Clinical trials that compared the effects of homeopathic remedies to the antidepressant drug Prozac for treatment of depression only comparedthe results of the first homeopathic remedy that was given with the results of Prozac.
This is not a fair comparison because Prozac works differently than homeopathic remedies. Any homeopath knows that the first remedy given is often just a best guess and that more remedies are usually required until the correct remedy is found. But if one stays in treatment they invariably get
completely cured of their depression and it never returns after they stop taking homeopathic remedies. That does not happen with Prozac or any antidepressant drug because drugs do not cure depression, they only suppress the symptoms. One has to remain on the drugs in order to increase the effects of brain chemicals known as
neurotransmitters. As soon as someone goes off these drugs, the neurotransmitters return to the way they were before and people get depressed again, so they have to get back on the drugs. That is why psychiatrists are always kept in business. It is a revolving door, but thankfully one I will never need to walk through again.
Here is part of another article I had saved in my directory:
Yes, Homeopathy Can Help Depression | Bottom Line Inc
Yes, Homeopathy Can Help Depression
This statistic saddens me: More than one out of every 20 Americans experiences depression at any given time, yet fewer than one-third seek help from a mental health professional for this condition.
One reason for this reluctance: Patients expect to be prescribed antidepressants, and many have concerns about taking these drugs, which is understandable. Antidepressant drugs are supposed to help patients with severe depression, but studies show that they have a low success rate—and have many serious side effects, including suicidal thoughts.
One underrated therapy is homeopathy, which can help on its own or in conjunction with nutritional and/or hormone therapy.
Let me explain why homeopathy makes more sense for depression than antidepressant drugs. Pharmaceutical drugs for depression are designed to force the body chemistry to act in certain ways—for example, to artificially increase the effects of brain chemicals known as
neurotransmitters. These drugs may reduce symptoms of depression, but they don’t address the root cause of this type of mental health problem. Therefore, not only can pharmaceutical drugs interfere with the healing process, they may suppress it. When it comes to depression, that means that antidepressants actually can make the condition worse. When one antidepressant doesn’t work, physicians often prescribe another one, which can lead to even more side effects.
Homeopathy, by its very nature, requires holistic practitioners to take into account the whole person. After an extensive interview with a patient, a practitioner will consult a
repertory, a catalog of symptoms and the homeopathic remedies associated with relieving those symptoms. The correct remedy is believed to stimulate the body’s natural healing response.
When treating mental health, homeopathy is both an art and a science. It requires that the holistic practitioner elicit information from the patient about how he/she is feeling emotionally and physically and then matching the best homeopathic remedy to that particular person.
I use homeopathy to treat many of my patients who have depression—and I closely follow the work of one of the leaders in the field, Dana Ullman, MPH, a consultant, author and founder of Homeopathic Educational Services, a nationally known resource for homeopathy (
www.Homeopathic.com). Our editors spoke to him recently about how homeopathy can help depression…
EVIDENCE!
The value of homeopathy for depression has been validated in several clinical trials. In a recent Brazilian study published in
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, researchers divided people with moderate-to-severe depression into two groups. Half received the antidepressant drug
fluoxetine (Prozac), while the other half received one of 20 different homeopathic remedies custom-prescribed by a homeopathic practitioner. After four weeks and again after eight weeks, the two groups showed equal improvement when evaluated with an established depression rating scale. (Some patients
are helped by antidepressants.) But the homeopathy group reported significantly fewer adverse side effects.
In an older, small study conducted at Duke University, researchers found that almost 60% of patients with major depression, social phobia or panic disorder responded favorably to homeopathic treatment. And in an English observational study, researchers found that almost 64% of patients with depression reported improvement with homeopathic treatment. (This was not a comparative study.)
