Most people experience a wide variety of emotions in any given day. Our mood can be swayed one way by the rush-hour traffic, and another way by a lovely surprise waiting for us when we get home. Sometimes these moods seem hard to control, or they seem to completely take over our bodies and minds. When our mood feels like it is too much to handle, it can begin to take over our lives. This can be temporary or circumstantial, as in the loss of a loved one, and will move through a predictable pattern. On the other hand, sometimes there seems to be “no reason” for our bodies to be feeling this way or “nothing” you can do to make it feel better. Our naturopathic doctors always assess mood and mental health as part of the whole picture of each patient’s health and will help create a plan to optimize both. Moods can be affected by many things such as stress, sleep, digestion, hormones, and most notably, our neurotransmitters. We have many neurotransmitters, which signal different things throughout our body and mind and play a big role on how we feel, or our mood. Some of the key neurotransmitters include:
Serotonin
- best known for contributing to feelings of wellbeing and happiness. It also regulates mood, appetite, digestion, memory, sexual desire, and converts to melatonin to regulate the sleep wake cycle.
- Low levels of serotonin can cause depression and low mood, poor memory, low self esteem, anxiety, and difficulty sleeping
Dopamine
- commonly associated with reward and addictions, and also helps to regulate our emotions, our movement, pleasure, motivation, and memory.
- Low levels of dopamine can cause Parkinsons, low mood and depression, lack of motivation and enthusiasm, lack of focus and concentration, fatigue and apathy.
GABA
- calms the nervous system down helping with sleep, regulating mood, preventing overexcitement of the nervous system, and healthy stress coping.
- Low levels of GABA can result in anxiety, low mood and depression, epilepsy, PMS, poor sleep, ADHD and poor coping with stress.
Norepinephrine
- also known as noradrenaline, helps us respond to stress by making the heart beat stronger, narrowing focus, strengthening muscles, increasing blood sugar, and also helps with mood and concentration.
- Low levels of norepinephrine can result in low mood and depression, anxiety, issues with sleep, fibromyalgia and migraines.
CONDITIONS WE TREAT
- Anxiety (general, social)
- Depression
- Postpartum depression
- Seasonal affective disorder
- ADHD
- Autism spectrum
- And much more!
Our practitioners have had a lot of experience in treating mental emotional concerns with great success. Your first step to feeling better is to Make an Appointment today!
OUR APPROACH
The naturopathic doctors at the Whole Health Naturopathic Clinic believe in treating the whole person in order to achieve optimal health. We will perform a thorough assessment, including detailed medical history, evaluation of signs and symptoms, and any relevant test results in order to gain insight on the complete history of an individual, and to create a truly individualized treatment plan. We strive to help you optimize your mood in order to return to YOUR optimal functioning. Each individual has very specific moods and responses they prefer and our naturopathic doctors tailor treatment to help enhance the moods you would like to return to. Various neurotransmitters and hormones can have overlapping symptoms, so our NDs always establish a baseline of your dominant patterns and any deficiencies that may be present. The goal is always to optimize health and to introduce good moods to take the place of unwelcome feelings.
TESTING
Our emotions help to reflect what is going on inside our bodies, as many functions, or dysfunctions of the body will affect our mood. For this reason, there are tests that may be helpful in determining the root cause of mental emotional conditions. Addressing any underlying digestive concerns is crucial and Stool Testing is helpful in determining exactly what the issue might be. Hormone Testing can help to understand any hormonal imbalances, which may be contributing to a mood imbalance. To get a good overview of the neurotransmitter status in your body, our NDs use an Organic Acid Test (or OAT). Organic acids are chemical compounds, which are the result of the metabolism, or the breaking down of many chemicals and compounds in our bodies. These organic acids accurately evaluate various chemical markers to give a lot of insight into an individual’s health. Organic Acid Testing is an easy and effective way to test for various neurotransmitter markers, oxidative stress, vitamin and mineral status, and intestinal yeast and bacteria.