Dealing with Anxiety & Depression Naturally: A Guide for Lifestyle, Diet, and Novel Methods

If you’re dealing with anxiety symptoms or depressed feelings now more than ever before, you’re not alone. Women have been dealt a particularly tumultuous hand the last few years, and chances are you’re feeling the effects. Anxiety disorders and depression have become the two most common mental health issues for women. This makes it so crucial to learn what you can do to manage your symptoms, ideally with the support of a qualified holistic healthcare professional.

While conventional medicine typically relies on prescription medications to treat anxiety and depression, holistic medicine takes a whole-body approach to wellness—which does include medication for some people, in addition to talk therapy, natural supplements, stress management, and diet & lifestyle changes.

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Due to the hormonal changes in the body caused by both anxiety and depression, there are many symptoms which someone might experience as a result. They fall into 3 main categories:

Physical (changes in weight, high or low blood pressure)
Behavioral (irritability, frustration, insomnia)
Emotional (tension, negative thoughts, hopelessness)

We typically recognize symptoms of anxiety or depression like racing thoughts, feeling tense or restless, or a rapid heart rate, but many other symptoms fly under the radar. Symptoms of worsening anxiety disorders that you may not recognize are things like grinding your teeth, constant overthinking, low self-esteem, zoning out, or self-medicating during times of stress.

Can natural remedies cure anxiety or depression?

Natural treatment for anxiety and depression is extremely effective in some cases, even though it doesn’t always completely provide a ‘cure’. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to your mental health, but hundreds of peer reviewed studies show that living a healthy lifestyle, therapy, and medication (if necessary) work together to improve anxiety disorders and depressive thoughts (1).

When it comes to mental health—remember that there’s not a quick fix, and you can’t rush your healing. Think of your overall well-being as a marathon, not a sprint, and you’ll be more successful.

Stay consistent with these following tips, trust the process, and always reach out to your therapist or holistic doctor for more support.

Get more (and better) sleep

Perhaps the biggest piece of the puzzle to reduce anxiety and improve your mood is one you do every day (hopefully), which is sleeping. Getting enough sleep helps regulate hormones, stabilize your mood, and reduce stress.

Without enough restorative sleep, all the functions that you need for a stable mood will struggle. Not sleeping well is a common problem for my patients with chronic anxiety.

To improve your quality of sleep:

Wake up at (roughly) the same time every day—even on weekends
Getting plenty of natural daylight, especially in the morning
Move your body regularly (even taking a walk counts!)

It’s common for anxiety and depressive feelings to get worse at night, especially if you’re dealing with more stress than normal. If this is true for you, check out the article below.

Read: 6 Steps to Manage Nighttime Anxiety

Mood-boosting foods

Certain micronutrient deficiencies are related to issues with mood, depression and anxiety. If you have an anxiety disorder, you may be low in certain B vitamins, magnesium, or omega-3 fats (2).

Foods rich in nutrients to support your mood include dark leafy green vegetables, naturally-raised animal proteins, fish, and healthy fats like nuts & seeds, avocado, and even ghee.

Don’t underestimate the power of a healthy diet to drastically improve your overall well-being!

Try these: 11 Healthy Recipes for a Nutritious Work Lunch

Move your body

Movement triggers the production of feel-good hormones, including endorphins and serotonin. When released, these help to reduce feelings of stress, and combat excess cortisol buildup. Movement isn’t a cure for anxiety, but research suggests that anxiety worsens if we stay sedentary, and that getting more movement can help ease anxiety and depression symptoms (3).

There’s no perfect exercise to aim for here, so you can literally engage in any kind of movement you enjoy the most. Dancing, walking your dog, swimming? All equally mood-boosting.

Spend time outside

As little as 15 minutes in nature can help to improve your mood and reduce stress, new research has found. Relaxation techniques practiced outside make this even more effective to reduce both anxiety and stress levels (4).

For your mental health, take breaks outside, follow up your office lunch with a quick stroll outdoors, or just a few breathing exercises in the sunlight.

Watch: How to Manage Your Anxiety Naturally

Break negative thought patterns

Overthinking is a common symptom of anxiety, and can sometimes contribute to feelings of depression, as well as worsen anxiety. When feeling anxious, your thoughts may try to take over, so it can help to do something with your hands, where you have to focus your thoughts on a task.

Let your body take over and get out of your head, so to speak. A good example of this would be gardening, painting, or even cooking or baking.

