Episode 115: The Biochemistry Behind Mood & Mental Health Struggles with Dr. Jason Loken

Listen to Episode 115 with Dr. Jason Loken →

When Everything "Right" Isn't Enough

You're in therapy processing your experiences thoroughly and consistently. You eat well, exercise regularly, and practice stress management. Yet you still struggle with persistent anxiety and mood. Could your biochemistry be blocking your healing progress?

Are you or those you help seemingly doing everything? But still feeling stuck despite all your efforts? That competitive drive, those controlling tendencies, or that persistent anxiety. Might actually be rooted in your biochemistry not psychology.

Today I sit down with Dr. Jason Loken specifically. To explore how hidden biochemical imbalances create problems. Can create patterns of depression, anxiety, and behavioral challenges. That talk therapy alone cannot resolve no matter how good.

Dr. Loken shares how under-methylation works in your body. A copper-zinc imbalance, and pyroluria—three common patterns. Can fundamentally affect your physical and mental well-being together.

We also discuss why certain traits run in families. How a copper-zinc imbalance can affect postpartum mental health. And why some children struggle with focus and regulation. Despite good parenting and appropriate interventions consistently.

Dr. Loken breaks down the science behind these patterns. Behind these biochemical patterns creating real symptoms. Explains how these imbalances can be identified through testing. And shares actionable steps for addressing the root cause.

Whether you're a practitioner looking for comprehensive approaches to care. A parent concerned about your child's behavior and struggles. Or someone personally struggling with persistent symptoms that won't resolve. This episode offers valuable insights into how balancing biochemistry works. Into how balancing your biochemistry might be the key. To finally feeling like yourself again after years struggling.

Understanding Biochemical Blocks

Why do you feel stuck despite doing everything right? The answer might be your biochemistry not your psychology. Not your psychology or insufficient effort at all. Your body's chemistry creating barriers that willpower can't overcome.

Doing all the right things means you're committed to healing. You're in therapy, you eat well, you exercise consistently. You meditate, you journal, you do the work. Yet you still struggle with the same patterns. This points to biology underneath that needs addressing.

Competitive drive that's excessive isn't just personality or ambition. It can be under-methylation affecting your brain chemistry. A specific biochemical pattern creating certain behavioral traits. That cluster together in recognizable patterns across people.

Controlling tendencies might not be just anxiety or trauma responses. Needing to control everything around you constantly. Might not be just anxiety from past experiences. It could be biochemical imbalance driving the behavior underneath. Your chemistry creating the urge to control situations.

Understanding the Biology of Trauma® reveals chemistry's role in symptoms. Trauma affects your biochemistry creating lasting imbalances that persist. These imbalances then maintain symptoms that therapy alone can't resolve. Biology and psychology interact creating complex presentations requiring both.

The Three Key Imbalances

Hidden biochemical imbalances operate beneath awareness causing real problems. These imbalances hide from standard medical testing completely. Standard tests miss them because they're not looking. Yet they create real symptoms and real struggles. Real struggles affecting every aspect of your life.

Creating patterns of depression, of anxiety, of behavioral challenges. These patterns stem from biochemistry not just experiences alone. Not just experiences or learned behaviors or trauma. The chemistry in your body driving symptoms persistently. Biology creating the foundation for psychological symptoms appearing.

Talk therapy's limitations become clear when biochemistry blocks progress. Talk therapy helps immensely with psychological healing work. But it can't correct biochemical imbalances causing symptoms. Both approaches needed for complete healing from complex issues. Psychology and biology must be addressed together simultaneously.

Under-methylation explained involves a specific biochemical pattern affecting function. Affecting how your body uses methyl groups for processes. For neurotransmitter production your brain needs for mood. This matters enormously for mental health and function. Your body can't make necessary chemicals without proper methylation.

Under-Methylation and Its Effects

Under-methylation and depression connect through specific neurotransmitter patterns creating symptoms. Low serotonin, high dopamine, perfectionism appearing together. Seasonal depression worsening in darker months predictably. These characterize under-methylation patterns in affected people. Standard antidepressants often make symptoms worse not better.

The anxiety from under-methylation has specific qualities distinguishing it. Obsessive thoughts that won't stop looping repeatedly. Need for control over situations and people. Inner tension that never fully releases even temporarily. These characterize under-methylation anxiety specifically rather than general.

Behavioral traits commonly associated with under-methylation cluster predictably together. Competitiveness, control issues, obsessive-compulsive tendencies appearing together. High achievers, perfectionists, driven individuals often affected. These aren't separate problems requiring separate treatments. They stem from same biochemical pattern underneath everything.

