Upcoming talk: Holistic Treatment of Depression


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I will be offering a FREE talk on the holistic treatment of depression on September 24th, from 7:00 – 9:00 PM at the Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine College in Berkeley, CA.

The World Health Organization states that depression is the leading cause of disability, affecting more than 120 million people worldwide. Antidepressants are now the most popular class of drugs in the U.S., and their use has been growing rapidly over the past two decades. From 1990 to 2000, prescriptions for SSRIs (the leading class of antidepressant drugs) rose by a staggering 1300%. In the last year alone, 30 million patients in the U.S. spent over $12 billion on antidepressants.

However, despite their aggressive promotion and widespread use, recent evidence suggests that antidepressants are not as effective as we have been led to believe. Other studies have raised concerns about the long-term safety of antidepressant drugs, including a potential increase in suicidal behavior in both children and adults.

In this two-hour presentation, you’ll learn about several non-drug treatments that are clinically proven to be at least as effective as antidepressants for relieving depression in all but the most severe cases. We will also review various theories on the nature and causes of depression, drawing upon both modern science and traditional wisdom.

WARNING: Withdrawal from antidepressant drugs must be very gradual, and should always be done under the supervision of a licensed medical professional. Do not, under any circumstances, stop taking your medication without such supervision.

Date: Wednesday, September 24th

Time: 7:00 – 9:00 PM

Location:
Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine College (AIMC)
2550 Shattuck Ave (at Blake)
Berkeley, CA 94704
MAP

AIMC is an easy, 10-minute walk south on Shattuck from downtown Berkeley BART.

Cost: Free

Click here to download a PDF flyer for the event.

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Need help? I consult with patients locally in the SF Bay Area and around the world via telephone & Skype. Please contact me to learn more.

  1. Jesse Edmunds’s avatar

    Hey Chris, I saw one of your talks on cholesterol a while ago with my friend Erin. It was great. I hope to be able to attend this one too.

  2. Chris’s avatar

    Hi Jesse,

    I hope you’re able to make it too! Glad you enjoyed the cholesterol talk.

    Best,
    Chris

  3. Laura’s avatar

    I would like to mention that I was on an antidepressant/mood stabelizer as a treatment for bipolar disorder for over eleven years successfully weaned off a few years ago.  It was not an easy process, and my doctors were skeptical at best, but the results speak for themselves.  I am currently doing things I only dreamed of doing, and taking it slow for now (by ONLY homeschooling four children, and teaching a children’s music class in our small community as opposed to staying in bed 50% of the time).  I’m truly enjoying my life in a way that I was told was not possible for me without the right “cocktail” of prescription drugs (which, by the way, I never did find).  I have come out of a deep freeze!  I must take a nutritional supplement to keep me stable, but they have incredible health benefits.  I have much more energy, ablilty to concentrate, and enthusiasm now.  A lot of bipolar people worry about losing creativity if their highs are stabelized.  I have seen the opposite.  My creativity is thriving, but now I have the means to see my creative efforts completed, not set aside when I fall into another depression.  There is hope out there!

    Laura

  4. Chris Kresser’s avatar

    Thanks for sharing your inspiring story, Laura.

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