Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host)<\br> 01. Sandy Williams<\br> 02. Neil Nedley MD<\br> 03. Colleen Harrell
Series Code: UC
Program Code: UC000403
|
00:26 Hello everyone and welcome to another 3ABN - Up Close
00:29 We're coming to you from the Houston West Seventh Day 00:33 Adventist Church, in Houston, Texas 00:36 and we'd like to give a Texas size thank you 00:39 to our live audience who is joining us for this program. 00:44 Today we will discuss a devastating condition 00:48 that affects millions of people worldwide. 00:51 This condition is no respecter of persons. 00:54 It affects the old and the young, the rich 00:58 and the poor, people of all religious persuasions and people 01:04 of no religious persuasions; males and females. 01:08 In the United States alone 01:11 recent studies report that over 19 million 01:14 people suffer from this condition. 01:18 And 12 million of those are women. 01:21 More notably nearly 50% of those who are 01:25 trapped in the snare of this condition don't recognize what 01:30 is wrong with them. 01:31 Our topic today is: Depression. 01:34 Not the occasional bout with the blues that is common 01:38 to humanity, but the more dangerous medical condition 01:42 that afflicts so many souls. 01:44 But life doesn't have to be swallowed up 01:48 in the shadow of this dark cloud. 01:50 There is help and there is hope. 01:54 Our first guest is Sandy Williams. 01:57 Sandy and her husband Lee have 3 beautiful daughters, 02:01 ages 20, 9 and 3. 02:04 The Williams own and operate Ashley's Furniture, 02:09 named after the oldest daughter, and located in Ardmore Oklahoma. 02:13 Sandy is a stay at home mom who now delights in her 02:18 responsibilities as a wife and mother. 02:20 She takes special pleasure in providing services 02:23 for her family, that others may 02:25 take for granted. And she also enjoys reading, researching 02:30 various subjects and walking in the great outdoors. 02:33 But, it has not always been like this. 02:37 Sandy sat down with us and told us how her depression 02:42 affected her throughout her whole life. 02:45 And especially her family. Listen to this: 02:49 Prior to the Depression Recovery Program I could never 02:53 really remember a time in my life I wasn't depressed. 02:57 But going through the program and realizing the causes of the 03:01 the depression, I had doctors telling me, and I knew I was 03:06 depressed, every doctor told me I was depressed, but nobody 03:10 ever gave me any causes or anything to look to, as to what 03:14 was causing that depression. During the depression I was 03:17 unable to exercise. I was unable to leave my house. 03:20 And I really hate to say this, but, in all honesty, it took 03:26 every ounce of energy I had to even take a shower. 03:30 So I would go for days without taking a shower. 03:33 For me, I think was the thought, 03:36 was the distorted thinking too. 03:38 Growing up thinking: What's wrong with me? 03:43 Always asking: what's wrong with me? 03:46 And so, as an adult always looking for 03:48 what's wrong with me and changing that thought and 03:52 seeing that asking myself what's right with me 03:58 and finding a lot of right things in my life and my family. 04:02 Prior to the program, depression... 04:05 all I can say was just... it was a black cloud over me 04:12 every day. 04:14 I would be in bed for 5 days at a time. 04:17 My husband would wake the girls up 04:21 and get them ready for school 04:23 and I would just lay there. 04:26 My heart's desire's always been 04:29 to be a good mother and a good wife and the things 04:33 that I desired so much, I wasn't able to accomplish. 04:37 During the darkest part of my depression 04:39 was whenever my 2 year old and I 04:42 were home alone and the depression was just overwhelming 04:47 I sat in the living room floor and rocked her and just prayed 04:51 God you're going to have to do something because I can't keep 04:55 living like this. 04:56 And I called my husband and I told him that 05:03 I couldn't take care of Jade, he would have to come to get her. 05:07 And I went to behavioral med place for a couple of weeks 05:12 and not long after that, I was listening to 107.1, never 05:17 listened to radio stations before in my life. 05:20 And I heard about the Depression Recovery Program 05:23 and I decided I'll try something different. 05:25 I've tried everything else. So that was the 05:29 turning point in my life. 05:33 It's hard to imagine what that must have felt like. But we're 05:37 so thankful that Sandy is with us tonight. And I'd like to 05:41 thank her very much for coming. And come on up here. 05:44 We want to welcome Sandy Williams. 05:55 Thank you. Thank you for sharing your testimony. Thank you. 06:00 I just want to ask you one question. Did you feel guilty 06:05 Oh, guilt, guilt. About this? Every day, every hour. I mean 06:10 There wasn't a minute of guilt. Just sitting here, watching that 06:14 just brought tears to my eyes thinking how horrible that 06:19 that feeling was. It was just the most debilitating thing 06:23 I've ever gone through in my life. Of course. You know, 06:27 sometimes people who are going through depression are ashamed 06:31 of their condition and they don't know how to reach out 06:33 for help. But you mentioned that on the radio, which I know that 06:37 you never watched it or listen to it before. I never... 06:40 The Lord had you tune in that day. What program did you go to? 06:45 I went to the Depression Recovery Program with 06:48 dr. Neil Nedley. Was dr. Nedley? And what changes did dr. Nedley 06:52 have you make in your life? Just lifestyle changes. Things that 06:56 you would, really common sense things. But people that are so 07:01 depressed, I mean you can't even comprehend how to get out 07:06 of it. Just like exercising, changing your eating habits, 07:12 drinking water, meditating, spending time with the Lord 07:15 When I was depressed I couldn't I couldn't even open my Bible 07:21 I mean, I would pace the floors, I just felt caged and isolated 07:27 anyway it was horrible. It was very horrible. 07:31 So, as this program then you began working in the program 07:35 things began to turn around for you, didn't they? Let's look 07:39 at just something that the recovery program has done for 07:43 Sandy. Let's take a look. 07:45 Following the Depression Recovery Program, the thing 07:49 that I learned the most about was most of it was just common 07:52 sense things, that you could apply to your life. It wasn't 07:57 hard, wasn't very difficult at all. But I've found that it has 08:02 transformed my life completely. My husband has his wife back, 08:09 my children have their mother back and I have my life back. 08:14 Oh, praise the Lord! Alleluia! Sandy, tell me something: 08:19 What was the thing that was the turning point in the recovering 08:23 program for you? 08:25 The turning point was knowing that all of these feelings that 08:30 I, everything that I've been going through, there was a name 08:36 to it, there was reasons for it I mean, during that period in my 08:42 life I felt like, like I said, there is something wrong with me 08:47 what's wrong with me? 08:48 Did you feel like no one would understand because you 08:51 couldn't understand? Nobody understood. 