Table Of ContentNatural
Prozac
Learning to Release
Your Body’s Own
Anti-Depressants
Dr. Joel C. Robertson
with Tom Monte
This book is dedicated to
Vickie, my wife,
to Nicole, Heidi, and Brooke,
my three lovely daughters,
and to the thousands suffering from depression
Contents
Acknowledgments, iv
Foreword, vi
Introduction, 1
Part One: Understanding the Roots of Depression
11. The Challenges of Treating Depression, 9
12. The Biochemical Roots of Depression , 25
13. The Satiation and Arousal Personality Types, 63
14. The Satiation-Depressed Personality, 87
15. The Arousal-Depressed Personality, 105
16. Trigger Situations, 119
Part Two: Programs for Healing Depression
17. Tools That Heal, 137
18. A Program for Healing Satiation Depression, 163
19. A Program for Healing Arousal Depression, 182
10. Restoring Balance as a Practical Tool for Healing, 200
Robertson Institute Mood Optimization Survey, 204
Other Books by Dr. Joel C. Robertson and Tom Monte
Cover
Copyright
About the Publisher
iii
Acknowledgments
T
hrough my work on the natural treatment of de-
pression, I have become increasingly aware of
how important and timely this topic is for today’s
society. My writer, Tom Monte, and I wanted to offer cutting-edge in-
formation that is based on research yet practical and easy to apply. This
book is the result of our efforts. Although not all conservative clinicians
will agree with everything we have written, we hope that they will see
the value of moving from a “drug approach” to a “lifestyle approach” in
treating depression.
A book of this magnitude requires the help of several people.
First I would like to thank my wife, Vickie, and my three daugh-
ters, Nicole, Heidi, and Brooke, for their energy and enthusiasm. As I
worked with this sensitive and important subject, their enthusiasm for
life gave me the energy I needed to keep pushing to completion.
I would also like to thank Tom Monte, an extraordinary person
and writer, who continued to work on the manuscript in spite of issues
relating to his mother’s health, as well as other pressures. His drive
to help others is greatly appreciated. This is his book as much as it is
mine.
To the people of Harper Collins Publishers, my thanks. First to
Tom Grady, executive editor, for his continued vision for my work.
iv
v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Over the years that we have known each other, he has always encour-
aged me to bring my research to the public. To Caroline Pincus, an ex-
traordinary editor, whose ability to make a book “read well” continues
to amaze me. To the publicity and marketing department for their
energy and creativity. To Nancy Palmer Jones and Rosana Francescato.
And to all the others at Harper San Francisco for their talent and
support.
Finally, I thank God for providing this opportunity to use the tal-
ents he has given me to help those who seek freedom from their de-
pression and anxiety.
Thank you to all,
Joel C. Robertson
Foreword
I
found it somewhat overwhelming to write this book
because of the complexity of the subject. Depression
has a diversity of symptoms, multiplicity of causes,
and wide range of effects on a person.
Although the brain is the center point of all depression, a person’s
genetic makeup, past history and environmental factors, lifestyle, food
choices, and even thought processes affect their brain chemistry.
Therefore we can have multiple causes with multiple factors influenc-
ing these causes.
In order to understand what causes the symptoms of depression,
we must look at brain chemistry. By doing so, we can understand the
causes of the symptoms and choose methods to alleviate such symp-
toms, in spite of the multiplicity of external or internal factors affect-
ing the brain chemistry. In essence this means that even if a person’s
depression is inherited and they have been through major conflicts in
their life, the one common factor is how both issues affect their brain
chemistry. By focusing on brain chemistry, we can more accurately as-
sess and deal with the other issues contributing to depression. One
thing we know for sure is that feelings of hopelessness and negativity
must be resolved to overcome depression. Since hopelessness and
negativity are symptoms of altered brain chemistry, we must address
brain chemistry first in order for other methods to be helpful.
vi
vii FOREWORD
It was also difficult to write about our society’s attitudes toward
using medication. I often hear colleagues or clients speak of their desire
for anti-depressants. I also am well aware of the tremendous effect of
anti-depressants on behavior, anxiety, and depression. However, I urge
you to consider this one simple point: Medications don’t change behav-
ior, the effect medication has on brain chemistry changes behavior. Es-
sentially, this means that changing brain chemistry changes behavior.
