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Category: Depression

Happiness – Can it Be Learned?

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As Bobby McFarrin sings, “Don’t worry, be happy!”  We all know people who are annoyingly happy and positive all the time, and we also know people that are the biggest Debbie Downers ever.  The negative types suck all the energy out of a room.  When you are around unhappy or negative people, they tend to bring you down.

So the question is, if you are an unhappy or negative type of person, can you change to become a happy person, or is something that you are just born with?

According to the latest data, people may be able to make immediate changes in their quality of life by following a few rules of the “happiness prescription.”

Psychologist Elizabeth Lombardo, PhD. said you can teach yourself to find peace and happiness when struggles arise.

“Happiness is a skill,” said Lombardo. “It’s a skill, just like playing a sport or the piano. If you get the proper coaching and you practice, you can be really good at it.”

Lombardo uses the “great” method.

Gratitude journal – Make a list of what makes you happy each day.

Relax – Set aside a few minutes each day to unwind and have fun.

Exercise – Proven to be as effective as anti-depressant medications.

Assist – When you help others in need, you are reminded of all the positives in your life.

Talk – Maintain strong communication and relationships with the people you love.

These small, but daily changes can go a long way to training yourself to have a positive, healthy, and happy outlook on life.

Granted, these steps won’t be able to help everybody; those, for instance, who have chemical disorders will have a much more difficult time bringing themselves out of a funk.   But, even people who have been disagnosed with depression or other psychological disorders can receive some benefit.

If you need a little more help than that those 5 steps above, Remmel Wellness Center may be able to help.  We have found that often time body detoxification and oral chelation can make a difference in your moods.  Chemicals and toxins negatively affect how your body functions, and that includes hormones that influence your mood. 

We also provide mental health counseling for those who can benefit from talking with a trained professional.

Posted by Laurie Puckett at Remmel Wellness Center, a full service wellness and chiropractic facility located in beautiful St. Petersburg, Florida.

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1 Comment by Laurie Puckett on October 5, 2010
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Healthcare Mistakes Women Make

I found this great article on Bay News 9 the other day and thought I would share it with you ~ who knows, maybe it will help save a life.

All of us make some health mistakes – not getting enough sleep, eating too many calories, and so on…

But there are a few serious mishaps that women most commonly make.

The first concern that females face is an abnormal pap smear.  Not following up with more tests can be fatal.  Believe it or not, nearly half of all women who need to return for more care never do.

“A million women a year have an abnormal pap smear,” said gynecologic oncologist Jennifer Young, MD. “Three-hundred thousand of those require treatment in order to prevent cervical cancer. For some women, it changes something that’s easily treatable as an outpatient to a cancer, to something that could actually kill them.”

Also, there are women who are concerned that birth control pills can raise their risk for cancer.  Actually, the pill has been shown to decrease the risk for ovarian cancer by up to 50 percent.  The myth of a link between the medication and breast cancer comes from studies done decades ago that turned out false information.

Another mistake? Quitting anti-depressants all at once.  Patients should slowly decrease their dose by one-fourth every two weeks to avoid side effects.

Women should also note that alcohol is more toxic to their bodies than to a man’s body.  Females are smaller, their bodies contain less water, and break down alcohol less efficiently.  According to research, women who get drunk just once a month have triple the risk of having a heart attack.

Share this info with the women you know and help stamp out some of these mistakes and misconceptions that can jeopardize lives. 

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center ~ a full service chiropractic and wellness facility in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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No Comments by Laurie Puckett on August 3, 2010
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Dangers of Secondhand Smoke Include Depression

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Americans have known the dangers of tobacco for decades now, and I am constantly amazed at the number of people I still see smoking.  And not just older people who started smoking and got hooked before the dangers were known, the number of young people smoking is just crazy!!!  I just want to each out, shake them saying “Are you that stupid?”  Maybe it is because I live in the South (I know Florida isn’t technically tobacco country and many question whether it really is part of the South - however parts of Florida can be pretty red-neck), but when I drive down the road, about 50% of the drivers on the road are smoking a cigarette. 

