Article – Treating Anxiety and Depression with an Integrative Approach

By Jacob Mirman, MD, DHt, CCH, M-Hom

When patients come in to Life Medical to be treated for anxiety, depression, PTSD or any type of mood disorder they have the advantage of a wide range of modalities offered for their condition. Our providers are not bound to use one particular system to treat mood disorders. We look at the patient, their situation, the timing, their location and their insurance and monetary limitations.

THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO HAVE AN APPOINTMENT DURING THE PANDEMIC:

For our patients’ convenience we can conduct appointments in two ways:

  • Appointments can be done virtually
  • Appointments can be handled during a simple phone call

INITIAL APPOINTMENTS:

During the initial appointment we take the time to listen carefully to each patient so we can evaluate their needs based on a number of factors including:

  • Philosophy of care
  • The patient’s specific symptoms
  • Any medications or treatment types they have used previously
  • Insurance coverage
  • The patient’s financial situation

BIOCHEMICAL; DRUGS AND SUPPLEMENTS AND HERBAL TREATMENTS

DRUGS AND SUPPLEMENTS: This group of treatments includes well known medications such as Prozac and Zoloft which are medications popularly prescribed by mainstream physicians.

At Life Medical we use NeuroResearch supplements in place of pharmacologic drugs as a treatment for neurotransmitter imbalance disorders. These supplements contain amino acids 5-HTP, L-tryosine, L-Dopa and other nutritional components that assist the body in achieving proper neurotransmitter balance to alleviate mood disorder symptoms.

There is a big difference in how pharmaceuticals work in the brain and how the NeuroResearch supplements work to increase neurotransmitter levels in the brain synapses so the nerve cells can communicate with each other more effectively.

The pharmaceuticals redistribute the available neurotransmitters from where they are stored to the synapses. The problem with this approach is that when you take the neurotransmitters from one place and move them to another you are depleting the source; once the source is depleted the drugs stop working.

On the other hand, the NeuroResearch supplements increase the overall amount of neurotransmitters in the entire brain; the supplements never stop working. This is one of the reasons we prefer them over pharmaceuticals and why our patients experience such a high level of success.

Dr. Jacob Mirman says, “I have used these supplements to successfully help patients with depression and anxiety. Many have experienced dramatic improvements in their symptoms.“

SUCCESS STORY:

A 55 yo man came in complaining of anxiety. He started the NeuroResearch supplements. In just one month the man’s anxiety was greatly improved. The supplements can be very fast-acting because each dose has a full effect in 7 days.
The dosage of the supplements is carefully monitored in order to get to optimum dosage. Once the dosage is optimized we can add a homeopathic remedy which is what happened with this patient. He kept improving albeit more slowly. After several months of homeopathic and supplement treatments he was able to be weaned off the supplements. A few months later he was off the homeopathic treatments as well, and currently the patient is doing fine without any treatments.

HERBAL THERAPY: There are three treatment types that fall under the category of herbal therapy.

  • Medical cannabis
  • Bach flower is another method which is its own system of herbal therapy.
  • Herbs used for mood disorders including St. John’s Wart and Valerian

Medical Cannabis: The MN Department of Health has listed PTSD as a condition which can be treated with medical cannabis. Many patients who experience PTSD also list depression or anxiety as a symptom. Many of the other qualifying conditions for medical cannabis have anxiety as a side effect as well. Medical cannabis is very promising in these cases for relieving the anxiety. The number of cases we are seeing where cannabis works very effectively and quickly is in the hundreds at this point.

CLICK HERE to determine your eligibility for Medical Cannabis

Medical Marijuana can be more effective than traditional medicines for PTSD patients

The medications most commonly prescribed to help people with PTSD often don’t work well. Plus, there is a risk for unpleasant side effects with most of these pharmaceuticals.

One very successful treatment option for patients suffering from PTSD is medical cannabis

CLICK HERE to fill out an 8-question form to determine your eligibility for Medical Marijuana

Bach Flower Remedies: Recently I had a woman from Russia come to see me because she was feeling very depressed. This patient didn’t have any medical insurance and was not able to afford any kind of expensive treatment so I carefully considered the best options for her.

After listening carefully as she described her symptoms, it sounded like her depression had a lot to do with her recent move to the United States. I determined that a great part of her problem was that she was feeling very homesick.

For this patient’s treatment protocol I decided to use the Bach flower essence of Honeysuckle. After using the remedy for only two weeks she said she was much less homesick and was feeling much less depressed. Her sleep improved significantly as well. Bach essences are often very helpful in cases of situational stress and they are inexpensive and fairly easy to prescribe.

Herbs: There are a variety of herbs that can be used for mood disorders such as Valerian that he uses for anxiety and St. John’s Wart there are many other herbal preparations that could be applied.

Non bio-chemical treatments

COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL THERAPY (CBT): Our mental health providers are skilled in treating depression, anxiety, mood disorders and PTSD with cognitive-behavioral therapy. CBT is a form of psychotherapy that treats problems and boosts happiness by modifying dysfunctional emotions, behaviors, and thoughts. This psychotherapy focuses on solutions, encouraging patients to challenge distorted cognitions and change destructive patterns of behavior. We almost often pair CBT with other therapies to enhance the results.

HOMEOPATHY: There are many methods to affect the body’s energy. Homeopathy is one such method. Homeopathic remedies are, in effect, energetic messages administered in the form of a pellet or a drop of liquid that can be taken by mouth. It may sound too incredible, but this 200-year-old system of medicine has survived multiple attempts to discredit it, and its practitioners are now more numerous than ever. In fact, it now boasts a large body of medical research that proves its effectiveness as compared to placebo (a sugar pill). Many patients with depression and anxiety can be permanently relieved of their complaints with a single well-chosen homeopathic remedy. Patients will only need to be on homeopathic remedies until they achieve their desired state of health.


AN ANALOGY IN CLOSING:

When treating mood disorders I like to think of an analogy of keeping your home computer running. When a computer malfunctions, the problem could be in the hardware or the software. A good technician like a good doctor must look at all sides of the equation to correctly solve the problem.

The biochemical methods like the drugs, supplements and herbal remedies are like treating the computer hardware and the non-biochemical methods like homeopathy are similar to the de-bugging of the operating system. Both should be used appropriately. To get the best results both methods should be used appropriately for depression and anxiety.

If you are experiencing depression or anxiety and have found no relief using traditional medicine, I encourage you to schedule an appointment with me, Dr. Jacob Mirman by calling Life Medical at 952-933-8900.