The sad fact is that every day more than 130 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids. And the cost of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion a year (National Institute of Health). The questions is, how did this happen? How did we get to the point where we have so little regard for the natural functioning of our bodies that we can pop pills without a second thought? Whereas the media brings our attention to illicit drug use, we should be just as concerned about the overuse of legal drugs.
I hate to point fingers, but the pharmaceutical industry is a major culprit here. This is not to say that drugs have no place in our health care, but we have become too used to the idea of treating the symptoms of our discomfort rather than looking to the root cause and trying to find natural remedies first. Because our bodymind is interconnected in every way, medication for one purpose can have adverse effects on other body systems unintentionally. This is why drug companies have to disclose by law, the arm-long list of possible side effects present with each and every drug approved by the FDA and sold to the public. When you try to fix one thing with chemicals, necessarily other bodily processes are affected. Drugs should be a last resort in treating any illness.
We can always tell ourselves that we will never OD on pain killers-- that we just take the prescribed dose of whatever our doctor gives us. And of course doctors always know what’s best for us. But did you know that a recent study, based on the results of a ten-year survey of government statistics concludes that iatrogenic illness (illness resulting from medical treatment) is actually the leading cause of death in the United States and that adverse reactions to prescription drugs are responsible for more than 300,000 deaths a year” (Bruce Lipton,PhD, The Biology of Belief). Holy smokes, that woke me up!
Granted, it is way easier to take a pill rather than make a lifestyle change-- to look at habits of bodymind that might be at the source of the problem. But it's the consequences that finally got my attention. A recent example of tragic adverse reactions to drug therapy is the debilitating and life-threatening side effects associated with synthetic hormone replacement therapy (HRT). "Synthetic hormone replacement therapy has been shown to have disturbing side effects that result in cardiovascular disease and neural dysfunctions such as strokes”(The Biology of Belief). Even the common practice of taking an over-the-counter antihistamine for allergy symptoms can affect the brain adversely. Whereas histamines in the sinuses can cause unpleasant congestion, in the brain they instead increase the flow of nutrition to the neurons, enhancing their growth and specialized functions; taking an antihistamine can actually slow down brain activity.
And then there are the drugs prescribed in the Mental Health field. The number of people treated for depression has tripled over the past two decades, and one in ten Americans now take antidepressants (read my blog post Gut Reaction). The shocking thing to me is that so many drugs are being prescribed for children as well as adults. Half a million children in the United States currently take antipsychotic drugs. Children from low-income families are four times as likely as privately insured children to receive antipsychotic medicines. "These medications make children more manageable and less aggressive, but they also interfere with motivation, play, and curiosity, which are indispensable for maturing into a well-functioning and contributing member of society”
(Bessel van der Kolk, MD, The Body Keeps the Score).
The theory that mental illness is caused primarily by chemical imbalances in the brain that can be corrected by specific drugs has become broadly accepted, by the media and the public as well as by the medical profession. In many places drugs have displaced therapy and enabled patients to suppress their problems without addressing the underlying issues. Mainstream medicine is firmly committed to a better life through chemistry, and the fact that we can actually change our own physiology and inner equilibrium by means other than drugs is rarely considered. But the fact that half of Americans now visit complementary health practitioners, traditional doctors can no longer ignore holistic health factors such as nutrition, physical activity and stress management as vital elements in the proactive treatment of their patients. Why wait until something is a serious problem requiring medical intervention?
More people are integrating Eastern and Western health care practices into their lives. On the one hand, Western medicine tends to approach disease by assuming that it is due to an external force, such as a virus or bacteria, or a slow degeneration of the functional ability of the body. Disease is either physical or mental. The Eastern approach assumes that the body is whole, and each part of it is intimately connected. Each organ has a mental as well as a physical function (dimensionsofculture.com). Incorporating somatics like meditation, yoga and acupuncture have been pivotal. There are wonderful mobile apps for your phone to be able to practice meditation and yoga whenever it suits your schedule. Check out my blog Response Ability for some suggestions.
The most common ailments, especially headaches, have been found to be caused by everyday stress. But before you reach for two Motrin, consider the cause, especially if it is a frequent occurrence. Stress has also been linked to serious conditions like heart disease, so if we ignore the underlying cause of the headache, we might be setting ourselves up for something more serious down the road. Whereas we can't completely eliminate the stressors in life, we can change the way we respond to them. In addition to meditation and yoga, utilizing tools like Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) have been extremely useful for many people.
If you’re interested in delving further, I recommend the two books referenced above—The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton and The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk. Check back in on Sunday when I will create a list of simple lifestyle changes that can also help get off the medication treadmill. Remember, Minding Your Body will manifest itself in positive changes in every aspect of your life.
“ You can be fully in charge of your life only if you can acknowledge the reality of your body, in all its visceral dimensions.” Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. “The Body Keeps the Score.”
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