08:53 And I even heard things like: snap out of it. 08:56 You have everything to be thankful for, Sandy. 08:59 You have a husband that loves you. 09:01 You have 3 wonderful children, you know. 09:05 What's the deal? 09:07 But, unless you have experienced it, 09:11 I don't think anybody can really understand 09:14 what a debilitating disease it is. 09:19 You know, I want all of us to try to remember this that 09:23 it seems to make sense for some of us that when we see someone 09:29 who maybe rehearsing the past and negative thinking and 09:33 dwelling all the negative we want you to just shake them and 09:36 say those kind of things, but all they did was induce more 09:39 guilt for you, I'm sure. 09:41 Yes. And a lot of times I wasn't even thinking about the past. 09:45 It was just, I know the past affected me but it wasn't that 09:51 I was thinking about the past. It was just, I know there is a 09:57 lot of distorted thinking, but I don't know.. 10:02 Praise the Lord that you found dr. Nedley's program and that he 10:07 has helped you save a lot. Yes, Alleluia! 10:10 Coming up next we're going to be talking with dr. Neil Nedley 10:15 about some of the common symptoms and the causes of 10:18 depression. So, please don't go away. 10:27 We're going to be talking about teenage pregnancy 10:30 We were together for almost a year. And we were in love 10:36 Looking for love in all the wrong places 10:40 I didn't know what to think I didn't know what to do 10:44 I'm sure my parents are going to be upset 10:47 Receiving acceptance from their peers. It's so important. 10:51 Wanted to fit in. It's so important. 10:54 Next week on Up Close 10:56 Don't miss it. 11:08 Welcome back to up close. Now it's time to introduce our 11:12 expert guest dr. Neil Nedley. Dr. Nedley was the founding 11:17 medical director of the Life Style Center of America in 11:20 in Oklahoma. And he currently practices internal medicine at 11:25 Nedley Clinics in Ardmore, Oklahoma. 11:28 He has authored several health books, including one on the 11:32 subject that we're focusing on today. 11:35 And it is entitled: Depression the Way Out. 11:38 Please welcome, Dr. Nedley. 11:47 You know, this topic has a special interest to me because 11:51 I am finding as I go around ministering, that there are more 11:56 and more people who are caught up in the snare of depression 12:00 And it seems that some Christians feel that 12:03 in particular feel guilty about having this, because 12:07 they think, well the Lord should, you know if I am a 12:11 Christian, I shouldn't have depression. 12:12 But, could you share with our audience, what are some of the 12:16 common causes, symptoms of depression, so that we might 12:20 recognize if someone we love, or even if we ourselves we are 12:24 going through it. 12:25 Most people with depression have one or two symptoms and 12:29 maybe, both of the symptoms. One of them can be deep sadness 12:33 or emptiness. Some people don't have that crying spells a deep 12:38 sadness. But have a feeling of emptiness. They just have this 12:42 center core that feels empty, like there is something missing 12:47 The second very common symptom is apathy. 12:51 Where the individual just doesn't have the joy or the 12:55 energy of everyday living. They get up in the morning, 12:58 not really looking forward to the day. 13:00 Not being very interested. And what is going to be happening 13:04 during that day, or what could happen 13:06 And those, most depressed people will have one or both 13:10 of those symptoms. And then there are 7 others, 13:13 that the majority of depressed patients will have. 13:15 Such as sleep changes, appetite changes, lack of concentration 13:20 the inability to be able to make sound decisions in recognizing 13:26 that they don't have that ability, morbid thoughts, 13:29 even fatigue. That's way one of the common symptoms I see in 13:33 my internal medicine practice is people coming to me asking me 13:36 why they are so tired. And it could be due to depression 13:40 and maybe due to other things, but I have to ask them these 13:43 other questions to see if indeed it's major depression as the 13:46 underline cause of fatigue. 13:48 Is it true that sometimes, just acts and pains that no one can 13:53 explain, can depression cause that? 13:55 Yes. Now, what I've listened to you is psychiatric Bible's 13:58 definitions of depression based on those symptoms, but there is 14:02 a lot of consequences, symptom consequences. For instance, 14:06 headaches. One of the most common causes of migraine 14:09 headaches as well as tension headaches and the common 14:13 headache is actually depression. Really? 14:15 And unless we find out that the headache is due to depression 14:18 we can't get to the cause of the depression and that's the 14:21 headaches last for years and the people are really on even 14:25 narcotic pain medications on a daily base to try to deal with 14:29 these headaches. When they think the problem is the 14:31 headache, but in reality it's not. It's the depression. 14:34 What are some of the common causes for depression? 14:38 Well, there are 10 major hit categories, that can cause 14:43 depression. Depression is a multifactorial disease, meaning 14:47 that there's not usually just one cause. 14:50 It's usually 4 out of those 10 causes. 14:53 And this is something that we elucidated from the researches 14:57 in the medical literature. 14:59 I found over 150 different causes of major depression. 15:02 And at first it was overwhelming but then when I began to look 15:06 at these 150 causes, I realized they fit in the 1 of 10 15:10 categories. 15:11 And then, once we start looking at the categories, we realized 15:14 that most depressed people had 4 active hits, at least. 15:18 Some had 6 or 7. 15:19 I think in Sandy's case, we just heard from, there were 15:23 probably about 6 or 7 hits that were going on in her case. 15:27 And some of those hits, we can't do anything about. 15:30 2 of them we can't do anything about. 15:31 Genetics. Genetic is one. 15:33 And develop mental. At least as adults, we've already developed. 