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Series Code: TIJ
Program Code: TIJ002116A
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00:23 For more than 20 years Actor Jim Carey has been making people 00:28 laugh. If you enjoy comedy films it's very likely that you've 00:33 seen at least one of his: Liar, Liar, Dumb and Dumber and Ace 00:37 Ventura are just a few of the popular movies that come to mind 00:41 when Carey's name is mentioned. But despite his association with 00:46 humor and hilarity Carey dealt with major depression for a 00:51 significant part of his life. You see depression doesn't 00:58 discriminate. It's a condition that can affect anyone whether 01:03 you are rich or poor, male or female, black or white. 01:08 According to Beyond Blue depression is the leading cause 01:11 of disability worldwide. It's estimated that in any one year 01:16 around one million Australian adults will suffer from 01:23 depression. But how can you tell whether you or someone you know 01:26 is depressed? What factors can cause or contribute to 01:31 depression? And once you know what the causes are can you do 01:35 anything about them? Well in this program called Depression 01:41 Doesn't Discriminate our guest, Dr. Neil Nedley, will explore 01:46 the answers to these questions and also share some practical 01:51 insights. You won't want to miss this. It could change your life. 01:55 ♪ ♪ 02:07 We live in a society that has more entertainment, more 02:11 technology, and more social networking than ever before. 02:14 We can surf the internet with the swipe of a finger. We can 02:18 watch TV, movies and sports on demand. And there's no excuse 02:23 for not staying in contact when we have Facebook, Skype and 02:27 What's Up. With access to endless entertainment and 02:31 constant communication you'd think we'd be pretty happy 02:34 wouldn't you? But that's not the case. In fact, studies show that 02:40 since 1915 each successive generation has increased in 02:45 depression. What's causing it and how can we recognize it? 02:50 Well our guest, Dr. Neil Nedley, is here to help us answer those 02:55 questions. He's a full time, practicing physician in internal 03:00 medicine and with emphases in gastroenterology, mental health 03:03 and lifestyle medicine. He's also the author of books such as 03:09 Depression, the Way Out and The Lost Art of Thinking. 03:13 Dr. Nedley welcome back. We're delighted to have you on our 03:18 program again. We're looking at this big issue of depression. 03:23 Yes. Today we want to look at the solutions. 03:26 Yes, that's the most exciting part of this illness is that 03:31 there is a solution, there is a way out and one of the most 03:37 rewarding things that I do is put on treatment programs for 03:42 those who have previously thought there is no way out. 03:45 These are the hopeless individuals or what we call 03:48 treatment resistant, depressed individuals, ones who have been 03:52 taking medicine and maybe more medicine or maybe have had side 03:55 effects from medicine and can't take any medicine or don't want 03:58 to be on it, but have just suffered from this disease to 04:02 the point where finally they hear about our program and it 04:07 is amazing to see what happens when the real solutions are 04:12 Well we want to know the solution then. 04:15 All right. The solution first has to do with finding the 04:19 underlying causes and I would recommend again our website 04:24 depressionthewayout.com to be able to try to get a clue of the 04:30 underlying causes and we addressed that in your last 04:33 program. But it would be worth while for us to also talk 04:39 about some 04:40 general treatment measures before we get into the specifics 04:43 What we have found out is that everyone with depression will 04:48 start to get better when they begin a fitness program. 04:54 If they're not fit already getting on an exercise program 04:59 where they work towards getting fit can definitely help their 05:02 depression. 05:04 So that sounds so simple. Exercise, the importance of 05:07 exercise. 05:08 Yes, very simple. The other is light therapy. All of us 05:13 actually need bright light through our eyes and that 05:16 bright light helps us to turn tryptophan in our brain into 05:20 serotonin. It can help elevate our mood and also keep us calm 05:24 so we don't get anxious with stress. Making sure that you 05:29 either have that light therapy, particularly in the morning is 05:33 the best time. Our body clocks are set up with or are set by 05:38 light in the morning. And early to bed, early to rise helps with 05:43 as well. Most depressed people, Gary, are night timers you know. 05:48 In other words, they're late nighters. They don't like going 05:51 to bed early and they feel like they can't function that way. 05:55 But we can turn into who's late nighter into someone who has a 05:59 lot of energy in the morning by actually resetting their body 06:02 clock through light therapy and then putting them on early to 06:06 bed early to rise and in seven days they'll wake up rejuvenated 06:10 just from resetting the body clock and resetting their 06:13 circadian rhythms. 