Just going by the recent guests on Oprah, you’d think that America was populated by manic-depressive people hooked on all sorts of prescription meds! Well, studies show that the number of depressed citizens has reached, at least, a whopping 8 million. What’s worse is that depression is the leading cause of suicide, with 30,000 deaths annually. And since drugs don’t seem to be helping lower that number fast enough, more people are turning to TCM methods like acupuncture for anxiety and depression.

TCM or traditional Chinese medicine has gained a following among individuals who, even if they experience healing, dislike the side effects and withdrawal symptoms normally associated with prescription antidepressants, such as Prozac, Wellbutrin, Zoflot, etc.

Since these drugs work on managing brain levels of serotonin, some people have used herbal remedies that do the same thing, the most popular being St. John’s Wort. Other people have found it beneficial to combine herbal medicine with acupuncture for anxiety and depression, as well as fatigue from stress and mood swings.

So how true are these TCM claims? An acupuncturist will probably tell you that his method treats the root cause of the depressive disorder. However, clinical studies proving this are lacking.

On the other hand, clinical research has proven that herbal remedies are indeed effective against anxiety disorders and even panic attacks and certain types of phobia.

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