15:37 We've already had the bad childhood, or whatever it was 15:42 in the developmental stage that helped to bring it about as well 15:46 But interesting, that's only 2 hits. 15:48 That's not enough to cause major depression. 15:50 Even bad genes and the worst stuff bringing in the world 15:53 is not enough to cause depression. 15:55 You have to have some other hits there are active. 15:58 And another hit is life style hits. 16:00 This means lack of exercise, lack of appropriate light. 16:04 Light through the eyes, actually helps the brain produce 16:07 serotonin, an important neuro transmitter and alleviating 16:11 depression, deep breathing 16:13 These are life style hits. 16:15 Then we have circadian random hits. 16:17 This is being our regular schedule. 16:19 All of us function best on a regular schedule: regular time 16:25 for sleeping, regular times for eating and trying not to 16:30 get too far off that schedule on weekends, which is what a lot 16:33 of people mess up, and then Monday's so blue. 16:36 Let me ask you a quick question here, because I know a lot of 16:38 viewers in America will just push it to the edge of the 16:42 envelope, and then because of they're getting up early each 16:46 day for classes, I use to do this in college myself, 16:49 when the week-end comes, you try to sleep and catch up, 16:53 but it actually is more harmful to your body. Is that right? 16:56 It's actually better to get on a good schedule Monday through 16:59 Friday, that can you maintain on Saturday and Sunday 17:02 This catch up work on the week-end makes the week-end 17:05 inefficient, you don't get near as much time as you would 17:08 otherwise, and then Monday becomes very blue, because 17:11 you've got out of your schedule and you have to circadian 17:14 rhythm back in the line again. 17:16 Maybe that's why Mondays are so blue for so many people. 17:19 And actually, light is an important part of setting our 17:22 circadian rhythm. People that are depressed and have problems 17:25 with insomnia, for instance, if they are exposed to bright light 17:28 within 10 minutes of awakening and exposed to it for 30 minutes 17:31 they can reset their body clock and actually even help hormonal 17:34 depression. 17:35 and you know, something is interesting. As you're speaking 17:37 I just thought, Sandy you mentioned, did you mention 17:41 something about lacking the room dark? It seems that a lot 17:45 of people who are depressed want to keep the room dark. 17:49 They want to shut the world out, so they shut out the light, 17:52 shut out everything that could be helping them. 17:55 Darkness, isolating. yes 17:58 Isn't that interesting? Now, you just briefly touched on 18:01 something that I don't want to pass over: the hormonal. 18:05 As I was researching some things for this program, 18:09 I found out that over 19 million people, just in US 18:13 have depression, serious depression. 18:17 12 million of those are women. 18:20 So that's nearly 2/3 and it seems that particularly for 18:25 women in my age group who are closing in on menopause 18:30 that's becoming something quite frightening because of the 18:34 hormonal fluctuations. Some women, a lot of women suffer 18:39 from PMS, but then is PMDD, the disorder, there is like 5 % 18:44 of the women. So what is it about hormones that causes 18:48 this depression? 18:50 Well, it's actually a hormonal drops that tend to bring in 18:52 about more cells than anything else. This is why post partum 18:56 depression is also very common. You know, the hormone level is 18:58 high when you're caring the baby. When you deliver that baby 19:02 the hormones just rapidly just drop off, and within 2 weeks 19:05 2/3 of women actually experience the blues. 19:08 Not major post partum depression, but the blues just 19:13 simply from the hormonal drop. Menopause the over ease quite 19:16 producing the high hormonal outputs, and so you have 19:20 a hormone withdrawal state that is been produced. 19:24 Interestingly, one of the best therapies for hormonal 19:28 depression is bright light within 10 minutes of awakening, 19:33 for about 30 minutes. As women get in to more hormonal problems 19:39 they need more light. And it's actually one of the best 19:42 preventions of post partum depression. 19:43 Of course, in the post partum state, the circadian rhythms are 19:46 off, the baby's waking up every 2 hrs in the middle of the night 19:49 So, there is a number of hits going on at the same time. 19:53 The social hit with this, you know, infant in need of care, 19:57 and interesting lay, the factor that is most preventive as well 20:02 as the best treatment for it, is whatever time you should wake up 20:07 set your alarm to that and then get exposed to bright light, 20:11 for 30 minutes from awakening and that will produce that 20:15 serotonin that will start to actually reset the body clock 20:19 and can help dramatically. 20:21 What a wonderful tip! So, I hope you all took note of that. 20:25 Well, coming up next we are going to introduce you to 20:29 a woman who began singing into depression, following the death 20:33 of her husband. And we'll learn how she was able to break free 20:38 from the clutches of this condition, by practicing 20:42 a unique set of concepts that have been proven effective. 20:45 So, don't go away! 20:51 Are you or someone you love, struggling with depression? 20:53 Are you looking for a way out from the debts of despair? 20:56 If so, we have just the book for you. 20:58 Find life and hope as you read the Ultimate Survivor. 21:01 The leaflet includes a set of recipes specifically designed 21:03 for those struggling with depression. 21:05 For your free gift just write to us today at 21:30 Welcome back to Up Close. our topic today is depression. 21:34 You know, most of us have suffered normal sadness in 21:38 situational depression at some point in our lives. 21:41 But have you ever thought about what it would be like to 21:45 suffer a major depressive episode? 21:48 Our next guest is Colleen Harrell from Ardmore, Oklahoma. 21:52 She has one daughter and two granddaughters who live in 21:57 El Paso, Texas. Now, Colleen was formerly an engineering 22:01 manager for the SPC Corporation, the telephone company. 