According to Psychology Today, meditation is a ‘mental exercise that trains attention and awareness.’ It involves focusing on breathing and acknowledging thoughts, feelings and emotions without judging them.
Meditation has been shown to help with anxiety, stress and other mental challenges. Yes. Including depression.
The great thing about meditation is that anyone can do it. No special equipment is required and the learning curve is minimal. The actual practice, however, takes time and effort.
In this post, we will examine the following:
- Meditation and Mental Health: The Connection
- Types of Meditation for Depression Relief
- Benefits of Meditation
- Building a Sustainable Meditation Practice
- Combining Meditation with other Therapies for Depression
Meditation and Mental Health: The Connection
At the core of meditation, you allow thoughts to come into your conscious mind, acknowledge them, let them go and then go back to the focus of your meditation practice. Ultimately, the breath. It is important to note that you should acknowledge the thoughts and not judge or analyze them. In the here and now, thoughts are merely distractions.
As with meditation, depression also has unwanted thoughts which are the genesis of depression. Using the skills you gain from a meditation practice, these thoughts can be acknowledged and set free as well. This may help with depression and co-occurring disorders such as anxiety and stress. The main focus is letting go. Freeing your mind of unwanted thoughts. Living in the now.
Types of Meditation for Depression Relief
There are many types of meditation. Four are examined below. For the sake of being ‘mindful’ of your time, the highlights of the meditation are laid out in an outline form for ease of reading.
- Mindfulness – Meditation
- It’s all about the breath.
- Breathe deeply, in through the nose and out through the mouth.
- Breathe in until your belly rises.
- Focus on slowing your breathing (in/out)
- Acknowledge any thoughts, feelings or emotions that come to you and let them go returning your focus to your breath
- Ultimately, the focus on your breath should be tuned so that the thoughts entering your mind are less and less and your ability to let go improves through your meditation practice. As a result, your ability to focus on the present should increase through meditation.
- Guided Meditation – Body Scan
- Great beginner meditation
- Someone will guide you through the meditation
- They will start with either your head or your feet and proceed either upwards or downward from the starting position
- You will focus your attention on the body part that you are covering with the guide.
- If your mind drifts, acknowledge the thought and go back to the meditation
- This meditation can also be done on your own, but for the beginner, guided meditation may be a better option.
- Walking Meditation
- Walk slow. I mean super slow. Like Six Million Dollar Man ‘bionic slow.’ (Yep, I was around in the 70’s).
- In house or outside
- Be sensitive of your body as you move
- Feel your leg move and your foot make contact with the ground. First the heel and then your sole and finally your toes.
- Feel your arms/hands as they move
- Focus on all body parts as you move. From your head down to your feet.
- If a thought enters your mind, acknowledge it and let it go. Bring your attention back to your body part and your movements.
- Loving Kindness (METTA) Meditation
- A kind of mindfulness meditation however instead of focussing on clearing your mind, METTA focuses on repeating phrases (mantras) that are directed to oneself or others. Mindfulness and METTA are the same in that they both focus on the ‘now.’
- Unique meditation when compared to those previously described
- Repeating phrases silently. Example, ‘May I be Happy. May I be loved.’
- Directed at yourself or others
- Well wishes towards all. Positive thoughts.
Benefits of Meditation
Meditation will help train your brain/aka you to keep your focus on the present. The thoughts that come up during your meditation practice will in all likelihood be similar to the thoughts that come during your depression struggles. If you’re able to focus on the here and now and not the past or future during your meditation practice this should help with your depression symptoms.
The goal is to live in the now. You can’t change the past and the future hasn’t happened. You can only come to terms with it. Focusing on the here and now is where the magic happens. This is the connection between meditation and how it can help with depression. We’re not saying meditation is a cure all. We’re just saying that focusing on the present, can help lessen the severity of your depressive symptoms.
As noted, a meditation practice may help lessen the severity of depression symptoms. Will this happen overnight? Heck no. It takes practice. You will not find the results you’re looking for overnight. You must practice. It takes work. Hard work.
Start slow and be consistent. In order for meditation to have an impact on depression or any mental illness you must develop a habit. This means putting in the work.
Building a Sustainable Meditation Practice
You must make a meditation practice a habit in order to reap the most benefit. There is no set number of days that say ‘after x days’ the activity will become a habit. This is all dependent on the person and activity type. The 21 day figure people are used to hearing has been shown to be a myth.
Be consistent. Choose a time and place that you encounter every day of the week. Every time you encounter that time and place, meditate.
You’ll think of a million excuses not to meditate. So, you have to be committed. That will be your biggest challenge on your way to forming a meditation habit.
One excuse may be that you have a bad back and can’t sit or lay on the floor. The flipside, you can also meditate while seated or laying in bed. As the excuses come, think of why you are here and fight the excuses with everything you have.
The excuses will always be there and must be overcome. You’ve got this.
Just wear comfortable clothes, have a dedicated space and set a time and/or day that you will meditate. With consistent practice, the habit can be created.
Combining Meditation with Other Therapies for Depression
One can think of meditation as a complementary treatment modality along with medication and counseling for depression. When thoughts overtake you, you can use the assistance of what you have learned in your meditation practice to deal with your thoughts related to depression. It must be pointed out that this is not a quick fix. It is a process that will take time. The importance is to keep up with your meditation practice. Meditation may bring up thoughts that have been suppressed for quite some time. As you acknowledge them, take note and discuss them with your therapist. A similar event occurs while journaling; where thoughts, feelings and emotions that are brought to light and can be discussed with a therapist.
People will respond differently to different treatment methods. Some will respond to talk therapy. Others may have better outcomes with medications. For those not against medication, a more balanced and potentially effective treatment would be a combination of talk therapy, medications and meditation. We must note that the effectiveness of this will vary according to the person and severity of their depression.
As we’ve covered, meditation can be factored into the mix with other treatment methods and may help with depression symptoms. Remember, it takes time and patience.
**DO NOT MEDITATE WHILE DRIVING. REPEAT…DO NOT MEDITATE WHILE DRIVING**
**Do Not Stop taking your meds unless you are titrating your doses with the help and under the supervision of a physician.**
DISCLAIMER: The information provided above is for informational purposes ONLY and should NOT be taken as medical advice.