The assumption that medication is necessary to change brain chemistry
is erroneous. It may be the quickest and easiest method, but it is not the
only way to alter brain chemistry. It certainly is not the safest.
We have known for many years that various foods, activities, be-
haviors, and even thoughts alter brain chemistry. Anyone who has
eaten a large meal in the afternoon has felt the effect of altered brain
chemicals a couple of hours later. The sluggishness or tiredness is
caused by altered brain chemistry. The “runner’s high” and decrease in
feelings of stress associated with exercise has been well documented.
Again, it is the effect of exercise on brain chemicals that has altered the
feelings. Conflict, procrastination, overeating, and other behaviors can
cause us to be anxious, stressed, or depressed, all symptoms of altered
brain chemistry. Even thoughts and emotions, such as fear, frustration,
insecurity, or anger, alter our brain chemistry. These changes in brain
chemistry often create negative behaviors. For example, we are all
aware of how anger can affect our perception (a result of altered brain
chemicals) and our behaviors. We know that behaviors, diet, activities,
and thoughts can change our brain chemistry negatively or positively.
The choice to make their effects positive is dependent on your knowl-
edge of the brain chemicals you need to change.
Therefore, if we know that these factors alter brain chemicals and
that depression is the result of altered brain chemicals, it makes sense
to tailor activity, diet, behaviors, and thoughts to make specific brain
chemistry changes. The key is knowing which specificchemicals need
to be enhanced or reduced and which behaviors will do that. If you
can understand which chemicals are primarily responsible for your
feelings of depression, compulsions, or even anxiety, then you can tai-
lor your recovery program. That is the purpose of this book.
FOREWORD viii
I would be remiss if I did not recognize that some individuals will
require medication to get over their hopelessness and begin to make
changes. That does not mean that they need medication permanently.
It may be a “jump start” to their recovery. If you require medication,
you can begin to follow the program described in this book and work
with your physician to begin to taper or perhaps even eliminate the
use of medication altogether.
In this book I have attempted to gather what is known about the
brain, simplify the complexity of the brain into a usable format, and
provide clear-cut choices for tailoring a recovery program. I believe the
research done in the conservative medical community backs up the in-
formation in this book. I am aware that I have one simple difference
with their conclusions: medication doesn’t cure depression—it alters
brain chemistry, which cures depression. Medication is only one of the
methods to alter brain chemistry. For me, and I hope for you, the best
way to change brain chemistry is the healthiest and longest-acting
method, not the quickest and possibly the most dangerous.
Please understand one more very important point before you
begin on a journey of self-prescribed recovery. If you are on medica-
tion or are feeling hopeless, work with a physician on tapering your
medication or to evaluate your need for medication to get you “on your
feet.” Depression can be dangerous and rob you of joy needlessly. Al-
though the methods described in this book will help most people im-
prove, some will need medication and counseling to recover fully. I
urge you to make that choice sooner rather than later. It is much easier
to recover in the earlier stages of depression than in the later stages.
May God bless you in your endeavor to achieve a healthy and ful-
filling life.
Dr. Joel Robertson
Introduction
T
he human brain is an organ of limitless complex-
ity and wonder, a universe found within the con-
fines of blood, nerves, and bone. More than any
other organ, the brain is associated with all those invisible aspects of
our humanness that determine the quality of our lives, including our
psychological condition and, specifically, our moods. The mediators
of mood, the very substances that create it, are an array of brain chem-
icals called neurotransmitters. Certain neurotransmitters can become
imbalanced and cause a variety of psychological conditions, including
depression. Yet not only can these neurotransmitters be restored to
harmony but they can also provide each of us with a more balanced
perspective on life, with a deeper sense of contentment, and with
more happiness and joy. In this book, I will show you how to restore the
balance of these brain chemicals in order to alleviate and even over-
come depression.
A great deal has been written and said about depression, and much
of it is pretty disheartening to anyone who suffers from this condition.
Scientists, psychologists, and psychiatrists are nearly as frustrated by
depression as are its sufferers.
Since the 1950s we have used medication to alter brain chem-
istry, which in turn changes behaviors and feeling. Thorazine, a med-
ication from the ’50s, affected dopamine levels, which helped to clear
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