22:05 And after her retirement from SPC she really did something 22:10 interesting: she pursued a second career as a field 22:14 correspondent for two crime magazines based in New York 22:18 and Canada. But her husband, at 49 years, succumbed to 22:23 Alzheimer's disease in 1998, and following his death, 22:28 Colleen began to realize that her lingering sadness was due 22:34 to more then grieving her husband's loss. 22:36 Somewhere along the line she had slipped into the pit of 22:40 depression. Let's listen to the story that she shared with us. 22:46 My depression came up so gradually, I was hardly aware 22:49 that it was happening. It started when my husband had 22:52 Alzheimer's. We of necessity had isolated ourselves or did 22:57 isolate ourselves, and it was only after his death I began to 23:02 realize that I no longer had any desire or will to go out 23:06 among people. And I kept to myself more and more every day, 23:11 now reacting defensively when anyone will urge me to get 23:15 and to resume a normal life. And it wasn't until I, 23:20 I didn't really realize the depth of my depression, 23:25 until I found myself avoiding going to the megabucks 23:30 until after dark, so I wouldn't have to interact in any way 23:33 with neighbors. I didn't want to. I liked my neighbors, 23:37 but I just didn't want to talk with them. I just wanted to 23:41 be by myself, be left alone. I started not answering the 23:45 phone when people calls. And, I'm ashamed to say, that I 23:49 often wouldn't even answer the door. I've neglected myself, 23:53 and my house. After years of denial I accepted that I was 23:57 depressed and it was only then that I realized that I 24:02 had lost all, all will and energy to do anything 24:09 beyond, do anything productive with my day, for more than 24:14 2 or 3 hours. 24:16 During my worst period, I would force myself to accept 24:20 invitations to social functions or I planned to go to church. 24:25 Needed the last minute, even after I was fully dressed, 24:29 I found myself unable to leave the house 24:33 Well, we're happy to have Colleen with us here today 24:37 and we'd like to ask her to come on up, so please happily 24:40 welcome Colleen. 24:53 Thank you so much for coming. And thank you for sharing your 24:58 story with us, Colleen. I know, it's - it takes a brave heart to 25:03 get on national television and share the story. But let me 25:07 ask you something: How long did it take you to come into 25:13 that appreciation of knowing that you're depressed. 25:16 You mentioned you denied it for some time. 25:18 I actually think that the depression started even before 25:22 my husband's death, during the stress involved with his 25:25 illness. But it took I would say, probably 5 years 25:30 because, when I first realized I was cutting myself off 25:34 from everyone, I just thought it was lack of solitude. 25:38 I wanted to be alone, I felt better alone. 25:41 And so it was at least 5 years before I fully acknowledged 25:44 to myself that I was depressed. 25:47 You know, I just wanted to stop here for one moment and 25:51 point out that research says that there are probably of all 25:54 the people who have been diagnosed with major depression 25:57 that's probably only 50%, may be up to 50% of the people who 26:04 are suffering from it don't understand what they are 26:07 suffering. Now did you begin to come out of this depression? 26:12 Well, since my main symptom seemed to be a complete loss of 26:17 will, just complete loss of desire to do anything 26:21 and actually I discovered Omega 3. 26:25 When I was taken Omega 3, without thinking of using it 26:30 to help depression, but I was taking it for health reasons. 26:35 and I just felt myself feeling better and still didn't realize 26:40 that it was the Omega 3, until Dr. Nedley read an article in 26:45 The Ardmoride, about dr. Nedley's uplift bar. 26:49 Yes. And he was my personal physician. 26:52 And I'd never admitted to him that I was depressed, 26:55 and, so I connected the dots. 26:58 I realized that the Omega 3 was what was making me feel better, 27:04 and making me come out a little more and just feeling like 27:08 getting out more 27:09 Wonderful. Well, one of the common symptoms that Colleen 27:12 struggled with, was sleep depravation. 27:15 So, let's take a look at how she dealt with this. 27:18 I realize now that one of my biggest problems was 27:21 sleep depravation. It started when my husband was ill, 27:24 and then it continued for years after. For nearly 5 years, 27:30 I would wake up almost every 2 hours on the dot 27:33 and I would turn the TV on, and let the sound of the TV 27:40 low me back to sleep. 27:42 And I didn't realize the damage it was doing with the flickering 27:47 light, but Dr. Nedley described the damage that did to you. 27:52 And when he explained how classical music can cause 27:59 a response in the brain, something clicked and I knew 28:06 that was preferable to the TV, because he had already talked 28:12 about TV addiction and how harmful that was. 28:15 So when I started, my 2 granddaughters, at the time 28:21 I didn't live and have the will to go out and look for CDs 28:24 or classical music. I knew nothing about it. 28:26 But, my 2 granddaughters had, a couple of years before, given me 28:32 2 CDs for my birthday 28:34 and I got them out, I seldom played them, I got them out and 28:39 started going to sleep each night to one of them that was 28:42 titled Starlight Classics. 28:44 And I found that I could sleep, I went to sleep and rested 28:49 for hours. If I woke up, I just turned the tape back on 28:54 and would listen and would fall back to sleep 28:58 and within a week I was enjoying the first full night 29:04 sleep I had in years. 29:06 Oh, praise the Lord. 29:09 It's so true. And even now if I fail to listen to them, 29:12 or if I get back into watching TV again I can feel my thoughts 29:19 getting scattered. It just makes a tremendous difference 29:22 It does. It's amazing how that alone helped me. 29:25 Well, you know it's interesting for Sandy. She wanted to sleep 29:29 all the time. For you, you had the opposite, where you're 29:32 having trouble sleeping. Yes. 29:33 And I know that they say that if you want to drive someone insane 29:38 that all you have to do is keep waking them up over and over 29:41 again, and we get a cognitive impairment. 29:45 Absolutely. I believe that that alone the sleep deprivation 29:50 alone contributed, perhaps the most to the whole problem. 29:55 I'm sure that Dr. Nedley is going to conform that 29:58 in just a moment. 29:59 I do want to add that this, getting up early, going out 30:04 and singing a lot is almost as good as the classical music. 30:09 Perhaps better 30:10 So now may I ask you something else, Colleen. 30:13 Do you get your meal early in the day, now? 30:15 I do and I visit with my neighbors. 30:17 Good. The Lord is so good. Thank you for coming and 30:20 and sharing with us today. Thank you. 30:22 Well, coming up next 30:23 we're going to talk to Dr. Neil Nedley again, 30:26 about what can be done for those who suffer from depression. 