When PSYCHOLOGICAL treatment alone doesn't solve the problem

Fellow psychologists, I have been receiving more and more patients with disorders such as anxiety, depression, irritability, difficulty concentrating and remembering, and even panic, and many of them have had a poor or “dragged out” response to psychological treatment alone. From what I have noticed, in most of these cases “therapy” alone may not be solving the problem because the brain is functioning “in short supply” of important inputs for good neuronal communication, such as:

• Neurotransmitters
• Hormones
• Enzymes

Or too much:

• Inflammation
• Toxins
• Free radicals

Both the synthesis of what is missing and the “cleansing” of excesses depend on the patient's good lifestyle habits.

The vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other nutrients required for the necessary synthesis come from these habits, via good oxygenation (breathing) and blood circulation (for which physical exercise is fundamental), with quality sleep being the main time for this manufacture of hormones, neurotransmitters and enzymes.

All the processes of fighting inflammation, toxins and free radicals, as well as using up energy, nutrients and inputs (which can only come from proper synthesis processes, as described above), mainly need plenty of water, good circulation, alkalinization and good oxygenation - these, once again, depend on the patient's good lifestyle habits.

Let's remember that medication doesn't usually help when it comes to synthesizing the above!

Many patients who are out there taking antidepressants and/or tranquilizers actually need to correct the factors I mentioned above and not remain in “eternal” dependence on these drugs: I have seen hundreds of patients who, when they balanced their lifestyle habits, hormones and neurotransmitters, no longer needed a single antidepressant or anxiolytic: it's just that their symptoms were due to a lack of the inputs mentioned (and the need to correct the excesses) and not a lack of drugs or disorders that these could effectively correct.

For all these reasons, fellow psychologist, allow me to make a simple and humble suggestion: when the progress of the patient under your responsibility “isn't going well”, the expected improvement in the psycho-emotional clinical condition is less than expected with your work alone, analyze carefully the lack of these inputs and the excesses mentioned: possibly the cause or worsening factor lies in them and in how the patient is not acting on them!

I hope I've helped here!

Dr. Ícaro Alves Alcântara

* I'm not belittling the work of psychologists (I'd better say that before some “cyberchat” comes along). I refer most of my patients for psychological counseling! But if our real, integral HEALTH depends on the well-being of body + mind + spirit, let's not forget the importance of all three, together and well.