St. John's Wort for Diabetic Depression
St. John's Wort for Diabetic Depression
Written by Laura Wheeler
NaturalDiabetics.com
I have included this here not because it primarily affects blood sugar, but because depression often occurs as a result of diabetes, or becomes a complicating factor in it. It is very hard to control your diet when you are feeling discouraged and hopeless, the temptation to eat certain things can be nearly overwhelming. So this is included because it is an herb I have experience with, and a condition I have had to cope with many times.
St. John's Wort is a somewhat controversial herb, but its value has been studied widely in Europe, where it is routinely prescribed for depression. It can conflict with a range of medications, so you need to do some more research before you use it, to make sure it will not affect the function of other medications you are on.
It can also make you VERY sensitive to sunlight. I got a sunburn while using it, from spending the day sitting in the SHADE. There was enough reflected light around to burn me even though I spent no more than a total of 3 minutes in direct sunlight.
It is not generally considered to be safe during pregnancy, which is why I don't use it right now - I am experiencing a bit of winter depression and would use it if it were not for a desire to have another baby.
I did not have any other side effects from using it, other than sunburns. It did relieve a portion of my depression, using two tablets a day (I don't remember the strength). I got no abnormal feeling from it, I just felt a little better, and was able to cope better.
I found that for me, it worked better when used with Borage Oil. The combination just helped to lift some of the discouragement and frustration that I get with depression. Some people use it with Gingko also, which can have a synergistic effect for people who experience more confusion or forgetfulness with depression. I don't use Gingko though because it is another supplement that gives me migraines.
Depression comes in two forms: Clinical, which is caused by chemical or hormonal influences, and Situational, which is caused by emotional responses to situations in your life. A diagnosis of diabetes alone is enough to bring on depression in some people, and if your disease is rapidly progressing, or requires major adaptations, it can make it worse, or it can become ongoing. Diabetes can also cause changes to brain chemistry over time, which can aggravate depression. Further, if you have other situations in your life, or pre-existing depression, you can experience depression from another source which in turn affects your diabetes control.
One of the major aspects of diabetes care is being consistent. This is much harder when you are feeling like the small things really don't matter anyway, or when your emotional state is causing you to crave something in inappropriate amounts. Cravings for chocolate, fats, salt, sugar, breads, ice cream, etc, are common when someone feels down and discouraged. It is hard to resist an intense craving, and it may make it very difficult to control your diet. Mental confusion and forgetfulness may also interfere with medication doses, monitoring, and other routine aspects of care. Conversely, getting on top of the depression can make the entire process of managing diabetes much easier to accomplish.
This supplement can be very valuable for many people, but for others it can be hazardous, so be very careful, talk to your doctor, read up on the interactions, and then proceed with care if it is something that you feel you need.
Copyright, 2007, NaturalDiabetics.com
