Over the year, there have been many debates  as to whether alcohol causes depression or people who suffer from depression begin drinking simply because they’re depressed.  This “was it the chicken or the egg that came first” is still unclear but one can be stated and that is: alcohol can lead to depression.  It is classified as a depressant that on a biological level lowers serotonin and norepinephrine levels in the brain.  These chemicals act as mood balancers, allowing you to feel joy, content, and an overall sense of well being. When you throw alcohol into the mix, it suppresses neurotransmitters with the end result being depression. People who are depressed also tend to drink more.  It’s estimated that 30-50% of those suffering with major depression are also abusing alcohol.

Depression and Alcohol Equals Higher risk of Committing Suicide

When a person struggling from major depression abuses alcohol, she has a much higher risk of attempting and succeeding at suicide. Other noteworthy facts:

• Alcohol abuse often exaggerates depression and increase impulsiveness.
• Alcohol is often the key culprit in driving and crashing a moving vehicle or overdosing.
• Alcohol impairs judgment and numbs pain, which explains why it is correlated with often painful suicide attempts.

Anxiety is more often than not a mental habit, a set of neurological pathways that have been wired to make you feel anxious. The good news is, it is possible to rewire your brain and create new neurological pathways that in turn reduce anxiety.

One of the ways that I’ve found useful is to use visualizations on a consistent basis.  Visualizations allow you to create powerful images in the mind accompanied by feelings of relaxation that if used consistently over time can “rewire” the brain to make you less anxious.  Now of course, this is just one way to reduce anxiety and if you have severe anxiety, you should seek medical council. However, if you choose to go a more natural route, visualizations can be  fantastic.  Below is a youtube video walking you through a visualization.

Answer: Yes it is possible for anxiety to be attributed to sexual dysfunction, including erectile dysfunction. That being said, if you’re having erectile dysfunction, you should see a doctor and get tested for diabetes as that can often be a culprit. If this is not the case, feel free to browse this website as it presents a variety of ways to reduce anxiety and stress in natural ways. Of course, if you’re anxiety is severe, you should always seek the council of the doctor or licensed practitioner to get proper help. Also it may be useful to seek the aid of a sexologist to learn some methods of treating your erectile dysfunction.

Vitamin Supplements

Some studies suggest that anxiety symptoms may be caused by zinc, magnesium and vitamin B deficiencies. These are all found in regular vitamin supplements, but you can ask your doctor to order a blood test to check your levels of these vitamins and treat accordingly. Vitamins C and E can also help combat the symptoms of anxiety, along with many trace minerals. If you are not already taking a general vitamin supplement, you might find starting one now will help you feel better.

Amino Acids

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and L-theanine are both amino acids that have been found to be effective supplements for anxiety. GABA is found in some fish, bananas, wheat bran and nuts. L-theanine is a component of green tea and is considered a very effective anxiety treatment. When purchasing l-theanine, check the label to be sure the supplement you are buying contains l-theanine and is not just a plain green tea, as it can sometimes be marketed as anxiety treatment.

Herbal Supplements

Kava, passionflower and valerian are all effective natural herbal supplements. Both passionflower and valerian also treat insomnia, a common anxiety symptom, and taken together they can be a very powerful combination. Kava has been a popular and effective choice for anxiety treatment but concerns about its safety limit who can use it and for how long.

Essential oils, chamomile and calcium are also considered effective supplements for anxiety. Working with your doctor, you can experiment with all of these supplements to find a combination that will successfully treat your anxiety.

Vitamin Supplements

Vitamin B and magnesium deficiencies can both cause anxiety, so be sure to include supplements of these two in your diet. You can also ask your healthcare provider to test you specifically for deficiencies, which will allow you to tailor your supplements to your unique needs. Omega-three fatty acids can also contribute to reduce stress and anxiety, and can be readily found in fish oil supplements.

Relaxation

Relaxation techniques including meditation, self-hypnosis, physical exercise, yoga and breathing techniques have all been shown to reduce stress levels and lower symptoms of anxiety. These techniques also have the added benefit of strengthening and improving your body, which can lead to overall better mental and physical health.

Passionflower and Valerian

Anecdotal evidence suggests that these common herbs can have a calming effect on people, helping to reduce stress. If you struggle with insomnia, the valerian herb is a proven treatment for insomnia, making it an excellent natural remedy for anxiety. Be sure to discuss herbal supplements with your doctor before you begin taking them, as they can have serious interactions with common medications.

Body Therapies

Common body therapies such as shiatsu, acupuncture, and massage therapy are all proven stress reducers. In conjunction with other natural remedies for anxiety, these body therapies can be very effective at reducing symptoms of anxiety.

Diet and Exercise

A solid foundation of diet and exercise is one of the most effective natural remedies for anxiety. Keeping your body fit and healthy can help correct any physical causes of anxiety, and the endorphins produced from exercise make us naturally feel better.

When medication or therapy are not options, these natural remedies for anxiety may be just the solution to get you back on track and feeling better.

Prevalence of Depression

Though it may seem as though we hear more about depression these days, the occurrence in adults has actually dropped from nearly 8 percent in 2004 to a 6.4 percent in 2008. Depression is much higher in women than in men, with 8.1 percent of women and 4.6 percent of men diagnosed in 2008.

Age of Depression Sufferers

Depression is significantly more prevalent in younger adults, with the highest percentages, around 9 percent, being in the 18-25 age group. In adults aged 26-49, 7.4 percent were diagnosed in 2008, compared to a much lower instance of 4.5 percent in those aged 50 and older.

The average age when depression is first diagnosed is 32 years.

Treatment of Depression

In a 12-month study, 51.7 percent of people with depression were reported to receive treatment, and 19.6 percent of those received only minimally adequate treatment.

These depression statistics do not define the course of your own depression treatment, however, and it is important to take a proactive approach to treating depression with a combination of medication and therapy.

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/statistics/1MDD_ADULT.shtml

Panic attacks can be as brief as a few minutes or as long as a few hours.  Most sufferers of these attacks will describe it as being in hell.

Here are some of the main symptoms of panic attacks:

• racing heartbeat
• shortness of breath
• dizziness
• shaking and trembling
• fear of dying, passing out
• fear of losing mind and losing control
• intense fear and panic

Neurotransmitters are endogenous chemicals that transmit signals across the brain through neurons.  These chemical signals are passed through spaces between neurons called synapses. This happens millions of times every minute.

In a nutshell, the main chemical ingredient to happiness and well being is serotonin.  The more serotonin being passed through neurons, the better you feel.

*This of course, a complete oversimplification.  If your interested in all the scientific happenings of this process, I recommend looking it up on wikipedia.

When sending a chemical signal and neurotransmitters are released from one neuron to another another via the synapse, some of the transmitters make it to it’s intended neuron while others get sucked back up into the existing neuron.

What Lexapro does is bind to the “re-uptake” receptors forcing the serotonin neurotransmitters to attach to their intended neuron.  This keeps the Serotonin flowing and as a result, you feel less anxious.

Disclaimer: I’m not a doctor and this is very much an oversimplification. If you’re considering trying Lexapro to treat anxiety, you’ll want to schedule an appointment with your doctor.