30:29 And then a little later we're going to be taking questions 30:32 from our live audience. So, please don't go away. 30:42 We're going to be talking about teenage pregnancy 30:45 We were together for almost a year. And we were in love 30:50 Looking for love in all the wrong places 30:53 I didn't know what to think I didn't know what to do 30:58 I'm sure my parents are going to be upset 31:01 Receiving acceptance from their peers. It's so important. 31:05 Wanted to fit in. It's so important. 31:08 Next week on Up Close 31:11 Don't miss it. 31:22 Welcome back to Up Close. 31:24 We are talking about depression, and we've heard from a couple 31:28 of people who have experienced this condition in their lives 31:32 Now, we're talking with dr. Neil Nedley, a practicing physician 31:35 of internal medicine at Nedley Clinics in Ardmore, Oklahoma. 31:40 Dr. Nedley, in your book: Depression and Way Out 31:44 you focus a lot on life style on life style changes: 31:48 on nutrition, on exercise, on getting plenty of the water and 31:54 sunshine. Is there any research to back up why these health 32:00 changes actually do improve the depression? 32:05 Yes. Absolutely. There is research. 32:07 Actually, we quote about 1000 different scientific references 32:11 in our book "Depression and Way Out". 32:13 And most of the time we just looking at an isolated factor 32:16 like omega 3, that we heard from Colleen. 32:20 And actually omega 3 increase and tryptophan increase 32:24 can significantly improve mood in depression 32:27 What's amazing about the program that these 2 ladies went through 32:33 is now been duplicated in many other places when we put 32:37 a combination of life style factors together 32:40 like nutrition and exercise and light and analyzing our thoughts 32:44 and getting ride of the sordid thoughts and actually improving 32:49 our spiritual focus, actually contemplating in the Word of God 32:53 which improves frontal lobe circulation 32:55 When all of those things are combined, we see dramatic 32:59 improvement that really is unprecedented in the medical 33:02 literature. People should not be getting better this quick, 33:06 according to the experts. 33:07 Nor should they be getting better and staying better 33:12 without relapsing back into depression 33:15 and so, the beautiful thing is when we put a combination of 33:18 these factors together we do see a more pronounced effect. 33:22 For audience tell us, because I know I have recommended 33:26 to several people and you mentioned the omega 3, Colleen 33:30 I've recommended to people that because of listening to you 33:34 that they would take English walnuts or even a better source 33:38 would be flax seed. What are some of, how does the omega 3 33:42 in tryptophan and what are some of the sources for tryptophan? 33:46 Yeah, tryptophan is turn into Serotonin and tryptophan is 33:49 going to be found in, actually flax seed has some tryptophan 33:53 in it, soy is an excellent source of tryptophan, 33:56 gluten flour which is the wheat a protein, is very high in 34:01 tryptophan, and there are other good sources of tryptophan 34:05 out there. 34:06 We like tryptophan combined with carbohydrates because 34:09 otherwise it doesn't get into the brain 34:11 Meat has some tryptophan in it too, but meat is very low in 34:14 carbohydrates. It's virtually deficient in carbohydrates. 34:18 And so, the tryptophan does not cross the blood brain barrier 34:21 and get into the brain. 34:22 So, let me make sure for our audience. I want to make sure 34:25 that I understand it, and the audience is getting this. 34:30 we have omega 3 fatty acids, when we have tryptophan 34:34 with carbohydrates. This is actually helping our body 34:38 to naturally produce serotonin. 34:40 Correct. 34:41 So, carbohydrates really got in the bad rap, haven't they? 34:44 They have gotten in the bad rap and unfortunately, you know, 34:48 some carbs are bad, the refined carbohydrates: the sugar, 34:52 the sodas, this type of things is not, you know, the best 34:56 and actually, this type of diet can lead to depression 35:01 But unfortunately, some of the more narrow extremes have 35:05 thrown out the baby with the bath water, and that means, 35:09 they've thrown out all the natural carbohydrates 35:11 and if you do that, you're going to be on a carbohydrate 35:14 deficient program 35:15 that's going to lead to poor frontal lobe circulation, 35:17 poor ability to make discipline decisions, and 35:21 actually lead to depression. 35:22 And that's another reason why depression is on the increase 35:25 simply because this low carb diets become pretty common 35:29 Now, what about the serotonin, what do they call it, reuptake 35:37 Yeah, the serotonin reuptake inhibitor, those are the drugs. 35:40 Ok, those are the drugs. 35:41 Is there any reason why a Christian shouldn't take 35:45 something? I mean, is there a time that is appropriate to take 35:47 those drugs? 35:49 There is a time that's appropriate to take those drugs 35:51 We recommend them in severe depression, as a jump start 35:54 to get the frontal lobe circulation improved 35:56 these drugs are can improve frontal lobe circulation 36:00 can help improve your ability to function so you can 36:03 incorporate some of these life style principles. 36:05 However we use them at a time limited approach where you know 36:10 we try to withdraw them within 6 months and often we are able 36:15 to withdraw them in 3-4 month. Once the person finds out 36:18 the underlined causes of depression in their life 36:20 we deal with those hit causes, and they are able to easily 36:24 withdraw from the drugs and not relapse back into depression 36:28 Sandy you said that you had gone to depression most of your life 36:32 You were living in depression. Did you take any of the 36:36 antidepressants to help you over the years? 36:39 Probably everyone out there. I've tried. 36:42 And is about 15 on the market right now. 36:45 I've tried several. 36:47 But none of those really worked for you It was when you got into 36:51 the life style changes, that's when you felt the difference. 36:55 Isn't that amazing? 36:56 Essentially what these antidepressants do, 37:01 they are treating the symptom but they are not treating the 37:04 underline cause. Is the correct? 37:05 And unfortunately they have side effects, they cause an 37:07 "I don't care" attitude, they increase impulsiveness which is 37:10 not a good thing. That's one of the reasons why suicide rates 37:13 go up at first in these drugs, because they are increasing 37:16 impulsiveness before they improve the depression 37:18 and so people need to be observed on this type of program 37:22 they really, they can cause an I don't care attitude, actually 37:26 decreasing motivation in some instances. 