[CJZee]

Originally Posted by blue fairy

My second thing I do to calm my self down is to sniff an herb bag that I made. I sewed a little bag filled with rice and herbs that I like the scent of. It is small enough to keep in my pocket so I pull it out whenever I need it. My scent is cinnamon ... I know not to conventional but hey some times the crazy stuff works.

Your use of cinnamon is not crazy at all. I am not clinically depressed, but I have been very very anxious lately due to a legal situation. I have been sniffing cinnamon, also, and there is actually a good reason for why this works. (You can sniff anything that is a pleasant smell for you, and it should work.)

The sense of smell is the only one associated directly with our "reptile" brain, the brain that rules our "fight-or-flight" response if it thinks we're in danger. Daily life creates lots of anxiety, so this "fight-or-flight" response only adds to it.

If we can fool our reptile brain into thinking everything is fine and calm, our anxiety can go way down. One way to do this is to smell things (like cinnamon) that are pleasant for us. As the sense of smell is controlled by our primitive brain, it is the one way we can communicate with it directly. So smelling something nice makes it believe that all is okay so it can relax (and thus so can we).

[bindersbee]

I just wanted to put in a plug for a free anxiety support group called 'Recovery'. There are hundreds of chapters who meet all over the country. It is NOT a replacement for doctors etc. (the disclaimer) but there you'll meet with other people who suffer similarly and you'll learn techniques and coping skills through cognitive therapy. It's been REALLY helpful for us. I don't have an anxiety condition but still find attending with my spouse helps me learn to cope better with life AND gives us better communication between us.

The methods taught in Recovery are based on a book by Dr. Abraham Low. Dr. Low developed these techinques in the 20's and 30's- long before there was medication to help people with these conditions. The website is recovery-inc.org. I'd highly recommend you check it out. It really can change your life and if nothing else, you'll be in a room full of people who truly understand your struggle.

[Toonces]

Originally Posted by Betony

I made an appointment to see a psych -- while I wanted to try to handle these feelings without medication, things are getting worse instead of better. I just need to hang in there for two more weeks until I can see her.

I'm on this site primarily for weight loss, but for right now, I need to get this under a little control first. Otherwise, I'm finding myself just sunk, and I don't like this.

Don't fear the medication if your doctor suggests that it would be helpful. Depression is a medical condition. You'd take medication to deal with any number of conditions that one may have, and this is no different.

Ensuring that you'd got good mental health is probably one of the most important things. Without dealing with it, everything else becomes much more difficult, and seemingly impossible.

Some medications can lead to weight gain, either in the chemical makeup or their tendency to make you crave things. Don't get discouraged!! Complimentary medication can help you with that, and feeling better will also help you deal with it better.

Also. While some people may need to take anti-depressants for the rest of their life (as medicine is now) it's not the case for everyone.

Lastly. Medication is only PART of the treatment. For my money, medication alone is never enough, it must be complimented with appropriate therapy.

The BIGGEST obstacle in dealing with depression or other mood disorders is reaching out for help. So, for that, congratulations.

[cathyxxx]

I know many people who have dealt with both depression and anxiety and when correct thyroid tests were finally done, found that they actually had an underlying thyroid problem causing both.

you might want to check out the info at
http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com...mental-health/
which talks about the connection

it is definitely something to look into and the normal TSH that is usually run by docs can miss the problem.

Cathy