25 million Americans report experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder, and most of them are women. Typically when approaching a topic like depression, there are two schools of thought. First, we have the technical, scientific approach. We can talk about chemical reactions in the body, how happiness is just a chemical, and so depression, the lack of happiness, must be some sort of chemical imbalance. Honestly, I WON’T disagree with that. I have experienced some depression in my life. I also experienced firsthand a radical transformation when I changed my diet. I KNOW it was an inner metamorphosis of the chemicals and hormones in my body. There’s a lot of science to back up the whole “feelings are chemicals” concept. Many clinical tests and trials have concluded that our feelings of happiness have a direct correlation with the following “happy hormones”.

• Serotonin – This hormone is DIRECTLY responsible for feelings of happiness.  Boost your serotonin with sunlight, flax seeds, sour cherries, and bananas.
• Phenylethylamine – This is the hormone we feel while we’re in love.  Yes, large amounts of chocolate can boost this hormone (although I would recommend raw cacao over chocolate.)  Legumes and nuts also add to the “love” drug that our body creates.
• Endorphins – Endorphins reduce our sensitivity to pain, and lower our stress.  We can increase our endorphin production by aromatherapy with vanilla, cinnamon, drinking ginseng tea, and my personal favorite’s Laughter and Exercise!

However, I’d be doing you all a disservice if I took these beautiful feelings we have, our emotions of love, hope, joy, along with our memories, our intuition, our faith, and wrote them all off as some accidental chemistry experiment.  I believe each and every one of us has a divine purpose, with enormous potential for loving, building, creating and healing.  So here are 2 huge “mental ingredients” for finding happiness and overcoming seasonal depression.

Be Grateful – As I talked about in a recent Mindset Monday video, part of my daily ritual is to think of at least 30 things that I’m grateful for, and list them off before bed.  Try it.  At least 30.  The first few will be big, but as you begin reaching for other blessings, be them people, opportunities, or experiences, you’ll notice your mood begin to change.  You’re starting to  almost “re-experience” each blessing.  This wonderful ritual is helping you slow down, and really appreciate the little things. Your perspective is slowly shifting, and life’s problems are starting to shrink, as the gratitude and thankfulness of all we’ve been given begins to grow larger.

Love More – So many times I’ve walked into a room, initiated a partnership, friendship, or relationship thinking “how am I going to benefit from this?” Once I began seeing myself as a healer, like we all are, with an infinite source of love at our fingertips, I was able to step outside of my own needs.  I see now that, I have everything that I need.  I understand now that every encounter, and every chance experience is an opportunity to show love, caring, and concern for other beings.  If you see me on the street or in a grocery store, I’m probably not hugging and kissing a total stranger (well not anymore) but you will see me trading stories and doing my best to make people smile and feel special.  The most beautiful part about loving more, is once you take that step, that’s when the magic happens.  That’s when you see the love and fulfillment reflected back, and eventually, it will spread from person to person, and you are now beginning to see how were are all infinitely connected.

So today, let’s make a Seasonal Depression Fighting Juice!  Here’s what’s in it:

As I mentioned, seasonal depression affects at least 10% of Americans, and the root cause can be internal or external.  I have clients who’ve drastically changed their mood PERMANENTLY when they boosted their micro-nutrient intake.  I also know clients who needed that little extra.  That mindset shift.  That’s why I always stress the Mind & Body connection.