Rob H.

Though folks are often skeptical of the gut-brain connection, Rob’s story is proof that dietary changes can manifest themselves in improved mental condition and cognition – Dr. Perlmutter

I am not a medical professional, not an academic in any way, however, having suffered from a major depressive disorder my entire adult life, I have made researching my illness and treatment of if a priority for the past ten years. At 54 I have, over the past 20 years, taken at least a half-dozen different anti-depressant medications as prescribed by respected psychiatrists in Ontario and Alberta.

To give you an idea of the severity of my illness, at times I’ve had to augment my anti-depression meds with anti-psychotic medication, occasionally needing three medications at the same time. The benefits of these meds to me are significant, but the side effects serious. I moved to Canmore in the Rocky Mountains, in part to find some peace in nature and away from big city stress. The culture in our community is very holistic and health conscious, however, as a techno-nerd (I am a former Fortune 500 CIO) I am very skeptical of simple organic treatments and holistic trends – skeptical but not impassable.

In my community I am ‘out’ about my mental illness. A friend suggested to me that diet would make a big difference with my illness as it had for him. Having tried the Atkins diet (for weight loss) a few times with my wife (first phase is basically carb-free), I noticed a significant improvement in my concentration. Since then I’ve attempted to reduce my carbohydrate intake and have noticed remarkable improvement to not only my concentration, but reduced deep depression and fewer overall mood swings (less severity, less frequency).

Also improved has been my overall cognitive functions (i.e. memory, attention span, focus). If you ask my family, the biggest improvement from I’ve made is less aggression and anger, which is a hallmark of many men my age with depression. Ironically, this did not surprise me given my interest in my layperson research into effects of sugar (my crutch) and insulin levels around depression, unfortunately the hard part is changing my habits, which are clearly addicted to sugar and fresh baked wheat products. Reading Grain Brain is part of my plan to, so to speak, teach this old dog some new tricks.

-Rob H.