Today people are blindly running behind work for power, money. What they lack is mental peace. No money can buy mental peace and happiness. Despite having all the amenities in their lives, they are not happy. Happiness doesn’t come from money.
Happiness comes from peace of mind. And this is the thing that is lacking in today’s world. And with ongoing pandemic and lockdown it has been very difficult to keep you sane and happy. Sadness and pain are a part of life and when you are unable to control yourself, this leads to depression.
Depression is an illness caused by certain factors such as genetic, circumstantial or psychological. It is the reaction of your mind for someone you lost, any rejection or any event that has triggered you deeply from within.
Depression leaves a negative impact on a person’s social, personal and professional life. When not cured, depression can be very dangerous and can lead to suicidal thoughts.
The experience of depression varies from person to person. In some persons, it can be due to certain circumstances but for some people, there isn’t any specific reason.
Treatment of depression usually involves medication and psychotherapy that are being used traditionally. But not every person responds to these treatments.
There are certain symptoms by which it can be identified that a person is depressed –
- Low mood and sadness.
- Suicidal thoughts
- Lack of motivation and loss of interest in life.
- Persistent exhaustiveness and hopelessness.
- Weight loss or gain.
Yoga is a tried and tested ancient technique that has been practiced since a long time in India. Yoga is a combination of various physical activities, meditation and breathing exercises.
Yoga is not only practiced for keeping the body fit but also helps in achieving mental peace and stability. Along with ongoing treatment and medications, when yoga is practiced regularly, positive effects can be seen in a person.
Yoga helps in lowering the stress hormone that is released when you are tense. It also helps in strengthening the nervous system by stimulating the lymphatic system which is meant for removing toxins from the body.
The best thing about practicing yoga is that it does not have any side effects and is certainly better than consuming a lot of medicines. The most effective technique in yoga is breathing.
Most of the time people are not even breathing deeply and properly. Most of the time it’s just shallow breathing which results in anxiety. That’s why it is said that when you are stressed and feeling tense, take deep breaths.
When you are breathing deeply, not only are your muscles getting relaxed but you are also meditating which results in calming your mind. Practicing yoga regularly and for a long time develops a connection between your body and mind and will help you have a better control over these.
Here are a 5 yoga poses for Anxiety and Depression that will help you in coming out of depression –
Shishuasana
Shishuasana, Bal asana or child’s pose is a very effective technique that is useful in providing stability and calmness to your mind. This is a deeply relaxing and resting pose.
Practising this yoga Sana regularly helps in reducing the symptoms of depression. This is a very simple asana and can be done by anybody.
Kneel down on the floor and bring your forehead down while stretching your arms in front of you. If you are having trouble sleeping, this asana is definitely for you.
Setu bandhasana
Also known as bridge pose, this asana helps in fighting depression and anxiety. This pose is said to open up your heart which helps in increasing the focus and clarity of the mind. Also helps to relieve the stress on back muscles.
This pose is ideal to make you feel lighter. For doing this, lie on the floor while keeping your arms aside. Now, while folding your knees, lift up your legs. Slowly leave your back off the floor and be still in this position for a few minutes.
Urdhva mukha svanasana
This yoga pose helps in curing depression and anxiety. Lie down on the floor with your face downwards. Now lift up your body through your waist with the help of your arms.
Keep your head facing upwards while doing this. This asana is meant for the flow of fresh blood in the body.
Halasana
It is one of the best poses for calming your nervous system and soothes your brain and eases stress and anxiety. For doing this, lie on the floor and lift up your legs.
Keep your arms straight in the side. Now, move your legs and take them over your head. Slowly, move your legs above your head while touching the ground behind your head.
Shavasana
Savasana or corpse pose is one of the best soothing and calming techniques for your body and mind. This asana helps in focusing your mental energy inside your body that helps in fighting off against depression and anxiety.
Depression and stress result in high blood pressure. This asana also helps in lowering blood pressure. This pose is very simple. Lie on the floor and keep your eyes closed. Now, let your whole body relax and breathe deeply.
Our nervous system needs continuous maintenance and repair. Homeostasis is meant for maintaining the balance and stability of the body.
The two branches of the nervous system that are responsible for maintaining homeostasis are sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.
The former is accelerated when the body comes through any menace whereas the latter provides a calming effect on body and brain and helps in easing them. Deeper breathing engages the parasympathetic nervous system.
Stress triggers the sympathetic nervous system and causes more stress which leads to chronic depression, high blood pressure and several other diseases.
Yoga practices warms up the body and prepares your body for different exercises thereby activating the sympathetic nervous system. Certain poses and meditation help bring back the body to a parasympathetic state.
Therefore, practicing yoga asanas balances your sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system which leads to a calm mind that is ready to take on new challenges.
Conclusion
Though life is challenging and it is very difficult to maintain the sameness of mind. But by practicing yoga and having a healthy lifestyle will help your body and mind to cope up with stress and tensions.
Apart from this you can try other breathing exercises such as kapalbhati and anulom-vilom. Yoga helps in speeding up the treatment and medications for depression by regulating the nervous system.
Having a broad perspective in life and staying positive will really give you strength to move forward in life.
