I am thrilled to share Monique Phipps story for you to read and share as she hits the nail firmly on the head. I hope you loved and shared the broccoli salad I posted this morning too. Over to you Monique..... My name is Monique Phipps. I am a clinical psychologist and mum of 3 young children. I am half way through a post graduate diploma in nutritional medicine for mental health. Not once in my 6 years of university training or 14 years of working in mental health did I ever hear a mention of the role of diet in mental health. I have spent my career working in services where people are prescribed medications that make them obese, give them diabetes and when they report problems with side effects, depression, insomnia or anxiety they are prescribed more medications to deal with them. When medications dont work they try different ones rather than looking for alternative explanations. The clients I have worked with often live on very low budgets and diet of takeaway food and coke. Any dietary advice to them has always been the recommended low fat, high carb food pyramid. This advice definitely does not lead to positive effects on either physical or mental health! About 2 ½ years ago I read an article on food additives and the harmful effects they have on behaviour, learning, physical and mental health. Although my family had no significant issues I decided that there was no way I was going to continue to put these substances into our bodies. We cleaned out our fridge and cupboard and replaced all the additive laden foods with cleaner ones. Immediately we noticed a big difference in behaviour, energy levels and sleep. My son went from being a nightmare to put to bed, to going to sleep quickly and easily. His night terrors stopped completely. I went from taking hours to fall asleep and grinding my teeth so severely that I would wake up with a headache, to sleeping easily and waking up happy! I went from constantly feeling extreme fatigue to being full of energy. My oldest daughter stopped waking with pain in the night and her behaviour became noticeably calmer. She was 5 at the time and even she said how much better she felt since we changed the way we ate. I was so amazed at these changes that I read more and researched more. I enrolled in the nutritional medicine course and really started to realise the effect that foods can have not only on physical health but also on mental health. I stopped buying packaged foods and started making things from scratch. I had already been gluten and dairy free for 10 years to manage crohns disease (which I have always managed with natural therapies) but I have found that by removing all grains and refined sugar from my diet I feel better than I ever have. My skin is clear, my moods are more stable and I have more energy now than I did before I had children! I went from being afraid to let any fat pass my lips to eating a diet very high in natural fats and am leaner than I have ever been. It has been hard to implement changes in my clients diets in a public mental health service where the medical model is dominant and the connection between body and mind is not a consideration. I have seen some positive changes when clients have taken on some of my recommendations including one man whos blood glucose levels have dropped from as high as 21 to 7 from moving towards a wholefood diet, reducing his consumption of bread and changing from vegetable oils to butter. He was thrilled at how much better he felt and how much better his food tasted! I started The Nourished Psychologist as a way to help spread the word about the strong links between diet and mental health and to offer a service to people that integrated psychology and nutrition. I still believe that there are many reasons for mental health issues and that psychological interventions (and sometimes medications) are important, particularly for people who have a history of trauma or distressing life events but am now 100% convinced that for everyone, diet can improve their mental health. I am a huge fan of GAPS for gut healing and have followed the program myself. I believe that poor gut health is likely to be the underlying cause of most health problems and include a variety of fermented foods and drinks in my familys diet. While I think everyones nutritional needs are different and advocate listening to your body to work out what is right for you, I generally recommend a paleo/ HFLC approach with the flexibility to work out what suits each individual. Through my studies I have been astounded to find out the links between gluten and casein and numerous mental health disorders including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. I wonder how many people are taking dangerous medications when they issue is actually an intolerance to gluten and/or casein. I recently wrote a facebook and blog post on this topic and was overwhelmed by the response to these. I have been contacted by many people who have told me about how much their mental health improved by removing these substances from their diet. I am thrilled at how many people are now interested in a change in the accepted dietary guidelines and am hopeful for a future where mainstream medicine recognises how important real food, the way are bodies were designed to eat, is to both physical and mental health and where prevention and healthcare through diet becomes the first line of treatment. I would love it if people would pop over and check out some of the information on my facebook page and blog. I am available for one on one consultations in person or on Skype to help people make changes to improve their mental health. thenourishedpsychologist facebook/thenourishedpsychologist The ideas and suggestions written by Chef Pete Evans, on this page are provided as general educational information only and should not be construed as medical advice or care. Information herein is meant to complement, not replace, any advice or information from your personal health professional. These of course are observations, they dont equal causation, but are pretty difficult to ignore. Im sure the experts will agree. All matters regarding your health require supervision by a personal physician or other appropriate health professional familiar with your current health status. Always consult your personal physician before making any dietary or exercise changes. Pete Evans Chef disclaim any liability or warranties of any kind arising directly or indirectly from use of this page. If any medical problems develop, always consult your personal physician. Only your physician can provide you medical advice. Throughout this page are links to external sites. These external sites contain information created and maintained by other individuals and organizations and are provided for the user’s convenience. Chef Pete Evans does not control nor can they guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this information. Neither is it intended to endorse any view expressed nor reflect its importance by inclusion in this site.
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 07:28:50 +0000
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