Struggling with the Blues ?

Mind & Spirit, Uncategorized
December heralds the busyness that goes with Holiday Celebrations.

In addition to the fewer daylight hours, the added pressure that accompanies Christmas can unfortunately for many people make the holiday season less than cheery.

When stress goes up, your mood can go down. Stress influences many biological and biochemical processes that begin in the brain and spread through nearly all body systems. When the stress response is triggered, the adrenal glands produce the classic stress hormones – epinephrine and cortisol – while the brain releases neurotransmitters that can increase emotional response and influence memory and concentration. Some neurotransmitters have excitatory effects, whereas others are thought to help promote a sense of calm (GABA), happiness (dopamine), and well-being (serotonin).

Chronically elevated levels of cortisol can decrease your brain’s production of GABA, dopamine and serotonin, which can manifest as symptoms of depression and anxiety. A number of popular medications that are prescribed to manage mood and neurotransmitter function for conditions that may actually be stress-related.

Get back on track. Balanced eating, regular sleep, and work/life balance can help reduce the impact of stress and help the brain maintain a more balanced mood. Twenty minutes of daily exercise is a surefire mood lifter.

Targeted nutritional supplementation may also benefit you by:

• Ensuring adequate levels of vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids, both implicated in maintaining optimal mood and neurological balance.
• Boosting your resilience to stress and its effects on your body
• Balancing neurotransmitters to maintain a more “balanced” state of mind and a more positive outlook
• Supporting overall neurological health to keep your brain and the rest of your nervous system in balanced working order