These geniuses aren’t just harming themselves, they are harming the rest of us with their secondhand smoke.  There is nothing worse than going to the beach or for a hike in a park or nature preserve and having your fresh air fouled by the odor of cigarettes.  Now we can add one more health hazard to the list of the dangers of secondhand smoke:  Depression and mental illness.  I found the following article in the New York Times:

Smokers are known to suffer from high rates of depression and other mental health problems, and now a study reports that even people exposed to secondhand smoke are at significantly increased risk — and more likely to be hospitalized for mental illness.

The study analyzed data from the Scottish Health Survey of 1998 and 2003, a periodic look at a nationally representative sample of about 5,560 nonsmoking adults and 2,595 smokers. Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke were 1.5 times as likely to suffer from symptoms of psychological distress as unexposed nonsmokers, the study found. The risk increased with greater exposure. And though psychiatric hospitalizations were rare over all, they were almost three times as common for the exposed nonsmokers, according to the study, published online June 7 in Archives of General Psychiatry.

While the association between smoking and mental health problems has long been known, researchers have never been able to establish whether either one causes the other, said the paper’s lead author, Mark Hamer, a senior research fellow at University College London.

“This research goes some way toward suggesting nicotine is having some sort of impact on mental health,” Dr. Hamer said. “But of course, we need to do further work.”

 For the sake of your own health and that of your loved ones, get help for your nicotine addiction today.

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center – a full service chiropractic and wellness facility in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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No Comments by Laurie Puckett on June 23, 2010
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Meditation, not Medication

Practice Yoga, Be Healthy! {EXPLORED}
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I am a firm believer in managing chronic pain and other health issues with the assistance of meditation, stress reduction techniques such as deep breathing exercise and yoga.  Apparently, I’m not the only one!  The Memphis Tennessee VA is now offering yoga to veterans.  Read this story from the VA:

Veteran Tanya Boldt manages her pain with yoga moves she learns at the Memphis VA.  She struggled with service-connected injuries for years. She used to associate the VA with pain and nurses drawing blood. All that changed when she started attending all-women’s yoga therapy classes at the Memphis VA to treat her health problems.

“Yoga helped me to feel different about the VA,” she said. “I go into a room with low lighting and peaceful music. I stretch through the pain and relax. Now whenever I think of the VA, I think of a soft, quiet place instead.” The VA has become Boldt’s haven away from pain.

Yoga is one of the newest forms of therapy at the hospital. Three specialized yoga courses are offered: a women’s class, a seniors’ class, and a mixed-gender class.

Though the stress-relieving program has only been in place for a few weeks, it’s already very popular with the Veterans who try it. When asked if they plan to continue the yoga program, every Veteran answered the same way: “Definitely!”

Volunteer Joyce Smith leads the classes. In one of her training courses, the longtime yoga instructor heard that the military used yoga to treat PTSD, so she signed up to volunteer.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about yoga — that it has to be intense to work, that it’s only for certain people. I thought it would be beneficial for Veterans’ injuries and peace of mind. Usually when people try it, they keep coming back,” she said.

Smith adapts her classes to the Veterans’ injuries. Chair yoga, for example, has been a huge success. “Class participants engage in deep stretching and breathing exercises, while a bit of cardio still gets their heart rate up,” said Smith. “Gentle yoga works just as well as hardcore yoga sessions,” she added.

Smith thought the Veterans would love yoga — and she was right.

Her class participants have undergone internal and external changes. “I’ve seen decreased anxiety when talking to these patients,” said Women Veterans Program Manager Kay Borgognoni. “They’re feeling better, both mentally and physically.”

Borgognoni was inspired to take up yoga for her own chronic back pain. “It’s the one thing that helped me more than anything, including medication. Yoga makes you slow down and take your time. You begin to look at the world differently,” she said.

