Treatment of Depression in Ayurveda

Everyone has a different tendency to depression. For some, the effect is on personal relationships more, while for others, it brings lower productivity. Chronic depression is often the cause of life-endangering health conditions. If not paid attention to, depression triggers suicidal thoughts, calling for emergency medical care.

If you are in a constant state of depression, your ongoing health condition may worsen. For instance:

• arthritis
• asthma
• cardiovascular disease
• cancer
• diabetes
• obesity

It is important to learn that sad and upsetting events are a part of life and may happen to anyone. But if you stretch your upsetting thoughts without paying attention to your behavior pattern, your condition may become severe.

Depression is an ongoing problem, not a passing one. It consists of episodes during which the symptoms last for at least 2 weeks. Depression can last for several weeks, months, or years.

Signs and Symptoms

Depression is a mood disorder that leads you to the stage of feeling at odds. If not dealt with, depression can cause you a bunch of symptoms, affecting your mental and physical health.

Although symptoms may come and go, they are generalized among men, women, and children.

Symptoms of depression in men:

• Loss of sexual interest, stamina, erectile dysfunction
• Frequent changes in the mood, such as anger, aggressiveness, irritability, anxiousness, restlessness
• Emotional imbalance, such as feeling empty and hopeless
• Fatigue, bereavement of energy
• Headache
• Digestive system issues
• Loss of cognitive abilities, such as poor concentration, delayed responses during conversations
• Changes in sleep, such as insomnia or hypersomnia, not sleeping through the night
• Thoughts of suicides and engagement in high-risk activities
• Substance abuse

Symptoms of depression in Women:

• Irritability
• Loss of interest in social gatherings, withdrawal from family engagements
• Thoughts of suicide
• Emotional imbalance such as feeling lonely even in public
• Loss of cognitive abilities, such as talking more fastly
• Changes in the sleep patterns, such as waking up in the middle of the night or not sleeping well
• Loss of appetite
• Changes in weight
• Muscle and body pain
• Increased cramps
• Changes in menstruation
• Fatigue

Symptoms of depression in Children:

• Crying for no apparent reason
• A feeling of incompetence, such as the fear of failure
• Avoiding school
• Low academic performance
• Refusing to go to school
• Avoiding friends or siblings
• Suicidal thoughts
• Poor sleep and waking up the next morning inactively
• Poor appetite
• Weight loss or gain
• Digestive system issues
• Malnutrition

Causes

There are several possible causes of depression, ranging from biological to stressful life events.

• Family History: You are likely to get symptoms of depression if you have a family history of depression or any mental condition.
• Brain Structure: Your brain activity has a lot to do with depression. If the frontal lobe of your brain is less active, your odds of having depression are more.
• Childhood Trauma: Some life events affect the way your body responds to fear or triggers later on in life, such as poor academic records bring fear of failure in children when they reach adolescence.
• Medical Conditions: Certain medical conditions also put you at the risk of other illnesses like insomnia, chronic pain, to name a few.
• Substance Abuse: Having a history of drug or alcohol misuse can multiply your risk. More than 20% of people who are indulged in substance abuse experience depression.

Some other risk factors may include:

low self-esteem or self-criticism Events like the loss of a loved one Financial problems Relationship issues

Your feelings of depression are triggered by many conditions, such as your thought process. Often, in many cases, a healthcare provider may not determine the cause of depression.

Types of depression

Depression is classified based on the severity of signs. Some people have mild to moderate signs, often relapses from time to time, while others may have ongoing depressive episodes.

There are two main types

Major Depressive Disorder: A severe form of depression characterized by sadness, worthlessness, and upsetting feelings. In order to diagnose a major depressive disorder, you must witness signs over a period of 2-weeks.

Persistent Depressive Disorder: Though it is a milder form, it can be chronic in nature. In order to diagnose PDD, symptoms must persist for quite more than 2 years.

People with PDD lose interest in normal day-to-day life, lack productivity, have low self-esteem, and remain silent.

If you stick to your treatment option, depression can be managed well.

Ayurvedic treatment for depression

The ayurvedic treatment for depression consists of concoctions of herbal medicines along with procedures and therapies like Panchakarma, including Abhyanga, Shirodhara, Thalam, Nasyam, etc. The therapies are meant to heal the body and mind and reduce the stress hormones, including other toxins in the body. Your body feels relaxed as therapy works which elevate your emotional, mental, spiritual, and physical well-being. Additional procedures like Pranayama, Yoga, and Meditation help to bring self-awareness and keep your mind in the present state.

Alongside, the treatment focuses on bringing alterations in the lifestyle and taking a diet that is healthy for your mind and body to propagate overall improvement of your health.