Are you or a loved one suffering from mild depression? Holistic intervention treatments may provide the relief you’re searching for. Read on for answers.
Is someone you love struggling with life at the moment? Are you?
The truth is, many of us will suffer from mild depression at some point in our lives. And, as the incidence of mild depression continues to increase, more and more people are looking to holistic intervention to help provide a solution.
Mild Depression and Holistic Intervention
On average, throughout our lives, one in four of us will suffer from a mental health issue. This, of course, includes mild depression.
Traditionally, mild depression has been treated with a pill, or it has been left untreated altogether.
But, what if there was a treatment that could not only ease the symptoms of depression but could actually enhance the quality of our lives as well?
Holistic intervention treatment may be the answer we have all been looking for.
Mild depression is a disorder of the body, mind, and spirit. Doesn’t it make perfect sense then, to treat that disorder with a body, mind, and spirit program?
Interested to know more? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
It’s time to take a closer look at mild depression and holistic intervention.
Mild Depression – What is it?
Mild depression is an insidious disorder because it can take from us without us even realizing it. Because it can sneak up on us gradually, it can be difficult to notice that something is wrong until someone else points it out to us.
The symptoms of mild depression are complex and they vary widely between people. Unlike the occasional unhappy spell, mild depression symptoms hang around for weeks and months.
For most people, those symptoms come in psychological, physical and social forms.
Here are some of the symptoms of mild depression:
Psychological Symptoms
- Feeling tearful
- Continuous low mood
- Losing interest in things or lacking motivation for things you love
- Feeling irritable
- General intolerance of others
- Feeling anxious or worried
Physical Symptoms
- Decrease or increase in appetite
- Low energy levels
- Speaking and/or moving more slowly than normal
- Continuous unexplained aches and pains
- Changes in sleep habits – disturbed sleep, insomnia, sleeping excessively
Social Symptoms
- Avoiding people and friends
- Not wanting to socialize or engage with others
- Losing interest in hobbies you enjoy
Treating Mild Depression with Holistic Intervention
What is Holistic Intervention?
Holistic intervention treatment for mild depression recognizes the multidimensional aspects of every human being – our body, our mind, and our spirit.
In this way, holistic intervention is concerned with treating the whole person and not just part of the problem. It integrates a variety of different aspects, some of which include the following:
- Physical and Manual Therapy
- Exercise
- Nutrition
- Strength and Conditioning
- Yoga
- Mindfulness Practices
Let’s take a deeper dive into holistic intervention treatments that may be able to treat mild depression.
1. Nutrition
Our diet is a super important aspect when it comes to protecting our mental health. We really are what we eat, and the food we intake on a daily basis has a very important effect on our mood.
The typical American diet is overloaded with overly processed food. It is heavy in refined carbs and processed meat. Such a poor diet has strong links to higher rates of depression.
Nutrition can be one of the most important aspects of any holistic intervention in the battle against mild depression.
After all, good food equals good mood.
Here’s a quick guide to help ensure that we eat the right types of food:
- Reduce sugar intake to the recommended daily limits
- Reduce stimulants – caffeinated drinks
- Increase fruit and vegetable intake, ensuring a wide mix of all types of fruit and veg across the week
- Eat plenty of mood-boosting healthy fats rich in Omega 3 (oily fish provides the best source of Omega 3)
2. Physical Activity/Physical Intervention
Exercise
Regular exercise has been proven to be a very effective form of treatment for mild depression. In some cases, the positive effects of exercise can last longer than taking anti-depressant medication.
Exercise helps with mild depression for three key reasons:
- It releases happy-making endorphins, nature’s natural anti-depressants
- It reduces immune system chemicals that have been found to worsen depression
- It increases our body temperature, which may have a naturally calming effect
Physical activity can come in many forms. Think walking, running, biking, swimming, strength, and conditioning, among others.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture has been found to alleviate the symptoms of mild depression and in some cases, it can be just as effective as anti-depressant medication.
Massage
Massage is well-known for increasing serotonin and dopamine levels in the body and these neurohormones ward off depression.
It has also been found to reduce cortisol, the stress hormone by up to 53%.
It’s also one of the most relaxing, enjoyable experiences out there. A total win-win, right?
3. Mindfulness Practices
Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy
Throughout our lives, many of us try to avoid feeling negative emotions. Sometimes we struggle against them.
Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy is a form of cognitive therapy that teaches techniques to cope with negative emotions as they arise in life.
Researchers at Oxford University have found that Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy stopped as many people from sliding back into depression as any medication did.
Yoga
Yoga is the ultimate mind-body exercise and it has been found to reduce our stress response systems.
It reduces perceived stress and anxiety, thereby modulating our stress response. This, in turn, reduces the heart rate, lowers blood pressure and eases respiration.
A typical yoga routine moves through a series of poses that help to improve flexibility, balance, strength and focus.
These poses help to provide mental clarity, they rejuvenate the nervous system and promote emotional wellness.
Holistic Intervention Treating Mild Depression
So, there you have it.
Consider yourself well versed in some of the ways that holistic intervention is helping to treat mild depression.
Holistic intervention is important in all aspects of life.
We are all human beings. We are complex and multi-faceted and a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer good enough.
It’s time we started to treat the entire person, not the disorder. And fun, strategic holistic wellness programs can do just that.
