True or false...ST JOHNS WART ...helps depression?
98739
Yes it can and a company called Melaluca has a standardized(very important) and patened formula called luminex.
188614
I understand your desire to stay away from "sledgehammer" solutions. When it comes to your health, remedies that are stronger are not always better. I have three things that have gotten me through times when I've been depressed, and they're all gentle solutions that I think will suit an intelligent person like yourself. \n\n1 - The first is what Freud calls the "talking cure". He insists that it must be performed by a psychoanalyst who you are paying for, but actually I've performed it by writing in a diary. The key is to be very honest, and try to find connections that you might otherwise be supressing, because these are the areas that need work. For example, what's the first thing that pops into your mind when you think of "depression"? If the answer is "flying a kite", then follow the chain... What do you think of when you think of "kite" and "flying"... You'll be surprised how quickly this takes you right down to an event in your childhood or an unresolved conflict that might have happened a year ago.\n\n2 - Looking for lies. A chair cannot make you depressed. A lampshade cannot make you depressed. Only another person can make you depressed. I believe it is because a chair and a lampshade cannot lie. Only a person can lie. Depression, it seems to me, comes from believing a lie. That conflict (between reality and the lie) takes up so much mental energy to maintain, it drains you as a whole. You may find, after using technique #1, that it leads to you to this conclusion #2. For example, after free associating your way to an event, you might find that it was when someone told you that you weren't worth a hill of beans. The problem is not that they insulted you, the problem is that you believed the lie. Beware, giving up on a lie that we've believed in for a long time is tougher than it sounds.\n\n3 - This one is going to sound goofy, especially after wading in deeply with the other two techniques. Get some light to shine on the cells in the back of your eyes. Go outside for an extended period of time without sunglasses (no need to stare at the sun or a light-bulb, indirect light will do). Use one of those gentle light therapy products like www.everlyte.com . Take a trip on a sailboat. Spend a few hours in open fields on sunny days. It's those cells in the eyes that produce much of the chemical that those pills seek to replace.
868667
Someone said chocolate. I had eaten chocolate daily since i was a kid and i always wondered why i wasnt depressed especially considering how bad my circumstances were, violent fater, low income family, no friends, then a few years ago i heard there had been a scientific study which found chocolate does indeed help with depression. Another recent study claimed that omega 3 fish oil is a miracle cure for depression, this was based on the fact that populations who eat plenty of fish have much lower instances of depression than populations where fish is rarley eaten. For instance Japan has a very low instance of depression where as south africa has the highest rates of depression in the world. I do take omega 3 oil but if i had to say witch benefits me best it would definatley be chocolate, it definatley affects my mood for the better, even just a tiny amount a day like one square from a bar. Working out is also a big depression killer, especially weight training. Finally try to have a routine to live by, that also is a big help. I notice its times when im at a lose end and have no direction in life that i get depressed a lot, so even working out daily or twice weekly will give you something positive to focus on, plus it raised the happy chemicals in the brain.
692044
1)  Depression -- St. John's wort is helpful in the therapy of mild to moderate depression with fewer side effects than conventional pharmaceutical antidepressants. The effect of St. John's wort may be noticed the first day, but often it takes a few days or weeks for the full benefits of St. John's wort to occur. Some studies indicate that St. John's wort may be as good an antidepressant as some of the SSRIs such as Prozac and Zoloft. A 6 week double blind study using a combination of St. John's wort, valenian, and passion flower was found the combination to be effective in treating mild depression. The dosage used was 360 mg for St. John's wort, 160 mg for valerian, and 190 for passionflower taken once daily. Other supplements used for depression include 5-HTP, SAM-e, and Tryptophan.\nhttp://www.raysahelian.com/stjohn.html\n\nSome researchers have argued that the mixed results of clinical studies of St. John’s Wort as a treatment for depression are due to the fact that most commercial supplement formulas are standardized for hypericin, but not for hyperforin. The recommended dosage for St. John’s wort is 900mg per day (300mg taken 3 times per day) of a 5:1 extract of the flowering tops and leaves standardized to contain 0.3% hypericin in a complex of other natural compounds, or 3-5% hyperforin (the main constituent which is thought to inhibit neurotransmitter re-uptake). Minimal treatment time is 4-6 weeks. \n\nhttp://www.biopsychiatry.com/hyperforinmech.htm\n\nLook for brands that contain at least 3% to 5% hyperforin in St John's Wort\nhttp://www.raysahelian.com/stjohn.html\nhttp://www.mayoclinic.com/health/st-johns-wort/NS_patient-stjohnswort
458205
Alright you guys.  Applying duct tape to a wart will cure it.  It creates an inflamatory reaction that "wakes up" your body's immune system, in the process identifying and defeating the virus causing your warts.
