CLINICAL APPROACH

Anxiety is a common name for a disease called "anxiety" that comes from psychological factors. A strong sense of anxiety triggers physical upsets such as suffocation, sweating, and tremors that interfere with daily activities.

Stress diseases mainly involve the "liver", which regulates autonomic nerves and blood flow. "Liver" does not function unless "Qi" and "Blood" are sufficient. Furthermore, since the "liver" is involved in the regulation of blood flow, when stress is applied, the "blood" becomes even more deficient. When emotions are suppressed by external mental stimuli, the autonomic nervous system of the "liver" does not work well, causing various symptoms such as anger and irritability. In addition, when the cerebrum (mental activity) of the "mind" does not work well, mental symptoms occur.

In oriental medicine, "depression" is called "depression". "Depression" is a state in which the mental balance is lost due to mental repression, and as a result, the flow of "Qi" in the body does not flow smoothly, and the mood continues to be depressed. The mechanism by which "depression" occurs is complex, but the most important are liver, spleen, and heart damage and ataxia.

Oriental medicine does not consider mental symptoms and physical symptoms separately, and thought that various mental symptoms may occur due to imbalance of body components and functions. .. Therefore, old Chinese books are restless, depressed, and surprising, along with physical symptoms such as fever, urine output, constipation, diarrhea, palpitation, shallow breathing, and sweating. Mental symptoms such as sleeplessness, peeing, etc. are written. Current psychiatric care involves treating physical symptoms in internal medicine and other physical departments, focusing exclusively on mental symptoms, and diagnosing and treating them.

We recommend that you can do it first without resorting to medicine. Do you know the hormone "serotonin"? Serotonin is a messenger that balances the mind and is also known as the "happiness hormone." It is said that a deficiency of this serotonin can lead to violence and depression. More than 90% of serotonin in the body is in the small intestine, which helps digestion, but only 2% of serotonin in the brain has a great effect on the stability of the human mind. It is known that the substance serotonin increases or decreases depending on lifestyle.

Serotonin is secreted during the sun's rays and is known to be less secreted at night and during sleep, so it's a good idea to go to bed early and get up early. When exposed to the sun, the secretion of the sleep hormone melatonin stops and the secretion of serotonin, which promotes brain arousal, is activated. If you live a life that is reversed day and night, the balance of serotonin and melatonin secretion and the body clock will be disturbed, and you will become insomniac and prone to depression.

It is said that simple exercise with a constant rhythm is effective for serotonin secretion. A 20-minute workout can make you feel better for about 12 hours, according to researchers at the University of Vermont. It is also recommended to have a skinship with a loved one. Skinships with trusted people, such as family members and lovers, are said to be effective in increasing serotonin.

You can also eat foods that contain tryptophan. An important ingredient in producing serotonin is a substance called "tryptophan," which cannot be produced by the human body and must be supplemented with food. The best of them is nuts. A study by the American Academy of Sciences told 20 subjects to avoid nuts and 22 to eat a nut-rich diet. As a result of this 12-week experiment, the group that ate nuts had higher levels of serotonin. Besides nuts, pineapples, plums and tomatoes are also ingredients that increase serotonin levels. Foods containing tryptophan include meat, seafood, cheese, sesame, natto, noodles, rice, and bread.

It is also good to meditate. Studies have shown that meditation lowers blood pressure and increases serotonin levels. Only 30 minutes of meditation will improve the symptoms of depression. This is a study by John Hopkins University.

You can also get a massage. A comprehensive review of more than 12 studies on massage therapy by researchers at the University of Miami's Faculty of Pharmacy found that affecting human biochemistry could effectively address anxiety and depression. I concluded that I could. Several consecutive studies surveyed about 500 adults with depression and anxiety in men and women and children, and massage therapy could reduce subjects' cortisol levels by about 53% and increase serotonin levels. It seems to be.