06:16 So what are the steps in doing that, changing your pattern, 06:21 going to bed early. Is there some practical advice to help 06:25 people in making that decision and then implementing it? 06:28 Yeah, well, if they're able to make it, you know, some 06:34 entertainers they have to work at night you know and of 06:37 course there's other people that have to work at night. But most 06:39 depressed people don't have to to; they could actually be on an 06:42 early to bed early to rise schedule and it's well worth the 06:45 effort of doing so. They might actually have to invest in a 06:48 light box if it's the winter time because the sun might not 06:51 be up at 5:30 or 6:00 in the morning in the winter time. 06:55 There's a medical grade light box that works actually just 07:01 like the sun without the side effects of the sun actually, 07:04 they won't cause sunburn or those type of issues. 07:08 It simulates the blue sky and it'll help reset their body 07:11 clock and if they do that every morning at say 6 A.M. Six A.M. 07:15 is a great time to do this and wake up to this lightbox or 07:19 you can do it before. In seven days they'll be reset but they 07:22 also need to go to bed early and when they go to bed early 07:26 instead of tossing and turning, finding a comfortable position 07:31 and then holding that position for 20 minutes. If they hold it 07:35 for 20 minutes, they're still not asleep, change positions to 07:40 another comfortable position and do it another 20 and by the 07:42 third time most people will be asleep. Then they'll be ready 07:49 for reshifting to early to bed early to rise. 07:52 Now what usually prevents people from going to bed early? 07:56 Well in a depressed person what prevents them is just their 08:01 lack of desire. What 08:02 happens with a depressed person is that they will get dumping of 08:07 their serotonin, no epinephrine and dopamine in response to 08:11 sleep deprivation. So they'll actually feel better being sleep 08:16 deprived the longer they stay up so that's one of the reasons 08:18 why they do it. But the problem is eventually they have to go to 08:22 bed and when they do they wake up like a complete zombie in the 08:25 morning. So the treatment is not to stay up. The treatment is to 08:29 reverse that issue and get on that early to bed early to rise 08:33 approach. 08:35 What are some practical ways that can assist us in getting to 08:38 bed earlier? 08:40 Well actually not eating before going to bed helps out. 08:43 In fact, it's best to not eat for about three hours before 08:47 going to bed to get nice sleep. But also not having the 08:52 television on in the bedroom and not even having computer screens 08:56 There are studies showing that blue light emitted from TVs and 09:01 computer screens, even these small screens, these smart 09:04 phones or i-pads actually inhibits sleep. So, getting rid 09:09 of that social media stuff before going to bed and getting 09:13 it out of the bedroom, that's an important aspect in being 09:17 able to sleep adequately. Also you don't want to run a marathon 09:21 right before going to bed. Don't be out there sweating, playing 09:25 basketball. It takes a while to tone down. It's actually better 09:28 to have some nice soft music on maybe and then just reading 09:32 something, particularly maybe some spiritual material or 09:35 something out of the Psalms or Proverbs and having that by the 09:39 bedside and that's a good way to actually end the day. 09:43 So, Dr. Nedley, exercise is important. Any particular type 09:47 of exercise? 09:48 The aerobic exercise is important which means you don't 09:52 have to necessarily invest in a lot of equipment, you know. It's 09:55 like getting outside if you can and actually brisk walking has 10:01 been shown to be very beneficial Also running, swimming, 10:06 bicycling; these aerobic types of exercises are very beneficial 10:11 and the longer we do them the more beneficial. For depressed 10:15 individuals we recommend 60 minutes a day, spending time in 10:19 aerobic type of exercise will improve that circulation to the 10:24 brain and studies show it's equivalent to antidepressants 10:26 without side effects. 10:28 So, we're talking about practical solutions. 10:32 Practical solutions. Another solution is what we're putting 10:36 into our body, the nutritional aspect is very important in 10:41 regards to mental health. 10:42 So we're talking now about what we eat, our meals. 10:46 That's right, yes. Getting enough tryptophan, tyrosine. 