849094
Yes there is a link!  But there are studies that link it with being depressed, and those that link say it is antidepressant.
500704
yes i think so. i mean, talk with your dr's and stuff. but depression is a bump in the road, not a dead end.
189231
St John's Wort is an herbal remedy that sometimes works well.  My ex-husband took the St John's Wort and Paxil (not at the same time) and said both worked about the same.
972253
it's called withdrawl.\n\nkeep detoxing.....don't let them think for a minute they can help you with more antidepressants.\n\nseek the advice of a specialist concerning viral infections of some sort...they do pass the blood brain barrier, thus, causes depression.\n\ngood luck. \n\nps. drinking more water will help the sides.
32086
If your goal is to get well you should be on it as long as it is helping your symptoms. And remember the patient is not always the person who can best judge wheter it is working or not. Keep talking to your doctor, and if they feel your sysmptoms are not improving they will try something else. Another thing to consider is that it is best to fight depression with therapy and meds. Sometimes we can make our depression worse because of what we tell ourselves. Cognative behavioral therapy can help with that. And my final point is that in some cases the depression does go away so you don't have to take pills anymore, but yet again it is only the doctor who is capable of making that decision. Good luck.
89022
I've been on light therapy - it's usually used for SAD - Seasonal Adjusted Depression - it's for winter blues that come from having too little light during the day, and then we spend most of the day inside and aren't exposed to actual sunlight.  Sunlight has been shown to be necessary for our mental and physical health.  Light therapy uses full-spectrum light to replace the sun when it goes down before we get home from work.  If your problem is "winter blues" then, yes, light therapy does work.
108215
Well some of these answers are kind of scary here. Chocolate can help short term, it does nothing at all for depression. Chocolate has a chemical reaction similar to the feeling of love and thats it. Slapping someone may make someone even more depressed, besides that is abuse plain and simple, sleep is not always the best things either as lots of depressed people will tell you that they sleep way too much. \n You need to be honest with yourself and try to figure out exactly is making you feel depressed. Is it just the thoughts running through your head? Is it a situation that is happening or has happened? There are many reasons that someone gets depressed and sometimes it is simpler than others.. Talk with someone that you trust totally. Not a friend, but someone like your doctor or a pastor a counselor. A friend may listen but they may be too close to the situation or you to be able to really help you. Depression does not need to be endured there are plenty of ways to deal with it.. I will be thinking of you and hope that you feel well soon.
913027
God has been my only companion through my depression. You should never ? God, you should go to mass, pray and ask god for something that will help you renew your faith. If you need you can contact me for more help, i've got tacts (contacts)
208989
Yes.  It helps relieve the symptoms of the diseases.
970585
St. Johns is not a good idea to take.. It's been a long time but I used to take that and had bad side effects. (dizzy, sick, headaches)  I've been on Prozac and gain weight with that... I've also been on Effexor XR.  If the DR ever prescribes you Effexor XR do not take it! It was the worst feeling I have ever had when trying to get off of it!!!  I have been on others and after the Effexor incident I will not take prescriptions anymore... I did a lot of research on what would be safe and I found a herbal pill called 5-HTP, it works I've noticed I've been calmer, happier, I can sleep at night, and I don't have panic attacks anymore.  You can find it online... I buy it from an online company Swanson... I've been using them for years for vitamins and such. They are trustworthy.  I've also seen it in CVS.