Testing for methylation requires knowing how to properly test. For methylation imbalances affecting your mental health. Dr. Loken explains specific markers to measure. What to look for in test results. How to interpret findings correctly for treatment.

Copper-Zinc and Postpartum

The copper-zinc connection matters especially for women's mental health. This balance matters especially for women experiencing hormonal changes. Especially postpartum when dramatic shifts occur rapidly. Copper rises during pregnancy for fetal development needs. Zinc depletes as baby takes what it needs.

Pregnancy's copper surge serves an important biological purpose initially. Your body needs higher copper during pregnancy months. For fetal development requiring copper for growth. But postpartum copper should drop back to normal. Often doesn't drop creating toxicity and symptoms.

Postpartum mood disorders often reflect copper toxicity not hormones. Many postpartum depressions are actually copper toxicity creating symptoms. Treating the copper imbalance reverses depression symptoms quickly. Not bad mothering or character weakness or hormones. Simple biochemistry creating unbearable symptoms after birth.

Zinc's critical role involves multiple essential functions for health. Zinc is essential for neurotransmitter production your brain needs. For immune function protecting you from illness. For mood regulation keeping you stable emotionally. Pregnancy depletes it leaving you deficient and symptomatic.

Pyroluria and Stress

Managing stress better becomes impossible advice when biochemistry blocks it. You're told to manage stress better by everyone. But with certain biochemical imbalances present in your body. This is nearly impossible to accomplish despite trying. Biology blocks stress management from working properly ever.

What pyroluria actually is involves a genetic condition affecting nutrients. A condition causing severe zinc and B6 deficiency. Creates inner tension, anxiety, poor stress control chronically. It's genetic but treatable through proper supplementation consistently. Your body can't hold onto these essential nutrients.

Pyroluria's effects involve stripping your body of key nutrients. It strips your body of nutrients continuously. Of key nutrients that help create feel-good chemicals. Like serotonin and dopamine your brain needs desperately. Without these nutrients, your mood plummets predictably downward.

Children struggling with focus and emotional regulation need assessment. With emotional regulation despite loving supportive parenting consistently. Sometimes it's not ADHD or trauma alone causing. Not trauma alone creating the behavioral problems appearing. It's biochemistry affecting their developing brains and bodies.

Family Patterns and Solutions

Family patterns show certain traits running in families genetically. Not just learned behaviors passed down through generations. Genetically influenced biochemical patterns passed down biologically. Biochemical patterns creating similar struggles across family members. This explains patterns you've noticed in your family.

The genetic component involves under-methylation, copper-zinc imbalance, pyroluria specifically. These have genetic components that run in families. Run in families creating recognizable patterns of symptoms. This explains patterns of mental health struggles appearing. Across multiple family members through generations consistently.

Identifying imbalances requires knowing what symptom patterns suggest which. Dr. Loken shares how to identify these patterns. What symptoms suggest which imbalance affecting you. Where to start investigation for testing and treatment. Learning these patterns helps diagnosis happen faster accurately.

Actionable steps for addressing root causes not just symptoms. Not just managing symptoms temporarily with medication alone. Finding and fixing the biochemical imbalance underneath everything. Creating the symptoms that have plagued you. Actual correction of imbalances creating lasting improvement.

This Episode Is For:

✓ People stuck despite therapy and lifestyle changes 

✓ Parents of children with behavioral or focus issues 

✓ Practitioners wanting comprehensive mental health approaches 

✓ Anyone with treatment-resistant depression or anxiety 

✓ Those with postpartum mood disorders 

✓ People with family patterns of mental health struggles 

✓ Anyone interested in the biochemistry-mood connection

What You'll Learn

Listen to understand how under-methylation, copper-zinc imbalance, and pyroluria work. Create depression, anxiety, and behavioral patterns that therapy can't resolve. Plus how to properly test for these hidden imbalances. And address them so you finally feel like yourself.

Your persistent anxiety might be biochemistry not unprocessed trauma alone.

Listen to Episode 115 with Dr. Jason Loken →

Disclaimer

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The information shared reflects my clinical expertise and research, but every person's biology and healing journey is unique. Always consult with qualified healthcare providers before making changes to your treatment plan or starting new interventions. If you're experiencing a mental health crisis, please contact emergency services or a crisis helpline immediately.

Join the Conversation

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this episode. What resonated with you? What questions came up?

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