10:51 getting enough of the omega-3's even making sure we're not 10:54 deficient in iron, we have enough B12, enough of the B 10:59 vitamins. Many people with depression are junk food eaters 11:03 because they self-medicate with, you know, sugary type foods, 11:07 which are the empty calories and so, changing them off from 11:13 the empty calories and also away from meat. It turns out that 11:18 meat has arachidonic acid which actually causes some chronic 11:23 inflammation. One of the reasons why there's an emotional 11:26 intelligence and an IQ advantage by going plant based. So, the 11:31 plant based is much less inflammatory. So, shifting over 11:35 to a plant based diet, which actually can be tasty, you know. 11:38 The people come to our program and the first day they're saying 11:44 this food is great. I had no idea that food that would 11:48 actually help me get better with depression is so tasty. So we 11:53 even have cooking schools, you know, better food, better mood. 11:57 To learn how to cook it is fun as well and you don't sacrifice 12:01 taste being on a healthy diet. 12:03 Now you mentioned better food, better mood. Yes. Tell us about 12:08 some of the foods that are good for us. 12:11 Well, it turns out flax seed, chia seeds, spinach, blue 12:15 berries, whole wheat bread is very good. Stay away from the 12:19 white bread. Whole wheat bread is going to have omega-3's, it's 12:23 going to have iron, it's going to have a lot of the vitamins 12:25 that we need. For the tryptophan the wheat meat is a loaded 12:31 source, tofu is, pumpkin seeds are and also even the greens are 12:39 not a bad choice. Then the tyrosine we even get in more 12:44 greens; mustard greens are very high in tyrosine, watermelon is 12:48 a good source. Even spirulina is a good source, the seaweed 12:55 for tyrosine and this is what can help keep us alert. You know 13:00 the tyrosine helps us with cognitive function so we can 13:03 remember what's at the bottom of the page. It also gives us 13:06 energy. The tryptophan foods are going to keep us from getting 13:10 anxious under stress and keep us more calm. So, depending upon 13:15 the condition of the individual I might emphasize certain foods 13:19 more in one area than another because of their particular 13:21 neurochemistry. 13:24 So this is something we can all do. 13:25 That's right. 13:27 We're going to be healthier by eating these good foods based 13:30 around a plant based diet. 13:32 Exactly. 13:34 Are there any other simple solutions that you might have? 13:36 Absolutely. Simple solutions that actually improve the 13:40 circulation and activity of the front part of our brain, frontal 13:45 lobe. This is crucial for every depressed or anxious individual 13:48 to get their frontal lobe circulating and active again. 13:53 So tell us again, the frontal lobe? 13:55 Yeah, the frontal lobe is the seat of spirituality, morality, 13:59 and the will. It's also the analytical portion of our brain. 14:05 And by changing entertainment types of choices we can actually 14:10 improve the frontal lobe of our brain, getting rid of 14:14 entertainment television for instance and replacing it with 14:19 good reading, you know, like Proverbs or something that's 14:22 going to stimulate the mind and help it be more creative. That 14:26 will improve the frontal lobe of the brain. Getting rid of the 14:32 syncopated rock rhythms or heavy metal rhythms and replacing it 14:37 with more soothing melodies and harmonies like harp music and 14:43 something that just is beautiful This music can be very enjoyable 14:47 but actually it's been shown to balance the brain away from the 14:53 limbic system into the frontal lobe which will then definitely 14:56 help depression. 14:58 So, even the music we listen to does have an impact on us. 15:03 It does have an impact on us. You know, this is a crucial 15:07 issue for many people with depression. They have that 15:09 frontal lobe hit and when we have a frontal lobe hit, we're 15:16 actually addictive, we're partaking in something that is 15:20 going to be addictive. And so a lot of this heavy metal music 15:24 the reason why it's popular is it gets a grip on people and 15:30 without it they actually feel worse. So they're thinking it's 15:34 helping them out. But when they come to our program and 15:38 recognize, no this is hurting them in the long run, as they 15:40 make that change, it's pretty wonderful in regards as how that 15:44 frontal lobe starts to come back again. And there's even other 15:49 addictions as well that a lot of times people don't recognize 15:52 are such, even self-mutilation is not due to suicidal ideation 15:59 necessarily. It's actually due to an addiction where they feel 16:04 the cut and see the blood run and the endorphins. These 16:09 addictions have to be dealt with as well. And when we deal with 16:14 those, frontal lobe circulation comes back again. So, that's 16:17 why it requires a comprehensive approach. Can be very simple 16:22 means but it also can be complicated enough that a lot 16:25 people make the choice to come to a program like this or get 16:29 educated in a mental health education program in their 16:32 community so they can tackle these things and get the 16:37 coaching they need. You know, another serious thing that 16:39 people can do with depression of course is anorexia, even 16:45 bulimia. These conditions actually complicate it more and 16:48 can actually be life threatening So, it's very important not to 16:52 put up with that but to get the help that you need if you are in 16:58 that camp of anorexia or even the bulimic side of things. Get 17:02 the help that you need so that this brain chemistry can 17:05 actually be corrected so that you don't have to go to those 17:08 measures to try to self-medicate. 