600748
yes it does. i had depression really bad. to the point where i was suicidal. so i got started on reliv, and thats the only thing that helped. and also another thing, once a month i would cramp up so bad, i would pass out, throw up, the whole works. i would also get that lovely feeling three times a month, instead of the regular once a month. now i take a special soy reliv for that, and its the only thing thats worked. not even birth control could help that! so i say go for it, it has changed my life!!
236265
ST JOHN'S WORT - a patient's guide \nNatalie Gauld - Pharmacy Educator \n\n\nUse: mild to moderate depression \n\nSt John's Wort is a herbal remedy, also known as hypericum. It has been used for centuries for depression and anxiety. It is commonly used in Germany and other parts of the world.\n\nThe flowers and leaves of the St John's Wort plant (Hypericum perforatum) are used to make the herbal remedies. These flowers and leaves contain many different compounds including hypericin, which is thought to be one of the compounds that makes St John's Wort helpful for depression and anxiety. These compounds are extracted from the plant matter using alcohol.\n\nSome of the products available are "standardised" for hypericin. This means that the amount of hypericin is measured and should be the same in every single tablet. Therefore, standardised products are more consistent than products that are not standardised. Because there are many different compounds in the plant, it is thought that other ingredients will have an effect on depression also, but because they are not "standardised" they may vary from tablet to tablet. Different brands will have different amounts of hypericin and other ingredients, so it pays to stay with one reputable brand rather than switching from one to another.\n\nSt John's Wort looks very promising as a treatment for mild to moderate depression. There have been comparisons of St John's Wort with other medicines for depression such as imipramine and amitriptyline (tricyclic antidepressants) in tests. These studies have been fairly positive for St John's Wort, indicating that St John's Wort helps with depression and does not have many side effects. Unfortunately the trials have been only for short periods of time (e.g. 4 or 8 weeks), so it is not certain how well St John's Wort will work or whether there will be more side effects over a longer period of use. These studies have usually been carried out with only small numbers of patients, which is also a disadvantage.\n\nSt John's Wort has been compared with older tricyclic antidepressants (e.g. imipramine and amitriptyline), and has generally shown fewer side effects than the tricyclic antidepressants. It would be useful to compare St John's Wort with newer antidepressants such as fluoxetine (Prozac) and paroxetine (Aropax) to see if St John's Wort works as well and if St John's Wort has as few or less side effects, as these medicines are used so commonly now.\n\nIt is not known how St John's Wort works. It is thought that St John's Wort may affect serotonin, noradrenaline and dopamine uptake.\n\nCautions: \n\nDo not use if pregnant or breastfeeding without talking to your doctor first. \n\nIf you are on other medicines check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking St John's Wort. \n\nIf you have liver or kidney problems, or other serious medical conditions it is very important to check with your doctor before taking any herbal remedies. \n\nIf you think you are depressed it is important to talk to your doctor about how you are feeling. More severe and persisting depression may not be responsive to St John's Wort, and it is important to talk to your doctor to discuss if your feelings are due to depression. \n\nSide effects: \n\nThis remedy does not seem to have many problems with side effects, however possible side effects are listed below:\n\nAllergy. \n\nIncreased skin sensitivity to the sun is extremely rare. \n\nSt John's Wort generally does not seem to cause drowsiness and affect the ability to drive, however a very small percentage of people taking it may feel tired. \n\nIncreased sensitivity to touch, temperature and pain is a possibility. \n\nThere may be other side effects, so if you have any unexpected symptoms while taking this medicine, tell your doctor or pharmacist.\n\nInteractions: \n\nThere is a potential with any herbal product or medicine for