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The Key Clinic
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Why some mental health struggles can't be talked away
He has started snapping at the people he loves and lies awake afterwards feeling bad about it. The plans he used to make have dried up, he is tired all the time, and he has read the same email four times without taking it in.
If that sounds like you, or someone close to you, you have probably been given the usual advice: talk about it, think positively, get out for a run, try harder. Some of that helps. But it assumes that how you feel is something you can reason your way out of, and a lot of the time you can't. This is not your fault and it says nothing about your character. Your brain is a physical organ that runs on biology, and when the biology is short of something, effort alone can't make up the difference.
What it often looks like in men
Men rarely say "I feel low". They say "I'm fine" or "I'm just knackered". What the people around them notice is more like this:
A short fuse over small things
Pulling away from friends, family and things he used to enjoy
Being tired all the time, even after a decent night in bed
A foggy head and no staying power for anything that needs concentration
A flat feeling of "I'm just not myself"
None of this sounds like a textbook description of feeling low, so it gets put down to work, age or temperament. Ask him how he is feeling and he will often say he doesn't know, so a more useful question is what is going on underneath.
Your brain runs on chemistry
Everything you think and feel depends on chemical messengers such as serotonin, dopamine, noradrenaline and GABA. Your body builds them from raw materials in your food: dopamine from an amino acid called tyrosine, serotonin from one called tryptophan, both of which come from protein, and it needs a steady supply of vitamins and minerals to do the building. If one link in that chain is short, the supply of messengers wobbles, and you notice it in your mood, your patience, your motivation and your sleep.
Methylation and serotonin. Methylation is a process your cells run all day long, switching genes up or down. One thing it controls is how quickly serotonin, the messenger most closely linked with mood and calm, is cleared from the gaps between nerve cells. When methylation runs low, serotonin is cleared too fast and less is left to do its job, and we see low mood, rigid or stuck thinking and poor sleep alongside it. Some people sit at the opposite end, with too much methylation, and they need different nutrients. Two people with the same symptoms can have opposite profiles, which is why we test first.
Zinc and copper. These two minerals pull against each other: when one rises, the other tends to fall. Your brain turns dopamine into noradrenaline, the alertness and alarm chemical, using an enzyme that cannot work without copper. When copper runs high, that conversion runs too hard. Dopamine is used up faster than it is replaced and noradrenaline becomes over-driven, which is linked with restlessness, a wired and on-edge feeling, and a temper that escalates quickly. Zinc contributes to normal cognitive function, and it also prompts the body to make the protein that keeps copper in check.
Pyrroles. Some people make unusually high levels of pyrroles, waste products from making haemoglobin that bind to zinc and vitamin B6 and carry them out in the urine. Even a diet rich in both can't make up for it. Zinc and B6 are needed to make serotonin, melatonin and GABA, so running short is linked with mood swings, a short temper, feeling on edge and poor sleep, and stress makes the loss worse. Pyrroles are recognised in functional and integrative medicine rather than in mainstream practice.
Blood sugar. Your brain is the hungriest organ you have and it relies on a steady supply of fuel. When blood sugar crashes after a spike, your body releases cortisol and adrenaline, the same stress hormones behind irritability and a racing, anxious feeling, so the crash is felt as mood as much as hunger.
Inflammation and the gut. Your gut holds hundreds of millions of nerve cells and talks to your brain all day through the vagus nerve, your hormones and the microbes that live there. A gut that is inflamed releases signalling proteins called cytokines into the blood, and these can reach the brain and produce symptoms that look from the outside like low mood, anxiety or brain fog. The gut also decides how well you absorb the nutrients your brain relies on.
Sleep. Low serotonin, high copper, low magnesium and a disrupted cortisol rhythm can each get in the way of a good night, and poor sleep and low mood tend to feed each other. Magnesium contributes to normal psychological function.
Why "just try harder" falls short
Your brain has only so much capacity. When a lot of it goes on keeping the basics running (steady energy, a settled alarm system, enough raw material to make messengers), there is little left for patience, motivation and clear thinking.
So a man tries harder, it doesn't work, and he concludes the problem is him. It can be unkind to ask someone to try harder when what is in the way is biological, because willpower runs on the same chemistry as everything else.
A few things worth trying this week
These are general ideas for most adults.
Eat breakfast and include some protein. Eggs, or oats with yoghurt and nuts, release their energy slowly and keep your attention steadier through the morning than a pastry and a coffee, even when the calories match. Shellfish, red meat, pumpkin seeds and cheese are good sources of zinc.
Get outside in the morning and get up at the same time each day. Light and routine help your body clock settle.
Stop caffeine by early afternoon and keep screens out of the last half hour before bed.
Finding out what is going on underneath
Many men won't book a therapy session, but plenty will book a blood test.
BioTransform is our biology-led service at The Key Clinic, and our Low Mood and Calm & Resilience programmes are built around this approach. Our practitioners are trained by the Walsh Institute in Nutrient Therapy, and very few in the UK work this way. Your BioNutritionist, who is registered with CNHC and BANT, takes your history and symptoms and supports you through nutrient blood tests. We measure rather than guess. From your results they build a personal nutrition and lifestyle plan, and they stay with you through monthly follow-ups.
Every programme is bio-individual, because your biology is your own. What you take away lasts beyond the programme: your results, and an understanding of your own biochemistry, stay with you for life.
BioTransform works alongside your GP and any medical care you are getting, and never replaces it. Please don't change or stop any medication without speaking to your doctor first.
[LINK: programme page]
Frequently asked questions
Is this a replacement for talking therapy or my GP?
No. Talking and professional support matter, and BioTransform sits alongside them. If you are already getting support, carry on with it and tell your GP about anything new you are trying.
What do the blood tests look at?
They measure nutrient levels and other biological markers involved in how your brain and body work. Your BioNutritionist explains your results in plain language and builds your plan around them. Tests are paid for directly to the laboratory.
How long is a programme?
Three months. It includes your assessment, a testing support call, a results and plan appointment, and three monthly follow-ups.
Will it work for me?
We can't promise a result, because everyone's biology is different. What we can do is find out what is going on in yours and build a plan around it.
If you need support right now
If you're struggling or thinking about harming yourself, please contact your GP, call NHS 111, or call Samaritans on 116 123.
Start with what is going on underneath
Not everything can be talked away. If you or someone you love would like to find out what is happening underneath, we would be glad to hear from you.
Call our client care team on 020 7486 4462
Programmes from £480 a month, including your assessment.
Test your biology. Understand your brain. Thrive.
This is for informational purposes only and does not replace professional medical advice.
