[emndarmic]

Hello..
I was just wondering if a low fat or low carb or some kind of diet in general can alleviate depression, adhd, and anxiety/panic attacks? I was diagnosed with adhd and depression w/anxiety/panic attacks that debilitate me from time to time in the restroom, nauseous and sometimes vomiting.

My son (10) was diagnosed with adhd almost a year ago (but not medicated regularly from those "forgetful" moments of his when I'm already at work, he forgets to take his meds, andddd bring his homework home, anddd turn in his homework, you name it).

My husband was a BEAR for months so I talked him into talking to his Dr about his grouchiness and after talking his Dr he put him on Celexa, he is AWESOME again, happy man I married 12 yrs ago.

Now, to beat all, our 11 year old daughter was having major menstrual periods for 3 months in a row where she would literally be in bed for days, she'd start off with 2 days of vomiting, pain, heavy flow, etc, then end up completely exhausted and slept off and on for the next 2 days. We talked with my gyno about it and he recommended that she be put on BC pills (but not to tell her what they are, our luck she'd go to school and tell her teacher, mom put me on birth control pills...OMG) and he also recommended celexa for her too. He said her hormone level is whacked since she's been menstruating since she was early 9 yrs old.

And my story grows longer..our 3 year old is completely and totally out of control. We do parent him honestly, we're not pushover parents and never have been, we are consistent in punishment and we fit the punishment to the problem as much as possible. He is in all day preschool for his speech and behavior issues, that takes place at a "Special " kind of school so they have great patients with him. Those kids and teachers are fantastic. A child psychiatrist who diagnosed me and my 11 yr old said that ADHD runs
through families and he's certain that our almost 4 yr old has it. But, I don't want him on anything right now.

Although I'm not a no meds for my kids mom, I am open to things that really work and not zombie them (haven't came across any kinds that zombie him yet). I would like to follow some sort of diet to help with these issues to modify behavior issues and also help us lose some weight. We have all gained since taking medication.

Sorry this post is so long but I really had some questions and sometimes everyday average people are better informed on certain things than our very own doctors. So what do you think? Any diets, any meds work real well for ADHD, he's now on concerta but was wondering if some sort of anti-depressant would work better, he has sooo many of those symptoms too and I'm wondering if maybe he could be needing that instead. He's a very angry little boy (the 10 yr old).

Ok, done now.

Thanks for listening...

[karenann33]

I cured my depression with methods mentioned in the book Depression Free Naturally. It's a NO sugar low carb diet combined with vitamins and supplements like fish oil, vitamin B, etc. The author does mention kids but honestly I skipped over that part since my kids are fine.

[Leenie]

When I was following Atkins I felt great, I did not have SAD (althought I'm not sure how it affected my adhd as I really didn't pay attention to it). But definitely it helped my depression. Also my blood work came back perfect!!! So I second the low carb way of eating.

[karenann33]

I should add the reason I'm here is because my depression is back. Why? Because I got cocky and thought I could have diet soda's and junk again just because I was deleriously happy. Ummmmm no. For some reason I can't get it in my head that eating low carb is something I will have to do forever not just when I'm feeling bad. I'm off junk for 4 days now so each day is getting better but still I should have never done it in the first place. Grrrrr....

[Leenie]

Good for you Karen... hope your feeling better FAST!!!!

[Spoz]

I think overall being healthy and active can really ton down depression yes, but I don't think any specific diet can eliminate it. I think the key word is healthy

[karenann33]

Originally Posted by Spoz

I think overall being healthy and active can really ton down depression yes, but I don't think any specific diet can eliminate it. I think the key word is healthy

For me the diet didn't 100% eliminate the depression but what it did was give me the strength and a clear mind to deal with what stressors used to send me into a tailspin. I began to think like a normal person instead of letting thoughts and other things ruminate in my head for days and weeks at a time. For the first time in my life I was able to just let things go. Radical concept honestly for someone who has NEVER been able to do that.

I can even see this with my kids. For the most part they eat well but occasionally they do get sugar and other treats. Almost immediately you can see their mood change. They get upset easily, annoyed, cranky even my skeptical husband sees it. He'll come home sometimes and see how bad they are being and will look at me and ask "did you feed them sugar?" to which I sheepishly answer "yes".

Even he knows and he wasn't even here to see us eat it. Amazing!

[karenann33]

Originally Posted by Leenie

Good for you Karen... hope your feeling better FAST!!!!

Thanks. Today is day 5 and I can "feel" the depression lifting (at least I've stopped yelling at everyone). Only struggle I'm having is eating vegetables. Blech...just haven't been in the mood. I've cut out junk sure but the other part of this equation is eating a balanced diet of protein, veggies, fruit, good carbs, dairy, good carbs, etc. Cutting out an entire food group still leaves me feeling lethargic and not as happy as I know I could be if I say had some good broccoli or other green veggie.

[Hypra]

I used to have horrible ADD, depression, and anxiety.

Working out everyday and eating foods that give you energy vs. giving you a quick burst and then causing a crash made a HUGE difference.

there is a lot of research about this available:
http://preventdisease.com/news/artic...s_prozac.shtml
http://ahuli.info/exercise-the-mirac...sant-drug.html