Antidepressants Blog

• Butterfly.

Sit up with your knees bent and the soles of your feet together, holding the feet in place with your hands. Pull your knees up towards each other slowly. Once you have pulled your knees up as far as possible, begin to let them slowly fall back towards the floor.

• Leg extensions

Sit on the floor with one leg extended in front of you while the other leg is bent with the big toe pointing towards the opposite leg. With both arms together, reach towards the extended leg. Reach just until you feel a comfortable stretch. Reverse legs and repeat. Do this ten times on each side.

Remaining on the floor, spread both of your legs out in front of you. With both hands together, reach for your right foot, then in front of you, then to the left foot. Repeat this ten times.

• Toe touches

Sitting on the floor with both legs together and extended out in front of you, bend from the hips, trying to keep your back straight and your head up. Try not to bend your lower back. Reach for the lower part of your legs. Hold for a count of five and return to your starting position. Repeat ten times.

• Arm swings

Stand up with your arms extended out from your shoulders. In an even motion, swing your arms from side to side, twisting at the waist. Try to remain relaxed as you do this to get a smooth even motion.

• Arm circles

Standing, with your arms extended out from your shoulders, begin to move your arms in a circular motion. Do this ten times and then move them the other direction.

• Windmills

Standing straight with your arms extended out to your sides, bend down to touch your opposite hand and toe. Come back up and reverse your hand and toe. Do this for a count of ten.

• Standing side bends

Stand straight with your arms extended out to your sides. Bend towards your right side letting your right arm go down your side and touching your right leg around the knee or as far as you can go. Do this just until you begin to feel the stretch in your left side. Reverse and do to the other side.

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Dr Beata Jencks, in her book ‘Biofeedback: Your Body at its Best’, described an approach originally intended for use with children. But the technique called the ‘Autogenic Rag Doll’ which emphasised imagery, has been successfully used to help many adults with stress and pain.

Again, these exercises should be done in a quiet place and at a comfortable temperature. The exercises can be split up at first with individual exercises being practised for a few days each. Since the exercise is usually practised with the eyes closed, a deep state of relaxation may be achieved. Thus, a good ‘waking up’ is needed from the state of relaxation. The simplest way is just to stretch your arms and legs, or to yawn and breathe in deeply, and to open the eyes, feeling refreshed and full of vigour.

‘Make yourself comfortable and allow your eyes to close. Then lift one arm a little, and just let it drop. Let it drop heavily, as if it were the arm of a Raggedy Ann doll, one of those floppy dolls or animals.

Choose one in your imagination. Choose a doll, an old loved soft teddy bear, a velveteen rabbit, a bean bag toy -or even a favourite pillow or blanket. Choose anything soft that you like. Lift your arm again a little and drop it, and let it rest there for a moment. Now think of your arm again. But don’t lift it in reality, just in your imagination. Lift it in your imagination and think that you are dropping it again. Do this while you breathe out. Go ahead. Let your arm go limp like a rag while you breathe out.

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Effectiveness of hypnosis on pain

The placebo is a time honoured way of presenting to a patient by a doctor of a sugar pill or coloured water said to have potent properties to heal or to relieve pain. It works because the brain produces natural pain-killers, the endorphins and enkephalins simply because the patient believes the treatment is going to be effective.

The effectiveness of the placebo in hypnosis in pain relief has been studied in low and highly hypnotisable subjects. In low hyp-notisable subjects, there is no difference in the effectiveness of hypnotism and a placebo, such as simply asking subjects to close their eyes and not react to given suggestions.

But in highly hypnotisable subjects, hypnotism is more effective than a placebo in pain relief — the placebo occasionally produces negative results.

The difference between hypnotism and a placebo is that hypnotism primarily acts as an analgesic and only secondarily as a sedative. There is no link between hypnotisability and the response to the placebo overall. Even unhypnotised subjects can respond to suggestions of relaxation. These can be of benefit in anxiety reduction, as in dental procedures where hypnotic ‘depth’ is not necessary as usually little pain relief is needed to help.

There is as yet no real evidence of a relationship between hypnosis and the endorphins. One study by Goldstein and Hilgard (1975) showed that hypnotic analgesia was not reversed by Naloxone, a drug which reverses the pain-killing effects of morphine in a dose which is effective in reducing the placebo response. So far, the study of internal systems for pain reduction and that of the natural morphine-like substances is still in its infancy.

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Although a fair amount of research is under way, we are still uncertain how intravenous procaine actually blocks pain. It does not work as an anaesthetic agent blocking all the nerves carrying pain because the patient has full awareness of sensation after the injection.

Procaine is thought to block the higher centres and pathways carrying pain. Effectiveness varies from one person to another.

It is important to stress that, unlike many narcotics and other medicines used in pain control, procaine does not seem to block the body’s own pain-fighting mechanism as stimulated by acupuncture, TENS, lasers, and so on.

This is important because it does not exclude the use of IV procaine with electrical and other stimulation allowing methods of pain treatment to continue hand in hand.

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Excessive tiredness, that is not relieved by rest, is usually a sign of some mental disorder, such as depression. It can also be caused by many infectious diseases, by anaemia, or by an underactive thyroid gland. Sometimes fatigue persists following a viral infection, and this is now known as post-viral syndrome or chronic fatigue syndrome.

Fatigue is very often reported as a symptom of food intolerance, especially in connection with migraine and irritable bowel syndrome. Early-morning tiredness is the most frequent problem. Looking back over case-histories, it seems that fatigue may be an early warning sign as food intolerance develops. How food might produce fatigue is not known, but exorphins may play a part, or it may be a side-effect of some generalized immune reaction, as is suspected in post-viral syndrome.

