We are all facing never before seen and uncertain times. Our lives have been greatly disrupted and so have the lives of almost everyone around us. The COVID-19 crisis has amped up our stress levels, which, in many cases were already too high, to new heights. This taxes our adrenal glands and with the higher and sustained release of cortisol (our body’s natural anti-inflammatory), we lose balance and, in some cases, organ/gland damage results. Most chronic diseases that aren’t caused by pathogens, trauma or genetic conditions are caused by emotional stress. All disease is caused by some form of stress, either physical or emotional. Let that sink in.
And now, for those of you who are over 40, think of when you were a kid, and how few people had, or admitted to having, anxiety. Yes, we had stress and anxiety, but the levels were more manageable. The thought of drugging kids to deal with these issues was absolutely ludicrous (and still is to some of us)! Let’s take a deeper look into stress and anxiety and how to best treat them.
First, let’s define each. Stress is anything that taxes our body, mind, spirit. That leaves a pretty huge list. You could say, EVERYTHING, to some degree. There is, thus, the further need to point out that there is good stress and bad stress. Good stress is that which pushes us and helps us grow; helps us live our lives to the fullest, helping others, accomplishing goals; feeding our spirits. Bad stress is anything that leads to damage of body, mind, or spirit, and it is typically prolonged, or at least, when it is, often leads to disease. Here is a partial list of negative or bad stressors: pathogens (bacteria, viruses, yeast, fungi, molds), parasites, prolonged exposure to extreme cold or heat or other environmental factors, dehydration, inappropriate diet, chemical toxicity, emotional imbalance; experiencing too much of an emotion (this could also be one you deem positive, like joy…think of all the comics who seemed to laugh all the time who died of heart attacks…yes, they may have used humor to mask their depression/pain, but the joy/humor was genuine and often present all the time, even when inappropriate), physical trauma/abuse, emotional abuse, overwhelm, and sometimes stress can come from within, like a negative outlook/attitude. We help create our outcomes with our thoughts and thus, if they are negative, why would we think we’d ever get a positive from a negative?
Now that we have a working understanding of stress, let’s look at anxiety and point out a few key issues that will help us discern how to best treat, or in some cases, deal with them. Anxiety seems to exist everywhere, now. I have hypothesized that the skyrocketing cases have come from a combination of simple carb diets, increasing demands we place on our bodies, greater electro-magnetic field (EMF) disturbances which disrupt our nervous systems, placating children instead of “toughening them up,” (yes, some of the ways of having done this are very debatable, but there is no argument that the last two generations have the least resilience to difficulties and obstacles in their lives than any previous, at least on record), and the resultant nutritional deficiencies from depleted soil/commercial farming and the American Diet. I saved this one for last because it’s one of the biggest contributors. I say this with confidence because most of the Patients over the past 15-20 years who have presented with Anxiety have totally moved beyond it with acupuncture and diet/nutrition.
Here is a simple breakdown of how diet and nutrition help us become more resistant to stress and to get rid of anxiety (by this I mean that we only experience anxiety in its healthy form…if I am hiking and come across a grizzly bear, I SHOULD feel anxiety!). Those who have felt the grips of anxiety know that it can be debilitating. It can feel like an elephant is sitting on your chest making breathing extremely difficult. Hearts can race causing panic that death may be near. With this comes a sense of overwhelm or not knowing what to do. Fainting may occur. Some may experience serious anxiety snowballing where symptoms pile up making other symptoms worse. It can be horrible and debilitating. I relay this to you as a collection of comments I have heard from anxiety Patients through the years. Personally, I have experienced what I would call mild anxiety a few times and moderate anxiety a few times, but not anything like I have described above. But here’s the interesting part: Most Patients who receive acupuncture and who follow a diet and supplement regimen improve greatly, most reporting that the anxiety they were experiencing is gone!
It’s important to understand that diet isn’t just what we eat and drink, but what we DON’T eat and drink! We have to remove that which pushes us towards an unwanted condition and consume what moves us towards balance and optimal function. As anxiety is often a disruption in the nervous and soft tissue systems, we take away things that aggravate them and do things that optimize their form and function. So many people with anxiety have diets that lack sufficient protein, or quality forms of protein. They are often dehydrated, to some degree, and lack minerals, especially magnesium (found in organic dark green leafy vegetables) and healthy fats (found in raw nuts/seeds). Sugar creates irritation and leads to inflammation. Anxiety Patients are often consuming high amounts of it, in various forms. Sugar has to be greatly reduced, and this includes all flour products as well as anything with processed sugar in it. Some will even react to fruit juices so they must be greatly reduced, if not totally eliminated (I can hear all the gasps from all of you who think that juice is healthy…you would be wrong. Sure, a small amount, say 3-4 oz of a freshly squeezed juice, now and then, is fine). This gives you a basic, partial look into diet, but let’s look at what most Anxiety Patients need to take.
Anxiety Patients most often end up taking the following, and if not exactly this, something that closely resembles it:
Magnesium (form depends on other health issues)
Potassium—important in cardiovascular health and thus, can play into anxiety and energy issues.
Protein (form depends on person’s diet, age, activity level, and other health issues)
Healthy Fats—Avocado, Fish Oil, Flax Seed Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Unrefined Coconut Oil, raw seeds and nuts.
B Vitamins—key support for the nervous system. The stressed body burns through B vitamins!
In Natural Medicine, we also acknowledge a separate group of broader category ingestible foods/supplements we call herbs, specifically around stress and anxiety, we call them Adaptogenic Herbs (Adaptogens). These herbs help increase the body’s resistance to stress through a number of ways, but in doing so, people with anxiety often report a great reduction in severity and occurrences. These herbs tend to have a tonifying quality, especially to the adrenal glands, those little glands that sit atop our kidneys and pump out cortisol (our natural pain-killer/anti-inflammatories that are released when we’re under stress or get injured).
Here are some of the more often used Herbs in this family:
Rhodiola, Schisandra, Ginseng, Holy Basil, and Ashwaganda, to name a few.
With the similarities that come with being in the same family of herbs, there are also differences that make each of them slightly different. It’s why one or two might work really well for one person and less so for someone else. That person may respond better to one or two of the others. A good stress relief/anti-anxiety formula will have a couple adaptogens, especially two that work well together and are balanced, energetically, like Ashwaganda and Holy Basil, or Schisandra and Ginseng.
It is key for the Health Practitioner with the Patient who has anxiety and/or a stress disorder to treat any abnormalities in sleep, digestion or the hormonal system. Any issues in these areas are either directly related or, if left untreated, will prevent the Patient from lasting improvement.
There are a number of other therapies and approaches that treat the symptoms and/or roots of anxiety and/or stress disorders, such as meditation, massage, mind-body-relaxation techniques, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) and other tapping systems, acupuncture, chiropractic, breathing techniques, and more. The key is to select an approach that can deal with the underlying roots of your condition or all you’re doing is chasing your tail.
Paul Gerst L.Ac. is a licensed Acupuncturist and Natural Health Practitioner of 24 years. He is also Co-Owner of The Balanced Path Wellness Center in Medway, MA. Paul has created and led classes and workshops for Corporations and the general public for 20+ years and is available for hire. He is a certified Meditation Instructor and is also a certified Mediator. Call 774-283-2726 or email thebalancedpath@gmail.com to get in touch with him, directly.