Fountainhead

I found this place not too far from Brisbane in Maleny. It is a natural approach to depression and anxiety. If you are looking to move away from the medical model of the hospital system and need a retreat this is the place. They also offer workshops and they are run in all capital cities of Australia.

When I visited the all organic retreat, I knew that this would have been my first choice over a visit to the pnd centre at the hospital. The sessions they provide can help with the thought patterns creating the depression.

Here is what they have to say
'First of all we help you understand how certain thought patterns are common to sufferers of anxiety or depressive illness. Secondly we look at what emotional triggers create these thoughts. Finally we work on enhancing your belief system i.e. shows you a way to view life so that you will be "ok" even when things don't go to plan.
The programs we offer here work for many but even with the best intentions, cannot be guaranteed for all. Come ready to commit to change and be prepared to take action now.'

Do check out their site at www.fountainhead.com.au

I am currently looking at completing their course in life coaching so I can improve on my skills to help other mums with pnd.

Take a look and take care.

Yoga for Anxiety and Depression

I am a big convert to yoga. It helped me hugely when I was depressed and to aleviate symptoms of anxiety.

Here is what I found on the benefits of yoga at Nubella.

(I have also made a dvd 'Yoga for Emotional Wellbeing' with my yoga teacher Dani Ready. You will receive a free copy if you join the program at www.beatpostnataldepression.com or email me direct to buy a copy at info@beatpostnataldepression.com)



Brain scans showed boost in valuable brain chemical, study says
THURSDAY, June 7 (HealthDay News) -- Yoga's postures, controlled breathing and meditation may work together to help ease brains plagued by anxiety or depression, a new study shows.

Brain scans of yoga practitioners showed a healthy boost in levels of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric (GABA) immediately after a one-hour yoga session. Low brain levels of GABA are associated with anxiety and depression, the researchers said.

"I am quite sure that this is the first study that's shown that there's a real, measurable change in a major neurotransmitter with a behavioral intervention such as yoga," said lead researcher Dr. Chris Streeter, assistant professor of psychiatry and neurology at the Boston University School of Medicine.

She believes yoga could prove a useful tool to help people battling depression and anxiety disorders. "We're not advocating that they chuck their medication, but I would advise that they could use it as an adjunct and see how they are doing," Streeter said.

Her team published its findings in the May issue of the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

In the study, the Boston researchers used high-tech magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging to gauge levels of GABA in the brains of eight long-time yoga practitioners and 11 non-practitioners. The participants were healthy, and none was diagnosed with a major psychiatric condition.

Brain scans were taken before the beginning of the experiment. Then, the yoga group was asked to engage in the meditative practice for 60 minutes, while the non-yoga group simply read. The researchers then re-scanned each participant's brain, looking specifically at GABA levels.

"We showed a 27 percent increase in the brain GABA levels of those doing yoga -- a really significant increase," Streeter said. No such change was noted in the non-practitioners who had just read.

She said the style or school of yoga practiced didn't seem to matter. "We had hatha, ashtanga, bikram, vinyasa, and kripalu" practitioners included in the yoga group, Streeter said, "and many had been trained in several different schools."

According to Streeter, "this all gives us one of the mechanisms by which yoga may be having a beneficial effect. There could be other mechanisms."

But another expert pointed to what he considered flaws in the research.

Zindel Segal, chairman of psychotherapy and a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Toronto, has for years studied the use of behavioral interventions to alleviate psychological woes.

He said the Boston researchers were to be commended for using brain scan imaging technologies to investigate the effectiveness of these techniques. But he questioned why the yoga group was simply compared to a sedentary reading group and not to another movement-based group.

"Exercise itself may have some effects on GABA, so I think in this study, you'd really want that comparison," he said. Including such a control group would make it clear that it was yoga and not just an hour of physical exertion that was responsible for the brain changes.

He also pointed out that all of the people in the study were mentally healthy, and clinical depression and anxiety disorders involve more than the "daily fluctuations in stress and tension" that healthy individuals are prone to.

"We know that yoga can have a profound effect" on smoothing out life's daily ups and downs, Segal said. "But so does working out on a Stairmaster for an hour."