“Decreasing stress means lower blood pressure,” she added, “So yoga could play a small role in reducing fatalities of the leading cause of death in American women: heart disease.”

Veteran Chevelle Hess enrolled in the class to ease the pain in her back, knees, and neck. “I’m learning to move a little slower with my injuries,” she said. “I’m in a lot of pain, so I try to stretch as much as I can.”

Smith gave Hess a meditation tape and Hess listened to it for a week straight. “I love the music,” she said. “I was breathing in time to what I was listening to.” Practicing yoga was so relaxing for Hess that she even stopped gritting her teeth at night.

“Between breathing and the yoga movements, a lot of physical and emotional healing can take place,” said Smith. “Learning to move with your breath and deep breathing can relieve stress. Yoga helps Veterans focus on themselves and their bodies.”

Boldt, with her service-connected injuries, found the yoga class through her doctor. She needed to find a way to relax, she told him.

Just her luck — Smith and her yoga mats had just arrived at the VA. Boldt tried it and immediately became a fan.

“This was something out of the traditional way of looking at things,” said Boldt. “Yoga has helped me learn to stop, breathe, relax, and become more aware of where my body’s hurting. I can escape out of that pain through deep breathing.”

Boldt said practicing yoga is the most effective way of managing her pain — even better than her pain medication since she doesn’t feel woozy like she does when taking pills.

“I will definitely continue yoga,” Boldt said. “It’s a slice of heaven.”

If you have stress in your life (and who doesn’t) or chronic pain, seek out a yoga class that will meet your needs and medical conditions.  Chances are, you will love it, and you may even be able to reduce or eliminate your need for pain medications! 

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center – a full service chiropractic and wellness facility in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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No Comments by Laurie Puckett on June 10, 2010
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Sunshine On My Shoulders …

Aahhhh … it is a beautiful, hot and sunny day here in Florida … we aren’t called the Sunshine State for nothing :-)  

And that brings to mind a spate of sunny songs, like the one in the title of this post; or “you are my sunshine, my only sunshine.”  Or, how about “Here comes the sun, here comes the sun, and I say it’s alright.”  

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the sun!  But is it alright?  The Beatles say it is.  My vitamin D posts on getting good quality vitamin D from the sun say it is.  But what about the negative effects of sunlight?  As with most things in life, moderation is the key.  Use common sense and decide for yourself how much sun to get.  But I’ll give you a hint – spending hours and hours outside every day without sunscreen is bad :-)  

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center, a full service chiropractic and and wellness facility in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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1 Comment by ben on May 5, 2010
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Bored to Death – Literally

Boring
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Have you ever felt bored? Ever found yourself with nothing engaging to do? Experienced a lack of interest in everything and everyone around you? Although not a pleasant state in which to find oneself, is boredom bad for health? In a rare moment of idleness one day, researchers pondered whether the expression ‘bored to death’ has any basis. Are people who are bored more likely to die earlier than those who are not?

In a commentary published in the International Journal of Epidemiology this month, experts say there’s a possibility that the more bored you are, the more likely you are to die early.  So, yes.  You may actually be bored to death!.

Annie Britton and Martin Shipley of University College London caution that boredom alone isn’t likely to kill you — but it could be a symptom of other risky behavior like drinking, smoking, taking drugs or having a psychological problem.

The researchers analyzed questionnaires completed between 1985 and 1988 by more than 7,500 London civil servants ages 35 to 55. The civil servants were asked if they had felt bored at work during the previous month.

Britton and Shipley then tracked down how many of the participants had died by April 2009. Those who reported they had been very bored were two and a half times more likely to die of a heart problem than those who hadn’t reported being bored.

But when the authors made a statistical adjustment for other potential risk factors, like physical activity levels and employment grade, the effect was reduced.

Other experts said while the research was preliminary, the link between boredom and increased heart problems was possible — if not direct.

