I want to focus a little more on the nutritional side of things as I am well aware of how it can affect how we feel emotionally.  Some of the symptoms I see people suffering from are low immunity, lack of sleep, depression and fatigue. Typically what we do is rush off to our medical doctor to get a prescription for the pill that will quickly take all of our symptoms away. What we aren’t aware of is the drugs and antibiotics that are prescribed might bring us into a more compromised state of health.

I just got off of an interview with John Grey who is well known as an expert on male/female differences who wrote a popular book titled Men are From Mars Women are From Venus.  He believes we live in a hyperactive society today with women especially taking on too much career and family obligations leaving very little room for their partner relationship.  When there is a lack of focus due to the brain chemistry out of balance, arguments can occur and communication can breakdown. Anger outbursts also may be a result of too little dopamine and serotonin to help with more peaceful feelings.

Over the past 10 years Dr. Grey has taken more of a focus on how the health of the gut affects our brain chemistry. Several years ago I was learning about this as I was having difficulty sleeping and looking for answers.  I ran across a site called Point of Return www.pointofreturn.com that helps people improve their brain chemistry so they can get off of drugs they are taking for mental health issues.  This company has put together some nutrition formulations that I believe can help those that want to improve their brain chemistry and health in general.

I believe that John Grey’s new book Staying Focused in a Hyperworld would go along with some of these theories that the brain of the body is in the gut.  I’ve often heard that the heart is the second brain of the body, but others have said that the gut is the second brain. What we do know that many of the neurotransmitters are manufactured in the gut and when there is an imbalance of intestinal flora, we can end up with chronic infections, fatigue and depression. With these symptoms the typical medical approach is to give an antidepressant, but many times the side effects can make things worse and not necessarily get to the root cause.

Once informed about this there is a nutritional approach to helping those that struggle with hyperactivity. Much of our ADD symptoms in children and women with hyperactivity can be dealt with. Those with mental health symptoms can also experience improvement.

Another area that is overlooked with the medical profession is adrenal fatigue.  When you have continually been burning the candle at both ends the adrenals get worn out and chronic exhaustion can occur.  There is a whole supplemental protocol that can be supplemented to correct this condition. Holistic health practitioners usually are knowledgeable about how to treat hypoadrenia with herbs and vitamins. What I find usually happens is the person is given an antidepressant which can just mask the symptoms.

I encourage you to be informed about the alternative nutritional options since most of the medical doesn’t tend to educate you. In addition, we can’t ignore the mind/body connection with these syndromes. How we perceive information and the way we make negative interpretations of events can greatly impair our bodies’ ability to heal.

Tips I will leave you with:

•  If you have been subject to many antibiotics this winter or in the past, improve your gut by taking probiotics. I have heard that Bravo yogurt www.bravoprobiotic.com has  over 42 strains of good healthy bacteria. It is quite expensive, but can turn around difficult conditions.
• Make sure you are taking EPA/DHA or fish oils if you or your child is suffering from hyperactivity.
• Get on a good healthy diet free of a lot of the refined carbohydrates with organic produce.
• Reduce the toxics taken in from chemicals and preservatives so the oxidative stress on the body is reduced.
• Make shakes with un-denatured whey protein
• Work with faulty thinking processes- a good book for this is Switch On Your Brain by Dr. Caroline Leaf.

Here’s to improving your brain functioning through the gut!
Suzanne Simpson, Licensed Therapist & Wellness Coach