Segal also questioned the role of GABA in depression. While it may play a role in anxiety disorders, "GABA is not one of the main neurotransmitters that seems to be a part of the depression story," he said. Other neurochemicals -- most notably serotonin -- play much bigger roles in the disorder, he said.

None of this means that the study's findings are without merit, Segal said. "In fact," he said, "we have a program called 'mindfulness-based cognitive therapy,' where we do use yoga, as well as mindfulness meditation," as therapeutic tools. Streeter's findings "suggest the need for more study of these practices," he said.

Streeter agreed that her study is probably just a beginning.

"I think what's important about this study is that it shows that by using really cutting-edge neuroimaging technology, we can measure real changes in the brain with behavioral interventions -- changes that are similar to those that we see with pharmacologic treatments," she said.

Would other mind-body practices -- Tai Chi, for example -- produce similar effects?

"I think that's very possible," Streeter said. "I suspect that all roads lead up the mountain."

Very interesting study.
Enjoy your day and hope you are inspired to start yoga if you don't already do.

Tracey

Sleep and PND and Tranceformed

Sleep!

I remember feeling so tired yet I could not sleep. It was my thoughts racing and irrational thoughts that were keeping me from falling asleep and staying asleep. The sleep deprivation of having a baby at first was bad and then the insomnia became intolerable.

I was desparate for sleep and a solution!!

I have found a band-aid that may help other mothers.
Go to www.tranceformed.com.au and check out their CD which is a hypnosis CD that can give you a quick break in the day to help keep you going until you can start to stop those intruding thoughts happening. It is called the nanny nap for mums.

Don't forget to email me at info@beatpostnataldepression.com if you want any further information or need help.

Have a great day and sleeping.

Hugs
Tracey

Journalling

A Garden of Thoughts: My Affirmation Journal

Click on the above picture to view this journal by Louise Hay.

How Does Journaling Compare to Other Stress Management Practices?:

Unlike more physical stress management techniques such as yoga or exercise, journaling is a viable option. And, although some prefer to use a computer, journaling requires only a pen and paper, so it’s less expensive than techniques that require the aid of a class, book, teacher or therapist, like techniques such as yoga. Journaling doesn’t release tension from your body like progressive muscle relaxation and other physical and meditative techniques, however. But it’s a great practice for overall stress reduction as well as self-knowledge and emotional healing.

Journaling is a term coined for the practice of keeping a diary or journal that explores thoughts and feelings surrounding the events of one’s life. Journaling, as a stress management and self-exploration tool, is not the same as simply recording the happenings in one’s life, like keeping a log. To be most helpful, one must write in detail about feelings and cognitions related to stressful events, as one would discuss topics in therapy.

What Are The Benefits of Journaling?:

Journaling allows people to clarify their thoughts and feelings, thereby gaining valuable self-knowledge. It’s also a good problem-solving tool; oftentimes, one can hash out a problem and come up with solutions more easily on paper. Journaling about traumatic events helps one process them by fully exploring and releasing the emotions involved, and by engaging both hemispheres of the brain in the process, allowing the experience to become fully integrated in one’s mind.As for the health benefits of journaling, they've been scientifically proven. Research shows the following:
• Journaling decreases the symptoms depression, arthritis, and other health conditions.
• It improves cognitive functioning.
• It strengthens the immune system, preventing a host of illnesses.
• It counteracts many of the negative effects of anxiety

Here's to great journalling. Remember it's yours and your creation.

Tracey

Copper and Post Natal Depression

Here is something to think about. I heard this from a Kinesilogist as well and here is an article I found on the internet about how Copper levels can affect women who have just given birth.
It is worth looking at which multivitamin you are taking as this could be contributing to excess copper in your system. If you visit a Naturopath you can also have hair samples taken to see if you carry an excess in your body.

Here is the article for you to read.

Copper supplement and element information by Ray Sahelian, M.D.
Copper is a mineral crucial for health maintenance. Copper is an essential nutrient, excesses or deficiencies of which cause impaired cellular functions and eventually cell death. The metabolic fates of copper and iron are intimately related. Systemic copper deficiency generates cellular iron deficiency, which in humans results in diminished work capacity, reduced intellectual capacity, diminished growth, alterations in bone mineralization, and diminished immune response. Copper is required for the function of over 30 proteins, including superoxide dismutase, ceruloplasmin, lysyl oxidase, cytochrome c oxidase, tyrosinase and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase. However, copper excess can also be harmful. It is suggested not to exceed 2 mg of copper intake a day.