Put your thoughts to paper

Journaling can be extremely helpful to process thoughts and feelings that can worsen anxiety if left unchecked. Writing down your thoughts and feelings can help you identify negative patterns of thoughts and reactions that may contribute to things like panic attacks and chronic stress.

Journaling for a short time at night or in the morning is a great idea to help you get to know yourself better, and a valuable tool for stress management.

Skip the sugary breakfast

For a lot of people, stress and anxiety trigger a major sweet tooth, but this is often counterproductive to reduce anxiety. Sugary foods, as well as ultra-processed carbohydrates (most junk foods) spike blood sugar levels at first, and then cause a crash a couple hours later. If your blood sugar levels swing from one extreme to the other, it’s likely your mood will too, and this pattern is often set with your first meal of the day.

In fact, low blood sugar may actually be a contributing factor to anxiety and panic attacks for some people (5).

If you are dealing with anxious feelings, try eating in a way that keeps your blood sugar consistent, which means eating every few hours, eating a balanced diet with plenty of protein and healthy fats, and definitely don’t skip a healthy breakfast.

Try breathwork exercises

Ever thought that simply breathing could help improve your mood and alleviate anxiety? While it might seem unlikely—research suggests it’s worth a try!

Feelings of stress and anxiety activate the part of your nervous system responsible for the ‘fight or flight’ response. As a result, your breathing becomes quicker and more shallow.

During times of stress, we tend to breathe using our upper body—the shoulders, chest, and neck. A simple place to begin to use breathing to ease anxiety is to first slow down your breathing, and then focus on ‘belly breathing’ into your diaphragm, instead of your chest and shoulders (6).

You can try this yourself with a technique called the 4-7-8 breath. Try practicing this technique for a few minutes, three times per day to start to teach your nervous system how to relax.

Inhale for 4 seconds through your nose
Hold the breath for 7 seconds
Exhale for 8 seconds, and repeat

Breath, as simple as it may seem, has the power to influence your nervous system, helping you to calm down.

Watch: How to Use Breathwork to Calm the Mind & Body

Avoid alcohol and caffeine

Both alcohol and caffeine can worsen anxiety, depression, and stress.

First, alcohol depletes several nutrients critical for a stable mood, including magnesium, B vitamins, and antioxidants. Not to mention, no one’s in the greatest headspace after a night of overindulging. Even if you don’t notice anxiety or a depressed mood after drinking, it’s best to limit alcohol.

Caffeine can trigger anxiety and increase cortisol levels (aka your stress hormone). Some people are also extra sensitive to the effects of caffeine, so even one strong cup of coffee can leave you feeling like a jittery mess.

If you’re struggling with anxiety or depression, it’s a good idea to limit alcohol (or avoid altogether), and reduce caffeine until you get on track. If you need an extra energy boost, try starting your day with a nutrient-dense smoothie, or Boost.

Heat things up

Spending time in the sauna doesn’t only feel great, but it might help improve your mood, too, as well as heart health and metabolic function. Research shows that 10 minutes of infrared sauna therapy a few times a week has antidepressant effects, and can alleviate anxiety (7).

While not everyone has a sauna available, your gym likely does, and adding an in-home sauna might be a valuable investment in your health—especially if you struggle with mood.

Supplement if necessary

Calm mind & body with Serenease. — Relax with 6 functional forms of magnesium to calm mind & body.

Dietary supplements can be a helpful natural remedy to deal with anxiety and depression, especially if your diet is low in certain nutrients.

For example, it’s estimated that most women don’t get enough magnesium, which is beneficial for relaxing both body and mind (8).

Adaptogens, such as ashwagandha, rhodiola, and holy basil are also commonly used to manage stress and anxiety symptoms. Other herbal remedies for anxiety or natural treatments include passionflower, maca, bacopa, and L-theanine.

If you’re curious about herbal medicine or how to use supplements to alleviate symptoms, it’s best to work with a qualified holistic provider to develop a personalized plan to manage anxiety and depression.

Anxiety relief—natural methods

Depression and anxiety disorders affect more women than ever before, and it’s important to not discredit the effectiveness of a healthy lifestyle upon your mood and feelings of overall well-being. Natural remedies for anxiety are largely inexpensive and accessible to almost everyone, whether it be improving your diet, spending more time outside, learning how to better manage stress, and finding an outlet for negative thoughts.

Holistic wellness professionals can help you develop a routine that works for you, with or without prescription medication. If you’d like to improve your mental health, try a few of the above methods this week.

Resources

https://openheart.bmj.com/content/5/1/e000668

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