17:10 Are there other ways that we can improve our brain function? 17:14 Yes there is. Social support instead of social isolation. 17:20 Actually maybe getting into a group that's working on 17:23 improving their brain and being part of the social network. 17:27 Coaching system, that's been very helpful. And then also 17:31 cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown to be very beneficial 17:35 in improving... 17:36 Now what is that? 17:37 Cognitive behavioral therapy is actually recognizing that it's 17:41 our thoughts that cause our emotions and behavior. And so, 17:47 cognitive behavioral therapy teaches us to analyze our 17:51 thoughts for distortions and then to correct those distorted 17:56 thoughts and that's one of the reasons it improves frontal lobe 17:58 circulation. It requires an analysis of our thoughts, 18:01 recognizing distortions in the thoughts and then correcting 18:04 those thoughts. And that's been shown to be very beneficial. 18:08 We utilize this in all of our residential treatment programs 18:12 after we've improved the brain chemistry so that they can 18:16 analyze their thoughts. 18:17 Can you give me an example of the cognitive behavior therapy, 18:22 how people can change their thinking and their thoughts or 18:28 analyze them? 18:29 Ah yes, well there's 10 different ways of distorted 18:34 thinking and one of them that is common, in fact all of them are 18:37 common in depressed individuals, but one would be called a mental 18:41 filter. This is where you're only looking at one side of 18:45 life. Now I had a gentleman just in the last program that came to 18:49 that told me that everything was going wrong in his life. 18:52 His wife was nagging, his boss was yelling at him, his finances 18:57 going down, his roof was leaking bills piling up, he was short 19:01 and fat, furthermore, he was going bald. And you know when 19:04 I talked to him I recognized that even though he was short 19:07 and fat he could still walk, he could still feed himself, he 19:11 could still breathe well, he actually enjoyed his children, 19:14 he enjoyed his church. You know, he had the potential to do a lot 19:17 of good things. But yet he was just looking at only one side 19:20 of the equation. So, with the mental filter you have to be 19:24 intentional and forceful to look for evidence that supports a 19:28 different way of thinking. And of course we help the individual 19:31 do that. 19:33 Then you mentioned religious belief and how it can benefit 19:37 be beneficial. 19:40 Yes, actually spiritual functioning will improve the 19:44 frontal lobe of the brain. This is the worship area of our brain 19:48 so even going to worship services can be healthy for the 19:55 brain and if we add worship services to good music and maybe 19:58 an analysis of the scripture, it can be one of great benefit as 20:02 far as an antidepressant is concerned. And so a lot of 20:08 people don't recognize that the traditional church going 20:15 actually helps with mental health and it's the reason why 20:18 there've been so many studies done on this now. Studies show 20:22 that if you are an active church goer and you believe in God, 20:26 you're reading spiritual material that you will improve 20:29 79 percent quicker that someone who doesn't. That's a big number 20:36 Dr. Nedley most of the solutions you've suggested are very 20:41 practical. Where does medication fit into this solution? 20:45 Well it would depend on the individual and their condition 20:49 as to whether medicine would be utilized at all for their 20:54 depression. But it can be an adjunct, it can be an add on. 20:57 We need to recognize that it has limited effects. It never 21:00 should be the sole treatment for depression. And as a 21:06 physician I utilize it in select individuals. But the goal is to 21:10 get them off it in five or six months, which we're able to 21:13 easily do once we take care of the underlying issues and use 21:16 some of these practical approaches that we've 21:18 been talking about. 21:20 If people want to get more information, where should 21:23 they go? 21:24 Well we have written a book about this. It's called 21:26 Depression the Way Out and it summarizes a lot of the things 21:30 that we've been talking about. Also our website: 21:33 depressionthewayout.com can actually lead them to find out 21:39 more. There are actually throughout the world mental 21:42 health educations programs being run. It's selected cities at 21:46 selected times utilizing our material and you can find out 21:49 where one might be run in your area as well. Or if you really 21:55 need the therapeutic program, not just a mental health 21:56 education program, you can also visit us to find out how to sign 22:02 up for the actual therapeutic program for severe depression 22:06 or treatment resistant depression. 