Copper and postpartum depression
Women with a history of postpartum depression tend to have unusually high levels of copper in their blood. The body's regulation of copper levels may be involved. Blood copper levels are significantly higher among women with a history of postpartum depression compared with non-depressed women and those who'd suffered depression unrelated to childbirth. Some women may have a problem in the body's built-in system for clearing excess copper.
During pregnancy, a woman's copper levels normally go up, more than doubling, before normalizing after childbirth. In women who develop postpartum depression, copper levels do not normalize for some reason -- most likely because of a genetically determined flaw in the protein that regulates copper levels. Persistently high copper levels might contribute to postpartum depression because of the metal's role in brain chemistry. Excess copper in the brain, can alter the balance of dopamine and norepinephrine, two mood-regulating chemicals.

Copper in food
Copper is normally consumed in animal organs like liver, and in shellfish, nuts, legumes, some fruits, potatoes and chocolate. Drinking water that travels through copper pipes can also contain copper.

Copper RDA or Suggested Daily Intake
The U.S. daily recommended intake of copper is 0.9 milligrams.

Copper Deficiency
During the past decade, there has been increasing interest in the concept that marginal deficits of copper element can contribute to the development and progression of a number of disease states including cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Deficits of copper nutrient during pregnancy can result in gross structural malformations in the conceptus, and persistent neurological and immunological abnormalities in the offspring. Excessive amounts of copper in the body can also pose a risk.

Toxicity
Acute copper toxicity can result in a number of pathologies, and in severe cases, death. Chronic copper toxicity can result in liver disease and severe neurological defects. The concept that elevated ceruloplasmin is a risk factor.
In China, dumplings are served by millions of families during the annual Dragon Boat Festival. The glutinous rice dumplings, or "zongzi", are wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves and shaped like pyramids, but some unscrupulous manufacturers are using copper-based chemicals to keep the leaves green. The leaves dyed by copper sulphate or copper chloride contain metal elements which will penetrate into the zongzi and cause harm. Some zongzi may contained 30 times more copper than the national standard.

Copper and Depression
Magnesium and copper are important modulators of NMDA-receptor activity. Recent data indicate that disturbances of glutamatergic transmission (especially via NMDA-receptor) are involved in pathogenesis of mood disorders. Magnesium deficiency, the same as disturbances in turn over of copper, are related to a variety of psychological symptoms especially depression. There are many reports indicating significant changes in blood levels of magnesium or copper during a depressive episode.

Copper can contribute to the formation of damaging free radicals in the body while low magnesium may also contribute to inflammation. Low zinc levels may impair immune function, while zinc also shields the body from free radicals. Epidemiology, May 2006.

Copper Sulfate Pentahydrate (Cuppric Sulfate)

Copper and Prions
The main proteins associated with Alzheimer's and prion diseases (amyloid precursor protein (APP) and prion protein (PrP(C)), respectively, have binding sites for copper and it has therefore been suggested that they play a role in copper metabolism.




Have a great day.

Regards
Tracey

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all of you. You may not be feeling so 'happy' at the moment if you are feeling depressed. Just try to appreciate the little things. Write down what you are grateful for today. A cup of tea in bed, making it out of bed, walking outside, a smile from your baby or child.
If you still need some help visit www.beatpostnataldepression.com and you will receive emails with free info and reports.

Hugs and kisses to all the mums.

Tracey

My TV appearance

Last week I made my second TV appearance here in Brisbane on a local show Extra on Chanel 9. It went so well to raise the awareness of pnd to other mums out there.
Heather Ford who hosts the show also mentioned how she suffered twice and that people need to find help.

Here is the link to what was said on the show.
http://extraonline.com.au/stories/story/14265.html

Please email at info@beatpostnataldepression.com if you saw the show or want any extra information.

We are back to school this week, so very busy again after the holidays but much quieter with two less.

My warmest wishes to all the Mums out there.

Tracey