Mental health has slowly evolved into a commodity. If you’re feeling stressed, you must be anxious. Take this pill. If fatigue is your issue, then depression it is. Take this pill. Eclectic characteristics now equate to personality disorders, and ADHD is an issue of the individual’s attentiveness. Take this pill.
In fact, each separate sub-group of mental health is associated not with the individuals own, unique personality, but with a clinical definition of brain dysfunction and therapy option. Pharmaceutical companies have worked tirelessly to make us believe that melancholy is a Prozac deficiency, when in reality it is simply a passing moment of sadness, created by situations of grief, loss, disappointment or stress.
Marc Davies from the Institution for the Psychology of Eating describes depression as a means to go deeper within ourselves, to reflect on how a situation has left us feeling, and to make room for growth both spiritually and physically. Greek gods were historically referenced to have sent depression down as a gift to someone going through long periods of stagnation and monotony. It would allow them to feel again, find insight into their character and produce many a wonderful ideas as a by-product.
Mental Illness Up Until Now
The great Plato suggested there were two types of madness;, the first was divinely inspired and gave the recipient prophetic powers, the second was caused by disease. In fact, many a mythical stories carry what the great writer Joseph Campbell calls ‘The Hero’s Journey’. A story of struggle and hardships, met with moments of grief, self-loathing and sadness;, to then learning from those pains to break through adversity and come out stronger than ever. Many of you will have seen Star Wars; however what you may not know is George Lucas based the character of Luke Skywalker on Campbell’s theory, the theory of struggle, adversity and fulfilment.
In recent decades, we’ve seen mental illness as no longer an experience of growth, but a focus of madness and disease. Mental health slowly morphed from an emotion of depth, teaching, and unearthing- to demonic possession, taboo and weakness. Christianity has framed mental illness as demonic thoughts, spirits and deviant behaviour. Exorcism became a very common practice for those suffering from what we now understand as psychosis. As science progressed, we began to understand the depth of the human brain, and the potential it had in regard to both” creative madness” (think Einstein, Van Gogh) and just plain “madness” (which was of a sick body). This is when Big Pharma’ began to recognise the prospect of treatment.
Pill Poppers
In 2007, The Australian Bureau of Statistics ran the National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing (1). They looked at 16 million Australians aged 18-65, and found that almost half (45%) had a lifetime mental illness. There were also 3.2 million people who suffered from a 12-month bout of mental illness, with anxiety disorders being the highest reported type of disease (14.4%). Between 1993 and 2003, the number of people seeking mental health treatment has grown by 64%.
Just as the rise of diabetes is happening, despite the food industries implication that fat, not sugar, is the nutritional concern, mental health is also on the rise despite the development of medical intervention. Is it not plausible then to suggest that what we are doing is not working?
The number of deaths associated with prescription drugs used to treat mental illness are increasing at a high rate. Prescription drugs were involved in 82% of the 384 overdose deaths investigated by the Victorian coroners court in 2014, which is almost double that of illicit drug deaths. Yet the emphasis is placed strongly on the prohiabition of substances such as cannabis and amphetamines with little intervention on prescription drugs used for mental health.(2)
Be skeptical when you are given assurances about the safety of pharmaceutical products with those who stand to profit from their sales. We have designed a culture where a pill is the cure to suffering, and in the process, we’ve neglected the essence of medicine and therapy. Responsibility seems almost non-existent when it comes to an individual taking care of their health, instead entrusting their local physician to administer (potentially harmful if not suboptimal) medication, in the small window of an average doctor visit.
A Seemingly Simple Question
As a survivor of mental illness, my experience in the current system is one of utter disbelief. I endured almost 4 years of prescription medication, eating disorders, fertility issues and insomnia. Throughout my visits to psychologists, counselor, GP’s and specialists not one of them ever asked the simple question of what I ate. How much food did I eat? Did I eat a lot of nutritionally dense foods? How often did I have a bowel movement? Or, was I exposing myself to something potentially toxic such as mold? Knowing what I know now, the disappointment I feel for not only myself, but for others is immense. Often, the simplest lifestyle changes can create the biggest effects on not only our physical health, but also our mental health.
The Gut to Brain Axis – How Your Gut Affects Your Brain
In 2015, The American Journal of Medicine recognised the connection between our gut and our brain, calling it the gut to brain axis. Practitioners of functional medicine have known of this for sometime now, however it wasn’t until the medical community recogniszed it did it become scientific fact. A nerve called the vagus, which is the longest cranial nerve in our body, connects the brain and the gut. It runs from the vagui nerve stem in our brain, all the way to our gut, and is believed to send messages both up and down, allowing the two organs to be in constant communication.
When damage occurs to this nerve, our bodies have difficulty maintaining pathway functions. For example, with out proper function, motility (movement of the gastric tract) becomes disrupted, forcing our internal eco system (gut) to foster an environment of bad bacteria, fermentation and slowed digestion. These ailments then lead to poor serotonin production, excess free radicals (toxins) and poor nutrient absorption, all of which contribute to our brain function. (3)
Let’s take B12 as one example. The vagus normally stimulates the stomach’s parietal cells to secrete acid and gastric intrinsic factor. Gastric iIntrinsic factor is needed in order to absorb B12 from food; poor function of the nerve reduces secretion and ultimately leads to deficiency. B12 deficiency is commonly associated with depression, as it impacts methylation (a detoxification pathway) as well as it playing a role in metabolising neurotransmitters, both of which impact the state of our mental health.
Another important factor when looking at the gut to brain axis, is the over growth of bacteria. Candida (a naturally occurring yeast bacteria) when over grown can cause irreparable damage to our immune systems, leaving us void of energy and proper cell function. Doctors often don’t understand how fatigue starts in the body, and simply use antidepressants as a treatment option for frustrated patients. When there is a break down in the gut to brain axis, we can be assured cortisol is having to be worked at over drive, and this is ultimately where fatigue issues start, alongside more complex issues such as ATP and mitochondrial depletion. You can read more about bodily stressors and how to manage them in our article here.
Where Do We Go from Here?
‘When the body is well, the mind can be free, and purposeful examination of one’s life can begin.’ – Kelly Brogan, MD.
We are fortunate enough, through functional psychiatry researchers such as Carl Pfeiffer, to understand the connection between mood and mental health to what we’re eating. I’m in no way doubting trauma as a cause, however investigating further how to treat mental health with this new science can only be a good thing.
It’s long been understood that the quality of our nutrition has a profound impact on our brain function, as well as body composition, immune function and gut bacteria. It’s only fair to those dealing with issues in these areas to offer the option of nutritional intervention to, at the very least, minimise the effects.
- Change your diet. Focus on foods that nourish your body and provide adequate nutrients. Foods such as grass-fed meats, organic vegetables and essential fats.
- Help support your gut, brain and stress by adding in probiotics, magnesium and zinc in supplement form.
- Work toward de-stressing your life. Make time to soak up some sunshine, walk through nature, meditate, and exercise. Practice being present in the moment.
Perhaps most importantly, find support. Seek help, whether that’ is a family member, health professional or a friend. Taking responsibility for your health is one of the most admirable and self loving acts you can take.
You are so very worthy.
1 http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4326.0Main%20Features32007?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4326.0&issue=2007&num=&view=
2 http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/mar/21/prescription-drugs-involved-in-82-of-overdose-deaths-victoria-coroner-says
3https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280387914_Resolution_of_a_manic_episode_treated_with_activated_charcoal_Evidence_for_a_brain-gut_axis_in_bipolar_disorder