37:28 And so, that's why we're using a time limited approach and we're 37:32 trying to withdraws them from these drugs. 37:34 One of the taco messages I'd like the listening audience 37:38 to have, and actually the audience out here, is this 37:41 that there are many treatments for depression as there are 37:45 causes. That means there is over 150 proven scientific treatments 37:51 for depression and unfortunately the doctors and 37:55 the patients are going to learn about them necessarily 37:58 in the doctors office, because when a new drug comes out 38:01 for depression there is a nice good looking representative 38:05 coming to offer me lunch and offer me pens and maybe toys 38:09 with the drug name to take home to my children, but when 38:13 a certain type of exercise is been shown to benefit depression 38:15 there is no exercise physiologist coming to explain 38:19 to me this new study on how this type of exercise significantly 38:22 improves depression 38:23 By the way, there is a type of exercise that improves. 38:26 It's called intermittent training where IT significantly 38:29 better than other types of exercise 38:32 So the only way is to get into the scientific literature and 38:35 actually find out what the research on a lot of these 38:38 things has been and done, but there is not paid people to tell 38:41 you about that research. 38:43 So unless the doctor is done an exhaustive literature search 38:47 or unless they happen to go to the doctor and actually did the 38:51 research themselves on the exercise, they're probably not 38:54 going to find out about it. 38:55 When Colleen mentioned sleep depravation she also mentioned 39:00 that you are her personal physician and she was seeing you 39:05 for these many years and 39:06 yeah, she was seeing me for things other than depression 39:10 and she, like many depressed people, she covered it well 39:13 She had a smile on her face, seemed to enjoy talking to me 39:17 Many depressed people have learned to cover very well, 39:20 and so here I was, I've written a book about depression and she 39:24 didn't even tell me that she was depressed. 39:26 So, did she talk to you about her sleep depravation? 39:30 Or this was something that she just 39:32 No, no, never touched that, that subject, no. 39:35 Is that a common symptom? 39:36 We were treating her for primarily chest pain in some 39:40 of the associated symptoms. She had a disease called 39:43 costeo condritis information in a rib case and we're focused 39:48 in on that aspect of things. But yes, she finally did come to 39:51 the for front in regards to that, came to the program and 39:55 the wonderful thing, you know classical music she talked about 39:59 Starlight Classics. Colleen it was more that Starlight Classic 40:02 In the day time what did you listen to? 40:05 In the morning, my grandchildren gave me 2 CDs, and I used the 40:09 Starlight Classics to put me to sleep, then in the mornings 40:13 I used Power Classics to do my housework to do, and I never 40:18 missed those all day. The play is not all day but it plays 40:21 quite a bit. But Power Classics will get me motivated. 40:25 One of the most common myths about classical music is that 40:29 it is boring. And actually there is more varieties of 40:33 classical music than there are of all the other types of music 40:37 combined. 40:38 So actually, you know, if you are a rock and roller you're 40:41 in a very narrow limited sphere of music. 40:44 And it's interesting is paradoxical on the same sense. 40:48 Some people think that the vegetarian diet is going to be 40:52 limiting as well. 40:53 Well, actually study shows the average vegetarian has a lot 40:56 more variety to there diet than the average American meat eater 41:00 And the same is true with classical music. 41:02 You can have a lot more variety to your music, depending on the 41:05 time of the day and the night and what effect you're trying to 41:09 get into the brain than any of the other types of music 41:12 combined. And that's why the study's showing some significant 41:15 benefit with classical music. 41:16 You know, we're getting ready in just a moment to go to our 41:21 live audience, and we're going to take some questions. 41:23 But I feel, I'm so sad that this is going by so quickly. 41:26 We'd love to get in and I hope when you're asking your 41:30 questions that we can talk about, talk therapy about 41:34 reprogramming and renewing our minds. 41:37 I just feel like we are barely scraping on the surface of 41:42 this topic. 41:43 But, please stay tuned because in just a moment we are going to 41:46 our live audience to take some questions. 41:53 Are you or someone you love, struggling with depression? 41:56 Are you looking for a way out from the debts of despair? 41:58 If so, we have just the book for you. 42:00 Find life and hope as you read the Ultimate Survivor. 42:03 The leaflet includes a set of recipes specifically designed 42:06 for those struggling with depression. 42:08 For your free gift just write to us today at 42:33 Welcome back to Up Close! 42:35 We're talking today about how to deal with depression and now 42:39 we're going to be taking some questions from our audience 42:42 So, please come on down and tell us what your name is 42:49 Hi. My name is Eddie Millington and I'm from here, in Huston TX. 42:52 My question is, actually it's not a question. 42:55 It's just a request for you to explain a little bit more about 42:59 intimate training the exercise program you alluded to earlier 43:02 Ok. That's a good question. Intimating training is a where 43:07 you exercise vigorously for about 45 seconds and then you 43:12 rest for about 45 seconds. And as you get more fit 43:16 you won't have to rest completely You might do a sprint 43:19 and then a walk, and alternate back and forth 43:22 There are some sophisticated ways in which we can do this 43:26 while measuring the heart rate. We want to get your heart rate 43:29 up to a certain level and then we alternate it by a 10 bit 43:33 level, where when it gets to a certain level you stop 43:37 exercising, then when it goes 10 bits lower you start 43:40 exercising, so you can do it based on your heart rate as well 43:44 And your exercise maintains its aerobic-ness during this time. 43:48 So even rest count as exercise, which is some of the, 43:52 one of the nice things about it. And what, our study shows is 43:55 that improves steroid levels significantly compared to other 43:59 forms of exercise. 44:00 The regular, just go out there and do it, no pain, I mean 44:04 if there if you're not suffering you're not going to be gaining 44:07 that is not true. It's a myth: no pain, no gain 44:11 Intimating training really helps beyond the typical exercise. 