22:08 If you had one piece of advice to give people struggling with 22:13 depression what would that be? 22:15 Depression should not be tolerated as a lifelong 22:18 condition nor should anxiety. There is a way out of both of 22:23 those disorders and there is help available. Once you find 22:27 the underlying cause, reverse those causes, you will not only 22:32 live a happier existence, but a far more successful one, not 22:36 only relationally, but financially and physically. 22:40 So don't wait for the complications of depression. 22:45 Get on the pathway of optimal mental health. 22:48 Dr. Nedley, it's been a pleasure to have you on our program 22:51 today. I want to thank you and wish you all the very best in 22:55 your future endeavors. 22:57 Thank you. 22:58 Depression isn't new. Did you know that many people in the 23:02 Bible were also affected by depression. As I said at the 23:06 beginning of the program, depression doesn't discriminate 23:11 and sometimes our greatest feelings of despair come after 23:15 emotional victories. One example is the prophet Elijah whose 23:19 story is told in I Kings chapter 18. He had a wonderful 23:24 experience where God used him to perform a miracle, but in 23:28 chapter 19, the very next chapter, he was weary, 23:32 discouraged and fearing for his life. But Elijah's story has a 23:38 happy ending. You see, God was able to speak to him and 23:42 motivate him once more. God reminded him that his life had a 23:46 purpose and when Elijah felt alone, God was still there. 23:51 We too can take comfort from Elijah's story and know that 23:56 when we experience dark moments, when we feel at our lowest and 24:00 when we think we're alone God is there. God still loves us and 24:05 he still cares. Let's instill that in our minds right now as 24:11 we pray. 24:13 Dear Heavenly Father, sometimes we feel sad and empty inside. 24:18 We are thankful that we are never truly alone even when we 24:23 feel lonely, you are there. We know you love us and care for 24:28 us. In Jesus' name, Amen. 24:32 Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide. It's 24:38 estimated that in any one year around one million Australian 24:43 adults will have depression. Studies have shown links between 24:48 depression and serious health problems such as obesity, cancer 24:52 and cardiovascular disease. How can you tell whether you or 24:57 someone you know is depressed? What factors can cause or 25:02 contribute to depression? And once you know what the causes 25:05 are can you do anything about them? Well these are important 25:12 questions and they deserve answers. You can find those 25:15 answers in this book, Dr. Nedley' s Hit Hypothesis. 25:20 Now according to Dr. Nedley, there are over 100 different 25:24 causes of depression that can be summarized in just 10 categories 25:29 and there's good news, eight of those categories are completely 25:34 reversible. Perhaps you don't have depression but know someone 25:39 who does. Either way, this information needs to be shared. 25:44 I believe this so strongly that I want you to have this book for 25:49 free. That's right, the book is absolutely free, there are no 25:53 catches or obligations. Just contact us at Ask for Dr. Neil 25:58 Nedley' s Hit Hypothesis. Here's the information you need: 26:02 Phone or text us at 0436333555 in Australia or 0204222042 in 26:13 New Zealand or visit our website www.tij.tv to request today's 26:21 free offer and we'll send it to you totally free of charge and 26:25 with no obligation. Write us at: 26:40 Don't delay. Call or text us now 26:43 The Incredible Journey and Pastor Gary Kent with Pastor 26:48 Louis Torres and Carol Torres as the principle trainers are 26:51 opening a Bible College in Sidney in February of 2020. 26:54 This 14-week program will give you the skills you need to be an 27:00 effective colaborer with Christ to carry the message of a 27:03 crucified, risen and soon coming Savior to the whole world. For 27:06 more information and to register phone or text us at 0481315101 27:12 E- mail us at info@tij.tv or visit our website at 27:19 tij.tv/events. 27:23 If you've enjoyed today's journey, be sure to join us 27:27 again next week when we will share another of life's 27:32 journey's together and experience another new and 27:34 thought provoking perspective on the peace, insight, 27:40 understanding and hope that only the Bible can give us. The 27:42 Incredible Journey truly is television that changes lives. 27:49 Until next week remember the ultimate destination of life's 27:52 journey. Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth. And God will 27:57 wipe away every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more 28:01 death nor sorrow nor crying. There shall be no more pain for 28:05 the former things have passed away. 28:08 ♪ ♪ |
Revised 2021-03-29