All the other stuff like exercise, journaling and support groups, it all helps but vitamins fix what your body chemistry is missing. If your body isn't getting what it needs, all the exercise and talking in the world is not going to fix it. Good luck, hope you get better soon! =)

There are many ways to deal with depression without meds. As a matter of fact, that's what my business is built around. I am a life coach. A life coach helps people deal with issues like this. Contact me at the e-mail on my profile. I would love to try to help you with your problem.

I'm not sure if you are going through anxiety or panic attacks? I do have one exercise that helps me everytime I begin to panic. First sit where you're comfortable and where there is access to sounds, and things to see. You will name five things you see in this room example: 1) Chair 2) Table 3) Television 4) floor 5) lamp Next: Name five sounds you hear example: 1) Someone talking 2) Television on 3) Radio 4) Your breathing 5) Clock Next: Name five things you feel.. this doesn't mean your heart racing or emotions This simply means physically example: 1) Your hair touching your shoulders 2) Your feet on the floor 3) Your pants on your legs 4) Your socks on your feet 5) Your shirt on your torso I hope this helps you out as it's helped me everytime. If you feel still have a panic feeling repeat these steps again and again until you are back to feeling calm. Have a great night

I think when you are stress or depressed, there are many ways to reduce it. As for me, there are only 2 ways to reduce them besides smoking, which I stopped. Nowadays, I prefer to go for a jog or any sport activities to ease the stress. When you are exercising, you are burning calories as well as allowing the blood to circulate better with more oxygen into the body and hence the level of depression will greatly drop. Another way to reduce it is to eat, it is not a very healthy way after all but as for me, I feel better when I eat. However with a little improvisation, eating here can be just fruits which are healthier in a way.

hmmm, depression is just in your heart and mind. stop thinking the things that made you sad and depressed. instead think of the things that you want you happy. my brother experienced the same issue, i kept on telling him and his psychologist that stop thinking or recalling the past. moved on and be happy of what you are having right now. depression is just really depends on the beholder.

Hi. I think you have to join organization which supports people like you. You may want to involve to some activities that will make you feel better. I, myself, have been depressed year 2006 and i was out of it late quarter of 2007. I didnt take any meds, but i got support from my close friends and loved ones. What i did was making myself busy with physical activities like exercise, charity events and all. It does make me meet different kinds of people with different status in life. This lead me to understand that my case is not that hard compare to other people. My boyfriend advise me to go to psych but that didnt work out because i been feeling better now. Love yourself - thats the key. Happy mylotting and smile always!

i have three advices for you: first one comes from one of my friends who has the same phenomena just as you do.she takes it this way: list all the things or people who make you annoyed or depressed and prepare a bottle with half-bottle water.then you just complain and scold them one by one to the mouth of the bottle as long as you think its enough, then move to the next, and so on.she feels pretty good after doing this.what's best, you can rest a little and have some water in the bottle when you are tired. second one comes from one of my colleagues, she listens to music long enough for her to forget or refresh a little.but i dont really approve of this idea becoz now she has a problem right in her ears. the last one comes from my own experience.once i failed a very important exam, i ran out my home with my dog and ran and ran for several rounds around my living block and i felt better than the time when i didn't go out.hope can do you some help.

My mom also was into depression and a good psychiatrist consulted her and by God's grace she is fine...The doc said only one thing...That medicines cannot do wonders unless the patient makes an effort to come out of it..Medicines are only for secreting hormones where there is a imbalance... you can exercise and show working on your hobbies...Try to divert your attention by taking a vacation. There are so many options if you actually want to come out of depression.

Go vegetarian.

I understand where you are coming from. I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) about six years ago. It is not easy to come off those meds, but when I saw how much worse off I was after taking them and then having to go without them, I came to the conclusion that I would rather do without. I am a real music lover and I have been singing all my life. I found that this was the best therapy for me. If I am in a place where I cannot sing, I will play music or just hum to myself. I would suggest that you find something to your liking that will calm you down in those most stressful moments. If you like to sing, sing...if you like art, draw, paint, or doodle...if you like flowers, plant some, or go buy some house plants to care for (talking to them is actually good for you and the plant...can't beat a free therapist and the plant doesn't judge you or talk back), pets are great too. Also, my favorite natural sedative is catnip tea. The catnip plant grows wild in many places, and now is a great time to stock up on it. You can take rinsed leaves off a fresh plant and make tea. You can freeze the leaves for winter storage as well. If you cannot find the plant growing wild, you can look for it in herbal shops, natural food shops, or vitamin shops. It is also great for cramps! I hope this helps you out some. Please keep me posted.

exercise releases happy hormones into the body and helps fight depression. make sure you talk to someone about your feelings, a problem shared is a problem halved.

Also, you might want to consider writing a diary, it's a good way to channel any sort of bad thoughts.

You might want to try to drink specialty teas, like chamomile or anything else that is relaxing. You should also try meditation and yoga, those are both good for the soul. If you don't get better though, I suggest you seek a doctor. I am the same way - I don't want to be put on meds for my depression, so I want to seek out other ways of making myself feel better. Try reading up on buddhism, too!

I have stress and depression both in my life.The best way to deal with this as I have done over the past three years from which I am doing graduation in telecom engg. is that u better believe in yourself.I feel that self motivation is the best way to overcome the depression and self confidence is enough to overcome stress.