Could There Be Natural Help For Depression Out There?

Having a website dedicated to nutrition means most people are going to expect me to constantly write about nutrition, and how to cook things, recipes, etc…however, I do feel like I want to dedicate some of this website to wellness, which goes hand in hand with nutrition, but is not always about food.

I want to talk a little bit about depression. Yes, this is a thing, and it is not always about eating too much sugar. Yes, eating crappy food can contribute to feeling down or having “the sugar blues,” but sometimes, life just gets you down. I can say between the stress of a bad breakup, looking for work, and trying to figure out general life, I get down and feel a little, or even a lot…depressed myself…and I am not afraid to admit it. Yes, Facebook might make my life (or anyone’s life, let’s be real here) look amazing, but hey, I am not afraid to admit that I take the supplement I am about to discuss with you in this blog.

Since I subscribe to eating healthy and trying to put mostly whole, unprocessed foods in my body, I feel the same way about putting pills in my body. What I mean is, there seems to be a pill for every ache and pain out there, and most doctors are not afraid to give them to you. Body ache? Try a muscle relaxer. Headache? How about ibuprofen? Depression? Anxiety? Well, where do I start? Do you want Prozac, Zoloft, Wellbutrin? How about a little Xanax for that anxiety?

I personally don’t want to get into any of those medications. Although they have been known to help people, some experience side effects and oftentimes become dependent on them to feel good about themselves and life in general. I had heard thru someone in my nutrition network about a natural anxiety and stress reliever sold at health food stores called Holy Basil Leaf. One afternoon I wandered into Whole Foods and decided to see if I could find it.

Holy Basil Leaf…kind of a kooky name, right? So what exactly is this stuff?

Turns out that holy basil leaf is an adaptogen, meaning it brings balance to the entire body and protects it from stresses of all kinds. It increases strength, stamina and endurance and allows the body to utilize oxygen more efficiently while it promotes proper protein synthesis in the body. It is a very important herb in Ayurvedic medicine. which is a holistic system and form of alternative medicine from India.

I purchased the holy basil leaf in two different forms, one in pill form and one in liquid extract. As most people would concur, taking any medicine in its liquid form is going to get into your blood stream quicker than the pill form, so I do recommend the extract if you want to feel the effects faster. In pill form, you take 1-2 pills daily between meals. In liquid form, it is about 20-30 drops of the liquid into water or whatever you prefer to drink. I think water is your best bet. That is what I used, and the basil actually tastes good and has a slight sweetness to it.

I highly recommend this supplement if your depression is not severe, is situational and related to a stress and anxiety that you haven’t been able to relieve. I recommend trying this before resorting to stronger antidepressants. I can’t promise you this is a CURE, but I will say that it has helped me. It may take a few days for the effects to kick in, but at least give it a chance. If you are going to eat whole, unprocessed foods and try to take care of your body, I would say if you are feeling blue you would try the whole, unprocessed cure for those feelings before resorting to modern medicine and the bevy of unnatural chemicals the pills that are usually prescribed for depression provide.