Meditation and Yoga for Depression

Yoga and Meditation to Manage Your Depression

Reduce your symptoms of depression with gentle yoga and essential oils.

Best 9 Tips to Manage Your Depression

Sometimes in life, we may feel a little sad, unmotivated, or have no energy, and for others, this can be more intense and last longer.

If you experience feelings of sadness, are unmotivated to do anything, feeling low in moods all the time for more than a few months, then seek professional advice. There is more than one type of depression and many causes of depression. Read more about depression with the Beyond Blues website or ring Lifeline on 131114.

We recommend these 9 tips below to help you manage symptoms of depression.

1. Practice Gratitude daily

   Being thankful for all the positives in life will help us open our heart space and reduce depression. Learn to look for the good in life, in yourself and others.

2. Practice Meditation and Yoga

   Yoga and Meditation help us be more aware and awake to what is happening to our body, mind, and life. Meditation and yoga help us to live in the moment and not in our past. You will learn not to let your emotions rule you when practicing yoga. Yoga and meditation will help you to be more aware of what feels good for you, so you can do more of what feels good and less of what does not feel good. Listen to Jodie’s gentle chakra meditation to help you improve depression, and gain more energy and confidence. The best yoga poses for depression are backbends like bridges, cobra, locust, and camel. Twists will also help release the upper body, and open the heart, and improve your moods. These backbends open the heart space, chest, and shoulders, which improves your posture.

3. Take care of your physical health

   Looking after your physical health is very important to prevent and reduce depression. Aim to walk most days for a minimum of 30 minutes or go for a bike ride, swim, do yoga, or pilates. Spending time in the garden is also great for our mind and body. If you don’t have the energy for a 30-minute walk then start with 10-15 minutes.

4. Improve your eating

   Improving your eating plays a big role in controlling depression and strengthening mental health. Aim to reduce sugary foods, alcohol, caffeine, fizzy drinks, and processed foods. Eat more vegetables, especially greens, fish, and grains. Drink more water to hydrate not only the physical body but also the mind and give us more energy to move.

5. Get quality sleep

   Getting enough sleep is important for the physical, mental, and emotional body. Try to go to bed at a regular time and have no screen time an hour before bed. To help you sleep use some lavender essential oil to help calm the mind, just place a few drops near the pillow (not near your eyes) or at the back of your neck when mixed with a carrier oil. Listening to a meditation before bed will help you calm the mind with Lavender essential oil on your pillow. Learn more about meditation here.

6. Practice self-care

   Do more things that you enjoy and that are good for your physical and mental body. Try a massage, spend more time in nature, read a book, or watch a movie. Yoga, again, is one of the best ways to practice self-care, as it teaches us about more self-love and self-acceptance.

7. Reduce Stress

   Minimize stress in your life. Sometimes we can’t avoid stress but we can work on reducing it and take action to remove it when the time arises. Move away from people or situations that are stressing you. Remember yoga and meditation will help you reduce stress!

8. Stay connected

   Find someone like a friend, family member, or counselor to talk to when not feeling good or having struggles of any kind.

9. Essential Oils

When you use pure essential oils like Lavender and Frankincense with carrier oils they help to promote calmness, peace, and self-love. Combining yoga and essential oils will help you not only manage your symptoms but also reduce depression. Read more on what are the best essential oil blends for mood-boosting.

Learn more about managing symptoms of depression in a Kevala Health live stream online yoga classes. Try our 14- days trial for live-stream yoga and Pilates classes.