44:16 That's good. Hi, tell us your name and your question, please. 44:19 I'm Grace McClure and I'm from Huston and I was worrying about 44:24 the electric shock therapy that's used in depression now 44:28 Ok. You see, the electric shock therapy's actually inducing a 44:33 seizure to treat depression and has been shown to be helpful in 44:37 severe forms of depression, but the side effects a significant 44:40 You have memory gaps that you'll never get back 44:43 and these can be memories all the way back from childhood 44:48 long term memory, there are holes over there 44:52 The natural form of ECT is contrast hydrotherapy 44:56 that's where you soak in a hot tub or in a hot shower 45:00 for 3 minutes and then you get very cold water for about 45:04 a minute. And you alternate back and forth for a total of 45:08 3 cycles. 45:09 And if you do that and then just rest a little bit after 45:12 and do that twice a day for about 3-4 days, 45:14 you are going to start feeling significantly better by 45:17 day 3 or 4 and it's actually pretty wonderful 45:21 We just experienced this when someone here was going to go 45:24 for ECT and she said it was dramatic the effect 45:28 it had on her. 45:29 And no loss of memory. 45:31 Exactly 45:32 Hi, please tell us your name and your question 45:34 Hell. My name is Antonio Tatti I'm from Ecuador and I'd like 45:40 to ask dr. Nedley about how you handle those patients that 45:46 are out there, they're obese or overweight and you said that 45:53 carb diet How do you handle this situation with the carb diet 45:58 in obese patients? 46:01 Ok. That's a good question. 46:03 A lot of people think the only way to treat obesity 46:05 is a low carb diet. 46:08 And actually that is not true. In fact there is now 46:11 studies indicating that the best way to treat obesity is a 46:14 combination of exercise and a lower calorie diet. 46:18 It's really low in fat that's even more important than low in 46:22 carbohydrates as far as treating is concerned. 46:25 And obesity can actually be one of the factors, it can be 46:28 one of the hits. It's a medical condition hit that can lead 46:31 to depression, and so we're continuing to put people on 46:34 a lower calorie regimen, that still has enough tryptophan 46:37 still has enough omega 3, enough carbohydrates so they'll 46:40 significantly loose weight. 46:42 But at the same time, come out of their depression. 46:45 Before we go off of this let me ask you: 46:47 Sugar has very negative effect on our brain. Is that true? 46:51 Yes, sugar has a negative effect because of the rebound 46:55 Our pancreas secrets a lot of insulin. 46:57 We get mildly hypoglycemic within 30 minutes of eating 47:01 a candy bar and then it takes 4 hours for our frontal lobe 47:04 to come back from that. 47:06 And so that's why we recommend getting rid of the refined 47:09 carbohydrates, but the natural carbohydrates are very good 47:13 They come with a lot of fiber. You can it a lot of natural 47:16 carbohydrates without gaining weight. 47:18 Thank you. Hi, please tell us your name and your question. 47:22 My name is Bill Blensed, and I'm from Huston, Texas. 47:26 My question is: Sunlight, it makes me I guess lethargic 47:31 and sometimes it makes me want to take a nap 47:32 so sometimes I darken the room when I'm about to work 47:35 or sometimes I work better at night. 47:37 So I just want to know: is there an explanation for that? or 47:42 is something that I can do to be more effective in the sunlight 47:45 Well, too much sunlight or too brighter light can over time 47:48 produce too much serotonin which does have a calming effect 47:52 a more sedating effect. That's why if you're out on the beach 47:55 for all day, you don't really fell like doing anything after 47:58 that time period. Because you've got almost an overload 48:01 on the light. The sunlight needs to be used in moderation 48:05 but there is one other principle that you need to keep in mind 48:07 and that is: most depressed people describe themselves 48:11 as night time people. 48:12 They'll start raving up, 9, 10, 11 o'clock and feel great at 2am 48:16 if they stay up that late. 48:18 Unfortunately, however they do have to go to sleep and 48:22 they'll feel like zombies again. 48:23 And those people need to have their body clocks reset. 48:26 So if you're describing yourself as a night time person, 48:29 it's not genetics at all. 48:31 It's actually based on the circadian rhythm head 48:33 and you need to get your circadian rhythms back in line 48:36 and get that light therapy in the morning 48:37 and then you'll be raved up in the day time and when it's time 48:40 time to go to sleep you'll be ready to go to sleep 48:42 Hi, Thank you for coming and please tell us 48:46 what your name is and your question 48:48 Yes. My name is Lirma Okeblam. I'm from Huston. 48:51 My question is: it seems like there are more women suffering 48:55 from depression compared to men What are the percentages like? 49:00 And are the treatments about the same for both sexes? 49:05 Ok. Yeah. Twice as many women suffer from depression than men 49:10 And a lot of it is due to the women's hormones that we 49:14 discussed earlier, but also it has to do we the plate women 49:20 as well. it has to do with the fact that they are the primarily 49:26 caregivers from infancy and up. They tend to have 20 different 49:30 responsibilities at least that they're juggling in the day's 49:34 time where a man can focuses in on maybe 2 or 3. 49:38 And so, those types of things produce different hits 49:42 on the brain and that's make it a little more likely for women 49:46 to suffer from depression. 49:47 The treatments are different? yes, of course the hormonal 49:50 treatments are going to be a little different, but in reality 49:53 we do the same thing for both sexes and that is we find the 49:57 underlined hits and then we treat those underlined hits. 50:00 And for women they might have more hits to treat, but once we 50:03 get the hits down to less than 3 they're going to do a whole lot 50:06 better. 50:07 Hi. Please tell us what your name is and your question 50:10 Hi. My name is Xavier Castillo from Huston. I wanted to ask 50:15 dr. Nedley: what's your opinion on St. John's wart as a 50:19 treatment for mild to moderate depression? 50:23 St. John's wart is helpful for mild to moderate depression 50:27 It's probably the most studied herb out there for depression 50:30 however there is very convincing evidence that it's not helpful 50:34 for serious depression, for severe, serious depression 50:38 and we would actually recommend some other herbs 50:41 over St. John's wart in that instance. Sam e for instance 50:44 can be much more helpful for severe depression. 