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Mood

This tag is associated with 19 posts

Cannabinoids: Depression & Inflammation

Compounds in cannabis have anti-inflammatory properties which might lead one to reach for cannabis products high in the anti-inflammatory constituents. But those using cannabinoids for anxiety and depression run the risk of making things worse. Continue reading

Nutrition for Making the Most of Natural Melatonin

The most potent way to get the sleep-promoting benefits of melatonin is to not to buy it off a store shelf. Natural melatonin is made in the body from food. All melatonin production is driven by key dietary nutrients, especially tryptophan found in foods like turkey, eggs and bananas. Continue reading

Natural Melatonin vs. Supplements: Which is Superior for Sleep?

Melatonin is a sleep-promoting hormone that is naturally produced and secreted by the pineal gland in the brain. The impact of naturally-occurring melatonin on our bodies is broad, profound, and not completely understood. Continue reading

Exercise Better than Drugs for Lifting Mood

The most common antidepressant drugs got bottom-of-the barrel results in a landmark systematic review comparing the drugs’ effect on depression with that of the talk-therapy CBT and a range of exercise modalities, according to data published  by the prestigious British Medical Journal in February 2024. Continue reading

Foods that Stress and Depress—Foods that Promote Well-being

A 2017 randomized controlled trial of 67 depressed patients asked the question: “If I improve my diet, will my mental health improve?” Half of them received nutrition counseling, and for them the answer was yes. Not true for the other half, who got social support sessions instead of nutrition counseling. Continue reading

Gut-Brain Axis: Director of Mental Health?  

There’s burgeoning evidence that the various bacterial species inhabiting our gut have an important influence on our psychological health. Based on their antidepressant and anxiolytic effects, these beneficial bacteria that inhabit our GI tract have been dubbed “psychobiotics”. Continue reading

INSOMNIA’S UNBIDDEN BEDFELLOWS: Breaking the Vicious Cycle of Insomnia, Anxiety & Depression

Find out how to defeat the vicious cycle by resetting the biological clock with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and how to short-circuit stress and inflammation with biofeedback, hypnosis and talk therapy. Continue reading

INSOMNIA’S UNBIDDEN BEDFELLOWS: Anxiety & Depression

Insomnia, depression and anxiety share common causes and often occur together. All 3 feed a vicious cycle worsening each condition. Stress is the common thread tying insomnia, circadian disruption, anxiety and depression together. Stress ignites a firestorm of inflammation suppressing levels of the sleep-hormone melatonin and elevating the stress-hormone cortisol.
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Talk Therapy Changes the Brain with Lasting Benefits

CBT was found to reduce the size of over-active amygdalas, in people with social anxiety. CBT was also found to reduce amygdala overactivation. The researchers postulated that reduction in both the size and overactivation of the amygdala resulted in decreased reactivity to anxiety-provoking situations, explaining how CBT reduces social anxiety. Continue reading