Expert: Jurriaan Plesman, Nutritional Psychotherapist - 3/21/2004

Question
Hi Jurriaan

Thank you for replying to my question.

This question is in relation to my sister.  I understand if you are not available to answer the question as it relates to her.

My aim for asking my question is : I want to help her, and should I send the information from the  web site www hypoclycemia com au to her psychologist.

I am sober off alcohol and sugar thanks to the information at the web site www.hypoclycemia.com.au

From your background what is your suggestion or opinion on my sisters situation:

She has a drinking problem and experiences blackouts.  She has tried to stop drinking.  Her psychologist has suggested her to stop drinking, but she hasn't.

She had been on antidepressenat Arapax for 10 years.

She had been smoking for about 7 years.

About 4 months ago she stopped taking the antidepressant, stopped smoking and stopped drinking.

Then she started experiencing suicidal thoughts , and cutting herself.

She is under management with a psychologist.

She won't take further antidepressant medication due to fear and anxiety, related to an experience where she took drugs and she experienced a feeling of dying, taken to the hospital due to the affect the drugs had on her, this occured about 2 years ago.  She no longer smokes drugs.

She is dependent on men as she her father divorced her mother when she was 4.  She is the youngest of 7 children.  I took on the role as her mother, and am aware of this behaviour and try no longer to do this.  He current live in boyfriend drinks and smokes dop and beats her up and she keeps going back.

She is a very attractive lady, and from a country town family what was well respected.

I have told my sister about the connection with sugar and given her informaton, and she has identified she is sugar sensitive.

How can I involved her psychologist in her nutritonal plan.

How can I give her the information before she really does commit suicide.

Appreciate if you have any suggestions, and understand if you are not available to answer the question.

Regards
Janie D
Brisbane  

Answer
I can sympathize with your concerns.
My suggestion is that she asks her psychologist to have here tested for Hypoglycemia. This can be done with the NBI (in ARTICLES) at our web site, or this can be done by a doctor via a Glucose Tolerance test. The test is described at our web site. The medical test may be somewhat stressful to her if she is hypoglycemic as I believe she is.

This is to impress upon her that she goes on a hypoglycemic diet with the nutritional supplements as suggested in "What is Hypoglycemia?"

Supplements of zinc, vitamin C, B-Complex, Chromium picolinate fishoil, are very important, as she will be deficient inthese.

We also have an article

"Nutrients against drugs and Alcohol"

at:

http://www.hypoglycemia.asn.au/news/hyponl1992_09.pdf

Go to page 2 of Newsletter

The psychologist should also be aware of

"Treatment of Drug Addiction" at our web site.

Her relationship with her boyfriend can be explained in terms of her low self-esteem.

The psychologist could help her to go through the specially designed self-help PSYCHOTHERAPY course at the web site. Thus course can be done in eight sessions. But it is important that she is on the hypoglycemic diet, and that a distinction should be made between depressed feelings caused by biochemical aspects and those caused by a negative self-image. The psychotherapy course also contains an “Assertiveness Training Program".

I hope you will be able to help your sister, and you can always come back with further questions.

Jurriaan Plesman
Free Web Site at:
www.hypoglycemia.asn.au