Today, September 10, is World Suicide Prevention Day.
Yes, I know. A morbid topic for a bright spring Monday morning.
And yet, like me, you probably have been affected by suicide. Not just once, but several times in your life. Family, friends, class mates, work colleagues. Suicide strikes without apparent warning. Afterwards, we piece the puzzle together and tell ourselves that there was ample warning. But everyone missed it.
You never get used to that sinking feeling when someone brings the sad news.
The recent death by suicide of respected Prof Bongani Mayosi shook the academic establishments in SA. It also touched a raw nerve among doctors. The medical profession has one of the highest (if not the highest) suicide rates of all professions. Doctors know what to do, and they have access to what is needed.
The media take on this tragedy was that depressed people need to seek professional help. Which kind of help Prof Mayosi had in spades, being the Dean of Health Sciences. It did not help him.
Professional help failed him. Why?
I’m not trying to say that professional help always fails, but there is something that every depressed person should know, and it is this:
Most (but not all) anti-depressants CAUSE suicidal tendencies in their users. These tendencies can persist for years, even decades, after the medication has been stopped. Certain anti-depressants have been found in the blood samples of more than 90% of all American school shooters (there is some controversy about the exact percentage). Not only do they often cause suicidal thoughts, they can cause violent anger outbursts, too.
Other anti-depressants simply trap their users into a zombie-like state, unable to respond to pleasure or pain. You don’t feel depressed anymore. You just don’t feel anything anymore. You have friends like that, I know.
At this point, there will always be some who jump up to say how antidepressants saved their lives, and I say, “Amen!” Some are helped. But… But… But… Study after study after study shows that people (especially teenagers) who are put on these drugs become suicidal in droves.
Teenage brains cannot handle these medications like adult brains can. A study in the UK showed that suicide rates among teenagers on anti-depressants doubled, compared to depressed teenagers who did not take prescription medication. Imagine if scientists found an alternative depression treatment that doubled suicide risk. It would be on every news channel around the world. Yet almost no one in the mainstream media talks about this danger coming from prescription anti-depressants. Even adults become suicidal on these medications, although not as commonly as teenagers do.
And we’re not even talking about the addictive potential of these drugs. Every doctor will tell you they are not addictive. Every patient who’s been on them for more than 6 months will tell you it’s easier to quit smoking than to get off these medications. They grip the brain like a vice. It can take 2 years of gradual withdrawal to finally be free.
For more than 20 years, I’ve worked on natural means of treating depression. Many of them work as well or better than prescription drugs. This is not just my own clinical experience, the findings are also borne out by peer-reviewed articles. You probably missed them, since they didn’t get any glitzy press coverage.
At last count, I had a list of 121 natural means to treat depression. None of them dangerous. Each of them as good or better than standard anti-depressants.
What I’m getting at: If you or a member of your household has depression, look wider than the standard ‘professional’ line. Do some research. Consult with people you respect. And do not let your teenage children go on anti-depressants, unless you have done some serious research.
After two decades in the field, I settled on a small cocktail of minerals, vitamins, herbs and electrotherapy to treat depression. In general, this leads to a reversal of symptoms in 10-14 days. Sometimes, the effect is noticeable within 24 hours. The success rate is extremely high. No harmful side effects. None. Everything is based on solid science. And while the initial cost is higher than a prescription for a generic medication, the reality is that you will be free to live life without persistent suicidal thoughts or addiction. You (or someone you love) can be happy again.
Now isn’t that a great thought on World Suicide Prevention Day?
To be clear: I’m not saying you should flush your meds down the loo. I’m also not saying they never help anyone. I’m not saying everyone gets the terrible side effects. I’m not saying psychiatrists are bad (I owe a debt to psychiatrists myself).
What I am saying is this: Research and consult widely before deciding on a treatment option for depression. Once you’ve committed to the standard prescription medications, you will not come off them quickly. You may get help from them, and that is good. But remember that there is a profit motive driving their sale of these drugs.
The best thing to do is not to get depressed in the first instance. Research tells us that people who get regular sun exposure, exercise about half an hour six days a week, eat food that’s not made in a factory and avoid sugar like the plague, are much, much less likely to develop depression than those who do not take these precautions.
I cannot respond to every email I get, but if you are interested in finding a solution to the problem of depression, whether for yourself or someone you love, please CLICK HERE.
Note: If someone forwarded this email to you, the link just above will not work for you. You would need to complete the form on THIS PAGE.
To your health!
Doc Frank (and the team at Integrow Health)