“Someone who is bored may not be motivated to eat well, exercise, and have a heart-healthy lifestyle. That may make them more likely to have a cardiovascular event,” said Dr. Christopher Cannon, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard University and spokesman for the American College of Cardiology.

He also said if people’s boredom was ultimately linked to depression, it wouldn’t be surprising if they were more susceptible to heart attacks; depression has long been recognized as a risk factor for heart disease. Cannon also said it was possible that when people are bored, dangerous hormones are released in the body that stress the heart.

Britton and Shipley said boredom was probably not in itself that deadly. “The state of boredom is almost certainly a proxy for other risk factors,” they wrote. “It is likely that those who were bored were also in poor health.”

Others said boredom was potentially as dangerous as stress.

“Boredom is not innocuous,” said Sandi Mann, a senior lecturer in occupational psychology at the University of Central Lancashire who studies boredom.

She said boredom is linked to anger suppression, which can raise blood pressure and suppress the body’s natural immunity. “People who are bored also tend to eat and drink more, and they’re probably not eating carrots and celery sticks,” she said.

Still, Mann said it was only people who were chronically bored who should be worried.

“Everybody is bored from time to time,” she said.

If you find yourself to be bored more than infrequently, you may want to consider taking a class, picking up a hobby, changing jobs or careers, heading out to the gym, engaging in a sport or calling a friend just to chat.   There’s no reason for you to be Bored to Death!

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center, a full service chiropractic and wellness center in St. Petersburg, Florida. 

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1 Comment by Laurie Puckett on April 27, 2010
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Health Benefits of Tea, Part 2

HARROGATE, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 12: Tea waits t...
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Yesterday we took a broad view of the various health benefits of tea.  Today’s post will focus more on specific health benefits, based on scientific research.  Most of the information here has come from wikipedia.  So, brew yourself a cup of tea, and read on to discover just how good that cup of tea is for you!

Anti-cancer properties
An article in New Scientist magazine mentions that numerous studies suggest that green tea protects against a range of cancers, including lung, prostate and breast cancer.  The reason cited is the antioxidant epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), according to Hirofumi Tachibana’s team at Kyushu University. Their research showed that growth of human lung cancer cells with a cell receptor called 67 LR is slowed significantly after drinking just two or three cups of green tea, which contains EGCG.  There is some evidence that suggests that white tea is even more effective than green tea in this regard.

Another study from the Life Science journal Carcinogenesis showed that green tea, in combination with tamoxifen, is effective in suppressing breast cancer growth in vitro human breast cancer tumors and in vivo animal experiments in mice.  A study at Taiwan’s Chung Shan Medical University found that people who drank at least one cup of green tea per day were five times less likely to develop lung cancer than those who did not.

Topical applications of green tea extracts (EGCG) have protective effects on UVA- and UVB-induced skin damage (photoaging and carcinogenesis).

Increases metabolic rate
Clinical trials conducted by the University of Geneva and the University of Birmingham indicate that green tea raises metabolic rates, speeds up fat oxidation and improves insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance.  In addition to caffeine, green tea contains catechin polyphenols that raise thermogenesis (the production of heat by the body), and hence increases energy expenditure.

There is also a suggestion that it can increase endurance in exercise by improving fat metabolism (yea!!).

Possible anti-diabetes effect
There is also epidemiological evidence that drinking green tea and black tea may help prevent diabetes, although it is worth noting that this is evidence of an association, and that future studies are needed to confirm the effect.

Boosts mental alertness
The amino acid L-theanine, found almost exclusively in the tea plant, actively alters the attention networks of the brain, according to results of human trials announced in September 2007. It has been proposed that theanine is absorbed by the small intestine and crosses the blood-brain barrier, where it affects the brain’s neurotransmitters and increases alpha brain-wave activity. The result is a calmer, yet more alert, state of mind. Sounds good to me!