50:46 And there are other herbs that can be helpful such as 50:50 5 HTP and Ginkgo Biloba 50:52 Another problem with St. John's wart is it interacts with a lot 50:56 of different medicines. So you really can't use it with other 50:59 medicines like you can with SAMe or 5 HTP 51:02 Hi, welcome to the program. Please tell us your name 51:06 and your question 51:07 Hi. My name is Belinda Lemon and I'm from Huston and my 51:11 question was: Is depression something that reoccurs? 51:15 after you are cured? 51:17 It can reoccur. Actually the relapse rates are quite high 51:21 in the typical American setting. The average American that 51:24 suffers from major depression, once they withdraw from 51:28 antidepressants, well over half of them were going to relapse 51:31 within a year. 51:32 Some of them will relapse very quickly and this is why people 51:35 think they need to take their antidepressants like their 51:38 morning vitamins, cause they think they have this chemical 51:41 imbalanced that is not going to be helped unless they take 51:45 this drug. 51:46 Well, in reality if they get to the underlined cause 51:49 of depression, they won't need the medication at all. 51:53 The neurotransmitters will be in plentiful amount. 51:56 And there is no need to relapse 51:58 Our experience in our clinic is that once we find the 52:02 underlined cause of depression, there is a 90% chance that 52:06 that person will not relapse back into depression again. 52:09 even after they are off the medication 52:12 And that of course is something that significant, but it helps 52:17 us to realize treating the underlined cause the underlined 52:21 hits is the answer to this problem. 52:24 Drug therapy is not the final answer 52:26 And basically your program is designed around the 8 health 52:31 principles, right? Nutrition, exercise, water, sunshine, 52:37 temperance, good air, rest and trusting in God, right? 52:42 All of those principles have actually been shown to be 52:46 helpful and rigorous scientific studies for depression. 52:50 So, the Lord developed all of this. 52:52 We've got 2 minutes to get some final thoughts from you. 52:57 If you would, I would like to ask you about the frontal lobe 53:01 and I also would like to ask you to mention about your 14 53:05 consecutive days of positive thinking. 53:09 Thank you. The frontal lobe is what we really haven't covered 53:12 and this the most exciting area of depression. 53:15 There is one thing that's characteristic to virtually any 53:18 depressed patient: and that is they have a 40% decrease in 53:21 circulation activity in the frontal lobe of the brain. 53:24 We find this in pat scans. The frontal lobe is where 53:27 spirituality, morality and the will is centered. 53:30 And so this is why the spiritual part, such as reading 53:34 the book of Proverbs, reading Psalms, reading the Scripture 53:39 and not just reading it, but contemplating on it, can 53:42 dramatically improve frontal lobe function and actually 53:45 significantly improve depression. 53:48 This is why the classical music which has a very positive effect 53:51 on the frontal lobe can be very helpful as well 53:55 And this is also why cognitive behavioral therapy is helpful 54:00 Traditional forms of counseling or psycho-therapy have never 54:05 been shown to be better than taking a placebo pill in 54:08 treating depression. I don't know if you caught that at all 54:11 but traditional forms of counseling what psychologists do 54:13 on a day by day basis is never been shown to be superior taking 54:17 a placebo, but there is a type of therapy that is superior 54:20 it's called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, 54:22 the psychology we're going to catch up on this 54:25 and what is this? It actually helps us to recognize our 54:29 distorted thoughts. 54:30 Another thing that's virtually characteristic to every 54:32 depressed patient is that they have significant distortions in 54:36 in their thoughts processes. 54:37 They have, their thoughts are based on elements of truths. 54:41 But they go beyond those elements of truth and 54:45 actually dwell on distortions and it's the dwelling on 54:48 distortions that helps bring about the depression 54:52 And so we teach them the 10 cognitive distortions. 54:56 such as over-generalization and mental filter and this 55:00 mental filter tends to focus in on the negative. 55:02 And one of the ways in which we get them focusing on things 55:06 that are not so negative is one of the practices in our 55:09 depression recovery program: 14 consecutive days without 55:12 saying anything negative or critical about anyone or 55:15 anything. 55:16 Now, when they have found out about this they thought 55:19 I came here to relieve stress This is really going to increase 55:23 my stress level. But, in reality once they tried it, it does 55:27 produce a transformation because it helps them to get 55:31 there're circuits going in the brain they're either neutral or 55:34 positive and helps to overdue the negative. 55:37 And then once they catch themselves in the thought 55:39 processes over generalizing or disqualifying the positive 55:43 or magnification or minimization or mind reading, this type of 55:49 things they can catch themselves in that thought process 55:52 and replace their thoughts with truth 55:55 and interestingly Christ Himself says: when you know 55:58 the truth, the truth will set you free. 56:01 And that means the truth in the heart, not just expressing 56:05 it outwardly but knowing and actually having our thoughts 56:08 lying up with things that are absolutely true and not going on 56:12 the basis of assumptions which many depressed people do. 56:15 Amen. Oh, thank you so much. 56:18 We just really want to thank our guests today: Sandy Williams 56:22 and Colleen Harrell and dr. Neil Nedley 56:24 And we want to thank you for joining us 56:27 I do want to point out one thing If you know someone who is 56:32 played by negative thoughts, please don't tell them to snap 56:37 out of it. Please get them some help. Help them to get 56:41 this book. help them to go through the process 56:45 But I want to leave you with Philippians 4:8 56:49 Paul wrote: whatever is true, whatever is worthy, whatever is 56:56 of reverence and honorable, whatever is just and pure lovely 57:02 kind and gracious anything that is a virtue and worthy of praise 57:08 think on these things, take them into account fix your 57:13 thoughts on these. but he also on the next verse said: 57:19 And practice what you have learned and received and heard 57:24 and seen and model this way of living and the God of peace 57:30 will be with you. 57:32 Thank you so much for joining us. |
Revised 2014-12-17