No-one should embark on an elimination diet without first consulting their doctor, but this point should be emphasized for anyone with severe fatigue.

There can be several other causes for this problem, and some of these are serious diseases.

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By helping those around us to see and appreciate the beautiful things in life, to achieve happiness, we are administering to them the best biological medicine possible. Showing them the meaning of life and the opportunities to do good to their fellow human being will bring joy and happiness into their life.

If you know a diabetic patient, you can be of great service if you teach him to enjoy the good and beautiful things in life. Point out the beauty of the spring buds and blossoms; encourage him to rejoice in the golden splendour of the ripe wheat fields of the summer, to take pleasure in the autumnal symphony of colours and to admire the ornate beauty of wintry ice and snow crystals. To experience this happiness will touch his heart, improve his breathing and instil him with a vitality that will carry him through the woods and over the hills with opened eyes and a thankful heart. The pancreas will begin to function better; the secretion of digestive enzymes and consequently the digestion, will improve. A lower intake of food will be of advantage to him in his condition, since better digestion means better utilisation of the food eaten. The inner secretions will be stimulated, the islets of Langerhans will increase their production of insulin and the sugar in the blood will be oxidised. Aided by physical measures such as hot abdominal packs and good natural wholefoods, especially by plenty of raw vegetables in the diet, all eaten slowly and well insalivated, his health will visibly improve. If joy and happiness are added to the diet, before long he may be fortunate enough to have regained his health.

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In the not too distant past, the Swiss were generally trained to keep their land clean and tidy. They were brought up with this attitude from earliest childhood at home, and when they started school, strict order and tidiness continued to be taught; in fact, teachers took great care that on outings and excursions the children never left litter lying around.

However, this order was soon disrupted when other habits and influences found their way in. I remember a beautiful wooded area in the Rhine valley, a delightful place where one could always relax. But one day, I found that the scene had changed and the picturesque landscape was littered with paper and wastes. Many a person resented this untidiness, but during the following year their anger could turn to gladness because a litter bin was installed — a quiet hint to put the rubbish where it belonged. This preventative education allayed our fears for the future and impressed upon observers that the Swiss were not inclined to let the beauties of nature be spoiled by thoughtless people who threw their rubbish just anywhere.

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Preservatives, pesticides and herbicides can be highly dangerous, but if the proper care is taken there will be no acute symptoms of poisoning. Normally, if the directions for use are observed, there will be no evidence of chemical damage. However, what happens when farmers follow the opinion of those who say ‘the more the better’? What are the consequences when they use too much poison and spray too late, or when the poison cloud also covers the plants growing under the trees or the neighbour’s cultivated garden or field?

I have seen the results of tests conducted in Switzerland and elsewhere that even the experts considered disturbing. I once visited an American institute that operates with government support where the professor in charge acquainted me with the results of experiments conducted with animals, and the things I saw and learned were more frightening than impressive. No one should simply close his eyes to the lasting effects of chlorinated hydrocarbons such as DDT, Duldrin and Aldrin, and it is irresponsible if the damage caused by them is hushed up.

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The French name for buckwheat, ble sarrasin, seems to indicate that buckwheat must have been brought to France from the south by the Saracens, whereas the Russian name, gretsikha, grikki suggests that the Greeks probably introduced this valuable food into their neighbouring lands. In many parts of Russia it is a national dish and the people prepare a most delicious oven-baked buckwheat.

Whole buckwheat can be cooked in the same manner as rice, and buckwheat groats are excellent in soup and for rissoles. The flour makes what is called a ’short’ pastry and is good for mixing with wheat flour. The resulting pastry is better than that made with wheat flour and a high proportion of butter.

German biologists have discovered that buckwheat reduces high blood pressure, a finding that has since been confirmed by American scientists. An extract of buckwheat is thus claimed to combat high blood pressure and arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Unpolished brown rice has the same attributes as buckwheat in this respect. It would be to the advantage of older people if they were to change their menus slightly, to include more natural brown rice and buckwheat, but fewer eggs, cheese and pulses (legumes), for these two cereals have a rejuvenating effect on the blood vessels, especially the arteries. The intake of protein and salt should also be reduced to a minimum as one advances in age or if one suffers from high blood pressure.

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Because they are so good for us, we should give much more attention to soya products. The beans contain first-class protein, as well as minerals and other vital substances. Millet proved its worth in the past when it served to satisfy our forefathers, giving them strength and energy. For this reason alone it, too, deserves to be on our table now. Over forty years ago, millet began to go out of vogue and was only used for chicken feed. More recently, however, as a result of the serious efforts being made to enrich our diet with valuable plant products, millet has begun to be revived as a food and it would be to our advantage if we used it regularly in alternation with potatoes and soya.

On travels through tropical regions in the developing countries of Africa and Asia, a frequent sight are many adults and even more children with pot-bellies and skinny limbs. This condition is generally a symptom of protein deficiency. Although it is true that pure calories, that is, carbohydrates, are often plentiful in the form of tropical fruits, and the body is able to produce its own fat, in hot countries it is very difficult to obtain sufficient protein. Because of the great heat, cattle yield less milk. It is therefore not surprising that in those areas all kinds of seeds are considered important for food. In folk museums we can also find that seeds, kernels and nuts stand out as a special feature in the nutrition of ancient peoples.

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