Boosts immune system
On 21 April 2003 the Brigham and Women’s Hospital released details of a research project which indicated that theanine may help the body’s immune system response when fighting infection, by boosting the disease-fighting capacity of gamma delta T cells. The study included a four-week trial with 11 coffee drinkers and 10 tea drinkers, who consumed 600ml of coffee or black tea daily. Blood sample analysis found that the production of anti-bacterial proteins was up to five times higher in the tea-drinkers, an indicator of a stronger immune response.

Lowers chances of cognitive impairment
A 2006 study showed that elderly Japanese people who consumed more than 2 cups of green tea a day had a 50 percent lower chance of having cognitive impairment (dementia, alzhemier’s), in comparison to those who drank fewer than 2 cups a day, or who consumed other tested beverages.  This is probably due to the effect of EGCG, which passes through the blood-brain barrier.

Lowers stress hormone levels
According to a study by researchers at University College London, drinking black tea can lead to lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol after a stressful event.  Fifty minutes after being subjected to challenging tasks, subjects who had been drinking 4 cups of black tea daily for 6 weeks, had a 20% greater drop in cortisol than the placebo group. Blood platelet activation, which is linked to blood clotting and the risk of heart attacks was also lower for tea drinkers. And that is a good thing, don’t you think?  — Actually, I kinda feel sorry for those in the placebo group (though I do believe in the power of the mind to heal).

Effects on HIV
A recent study appearing in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology was the subject of an article on BBC News. It stated that epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) found in green tea can lead to the inhibition of HIV virus binding and may be used as a complementary therapy for HIV patients, but qualified it by noting that “It is not a cure, and nor is it a safe way to avoid infection, however, we suggest that it should be used in combination with conventional medicines to improve quality of life for those infected.” It was an in vitro (test tube) study, not an in vivo study, which only tested effects of a chemical in green tea. “Many substances shown to prevent HIV infection in the test tube turn out to have little or no effect in real life, so I think there’s a long way to go before anyone should rely on green tea to protect against HIV infection.”

Effects on inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
The polyphenols in green tea have been shown to reduce intestinal inflammation in mouse models of IBD. This effect seems to be related to tea’s ability to interrupt the cascade of inflammatory reactions that are the cause of IBD.

Effects on bad breath
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago stated that polyphenols help inhibit the growth of bacteria that cause bad breath.

Iron overload disorders
Researchers in Germany have found that a daily cup of black tea can help stop excess iron damaging the bodies of people who suffer from hemochromatosis due to its high content of flavonoids (commonly mistaken for tannins), which limit iron absorption.  However, because tea can block the absorption of iron, tea drinkers should be aware of the possiblity of becoming anemic (iron deficient).

Effects associated with caffeine
A cup of green tea contains between 15 and 50 mg of caffeine. Certain cognitive benefits are associated with caffeine consumption, such as a reduction in the likelihood of Parkinson’s disease and a temporary increase in short term memory. Further, caffeine consumption has been linked with greater athletic performance, healthy weight loss, reduction in duration and severity of headaches and is effective in treating the symptoms of asthma.

Effects on obstructive sleep apnea-related brain deficits
University of Louisville researchers report that green tea polyphenols may stave off the cognitive deficits that occur with obstructive sleep apnea, in the second issue for May, 2008 of the American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.  Researchers examined the effects of green tea polyphenols administered through drinking water, on rats that were intermittently deprived of oxygen during 12-hour “night” cycles, mimicking the intermittent hypoxia that humans with OSA experience.

Effects on bacterial and fungal infections
A study at Pace University reported in American Society For Microbiology (May 2008) found white tea extracts effective at treating bacterial infections, such as Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, pneumonia and tooth decay. White tea was also found to be effective in treating fungal infections.  Researchers also reported that white tea extracts showed a greater effect than green tea extracts.

