Holistic mental health combines the benefits of talk therapy with other alternative mental health therapies such as diet and nutrition to achieve optimal psychological functioning.
It emphasizes the interconnectedness of the body, mind and spirit and utilizes methods outside the realm of conventional psychotherapy.
Unlike traditional psychiatry, instead of medicating the brain with toxic drugs, it attempts to find the underlying cause of the psychological symptom that is exhibited.
Main stream medicine or psychology has a very limited understanding and knowledge about the role of body chemistry in mental health and the impact of diet, nutrition and chemicals in the environment on the brain.
The physiological and psychological have a profound impact on one another. Good mental health can't exist without attending to the physical and spiritual matters and vice versa.
Holistic mental health addresses psychological problems from the bio-chemical angle.
In the bio-chemical approach there is no such thing as "mental" illness in and of itself. Any so called "mental illness" can always be linked to something physiological as the root cause. Mental disorders, conditions, illnesses etc., are the result of bio-chemical disorders with symptoms that exhibit in the psychological arena.
What appears to be a psychological symptom is really triggered by something in body chemistry or environmental sources such as pesticides or other chemicals.
Diet Nutrition and Your Mental Health
One of the most important elements of holistic mental health is the
role of diet and nutrition.
Psychological disorders such as Depression, Anxiety, Hyperactivity, Learning Disorders, Bi-polar Depression, Manic Depression, Alcoholism and Schizophrenia can be treated quite successfully with diet and nutritional supplementation, as well as changes in lifestyle and improving air quality in the environment.
The brain is dependent on adequate supplies of nutrients in order to function properly, when it doesn't receive these nutrients then the deficiency is exhibited in a variety of negative symptoms in thought, mood, emotion, perception and behavior.
Mental health is deeply affected by factors such as
pesticides, food allergies, nutritional deficiencies, Candida overgrowth, hormonal imbalances, common every day chemicals in your environment, hypoglycemia- low blood sugar,food additives, hypothyroidism - low thyroid, and preservatives.
Symptoms from these issues can range anywhere from mild melancholy to suicidal depression. They may include anxiety, outbursts of anger, Autism, Hyperactivity, Schizophrenia and Mania, obsessive compulsive disorders, memory difficulties, learning disorders, Paranoia and Agoraphobia.
For example, many people have found that eliminating dairy and wheat products from their diet can greatly reduce the symptoms associated with Schizophrenia and Autism.
While others have amazing results in relieving Depression, Autism, Anxiety, Hyperactivity and just about any psychological problem you can think of by following a Candida Diet.
And yet many other people have found relief from these same afflictions with supplementation of a variety of vitamins and minerals like B-complex and magnesium.
Other alternative mental health methods may include cleaning up toxins from the environment, pinpointing food allergies that may exist, identifying any possible metabolic disorders such as hypoglycemia or malfunction in systmes such as hypothyroidism.
Here at Holistic Help you can receive a variety of holistic mental health guidance from Cynthia Perkins, M.Ed. I have both personal and professional experience in finding relief the holistic way from a large variety of mental health conditions.
If you'd like to learn more about what services I offer or make an appointment, please visit the Counseling Page or the Contact Page.
We will examine your condition from all the angles we've discussed above to determine which factors may play a role in your situation and the best course of action for you to take. All services are available by telephone consultation, so it doesn't matter where you live.
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The information on this web site or in emails is designed for educational purposes only and should not
be taken as professional medical advice. I am not a medical doctor and this information is not intended to
diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. With all medical conditions consult a qualified medical professional.
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