Anti-venom effects
Antivenom activity of melanin extracted from black tea (MEBT) was reported for the first time in 2004.  Low toxicity of MEBT in combination with its antagonistic activity against different venoms may allow effective life-saving treatment against snakebites. Such application of MEBT is important when identification of the snake is impossible or if specific treatment is unavailable.

Stroke
Research presented at the International Stroke Conference in February 2009 found that drinking three or more cups of tea per day can reduce the risk of suffering a stroke by as much as 21%. The research, conducted at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), found that drinking green and black varieties of teas has a significant impact on the risk of stroke.

Cardiovascular health
Research published in April 2009 by the University of L’Aquila and funded by the Unilever-owned Lipton Institute of Tea suggests that drinking just one cup of regular, black tea per day may help to protect against cardiovascular disease.The research showed that black tea consumption does – depending on dose – improve blood vessel reactivity, reduce both blood pressure and arterial stiffness, indicating a notably better cardiovascular health profile.

Antidepressant properties
Two separate Japanese studies show the antidepressant benefits of green tea consumption.  One showed a reduction in psychological distress, and the other showed a reduction in depression sypmptoms in elderly Japanese living in assisted living and nursing homes, which showed a reduction in the severity of depression symptoms with increased green tea consumption.

So why drink green tea, white tea, black tea or oolong tea?  For the Health of it!  Be sure to make yourself a complimentary cup of tea when you come into our office.

Posted by Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center, a full service chiropractic and wellness center in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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2 Comments by Laurie Puckett on April 21, 2010
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The Mind – Body Connection for Healing

Cherry Passion and Orange Tic Tacs - The Delic...
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I can’t think of anything more amazing than the intricacies of the human body, and your mind is one heck of a supercomputer.  There are tons of examples of how powerful the mind is, in all aspects of our lives.  Just look at the popularity of The Secret.  Athletes visualize their performance and outcome.  And in drug studies, new medications are compared to sugar pills.  The placebo effect – the mind curing the body, rather than the drug – works more often than you might think.  Here is a little bit of research on the placebo effect as it relates to antidepressants:

Twenty-plus years of research on antidepressants show that their benefit is hardly more than what patients get when they take a placebo.

More and more scientists who study depression and the drugs that treat it are concluding that antidepressants are basically expensive Tic Tacs.  Research has found that patients do improve, often substantially, on SSRIs, tricyclics, and even MAO inhibitors. This improvement is the basis for the ubiquitous claim that antidepressants work.

But when researchers compare the improvement in patients taking the drugs with the improvement in those taking dummy pills, they find that the difference is minuscule.

Nonetheless, the number of Americans taking antidepressants doubled in a decade, from 13.3 million in 1996 to 27 million in 2005.

This is a very important point, folks.  In many cases, your beliefs are as or more effective than pills when it comes to achieving health.

Many healthcare professionals frown on the notion of homeopathy, because some people think it may work as a placebo.  But they shouldn’t be so dismissive.  The placebo effect is very powerful.  Thousands of clinical studies have found that the placebo effect can aid in healing or even cure disease.

What it comes down to is the crucial mind-body connection.  Those who have hope and belief in the solutions they try will likely find them working.  That’s why it is so key to keep your health freedom, and pay attention to the huge corporations that continually discredit alternative methods.

Typically, more natural healing techniques won’t harm you, and many of the drugs will.  In time, energy medicine will be better understood, and perhaps this placebo element will be utilized in such a way that no pill will ever be necessary — your mind will be stimulated to heal on its own.  Similarly, those who pray or meditate for healing should not be ridiculed either.

Simply labeling something as a placebo and not pursuing it any further misses a key point.  The so-called “placebo effect” may very well point the way to the future or medicine.

Discuss alternatives to medications with your healthcare provider.

Laurie Puckett, Remmel Wellness Center, a full service Wellness and Chiropractic Center in St. Petersburg, FL.

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1 Comment by Laurie Puckett on April 8, 2010
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