Talk therapy and prescription medication are often the initial treatment for depression.  However, alternative or complementary treatments are gaining more attention as options for relief from depression symptoms as well as calming stress. Meditation and other healing practices have been successful in helping people who are struggling with depressive disorders, anxiety and stress. 

What Is Depression?

Depression is not just feeling sad. We have all experienced rough times and have felt sad, anxious, confused, angry or hurt. After the death of a loved one, we grieve for a period of time, but even grief eases as time passes. Depression is when we are unable to get past the unhappiness, heaviness and loss of interest in activities and people we normally enjoy. Often, we have no clear reason why we feel this unyielding anguish. To feel better, we may numb ourselves with alcohol, drugs or even food, which only makes depression worse. 

Clinically, the causes of depression are usually attributed to a chemical imbalance, genetic predisposition, stress, and existing health issues. From a spiritual perspective, it’s believed much more is happening on a deeper, energetic level that is manifesting into an imbalance, stress and illness.

Addressing Depression from an Energy Perspective

Usually, emotions don’t overburden the mind or body. However, when left unchecked, excess emotional activity can create energy imbalances that may lead to not just illness and tension in the body but also to chaotic situations and toxic relationships.  Further, before we experience the physical symptoms of depression, it first affects our energy body. Therefore, we have to focus our awareness and attention on our energy and vibration. 

How Do We Raise Our Vibration When Depressed

Everything in the universe is vibrating at a certain frequency. Unrelenting depression can create a downward emotional spiral that lowers our vibration. We may also have feelings of self-loathing and feel disconnected from ourselves as well as the outside world. Yet, we can actually choose to tap into a higher frequency such as love and joy. Looking inward is a solid place to start the journey from negative to positive. Once we have acknowledged how we feel, we should honor ourselves for being brave in exploring ourselves. Also, try asking the Universe for guidance in making the shift. Likewise, healing practices such as mindful meditation, yoga, energy work and more can help us to ground ourselves and change the way we think about experiencing negative emotions.

Types of Alternative Therapies

Not one form of alternative therapy is guaranteed to cure depression but they can help change our mindset and rebalance us. A positive, healthy mindset is the strongest weapon to overcome negative thoughts, triggers and self-defeating responses. Here are a few spiritual practices that may be helpful in battling depression:

• Guided meditation
• Breathwork
• Energy healing
• Smudging
• Sound healing
• Reiki sessions
• Crystal healing
• Massage
• Exercise
• Yoga
• Guided imagery
• Acupuncture 

Take Care of Your Physical & Mental Health

Depression can be an exhausting, frustrating, and isolating experience but mindfulness and meditation can help restore your brain’s ability to regulate emotions in a healthy way. Be patient with yourself in trying various practices and techniques to see what resonates with you. What you are looking for is support for your inner healing to correct the imbalance, and that usually doesn’t happen instantly, especially if you’ve been dealing with depression for some time.

If you feel too helpless or hopeless to make a choice about healing practices, outside help from a therapist or counselor may be necessary. Remember, the real YOU is not a depressed person. The goal of this journey is to maintain your health, rebalance your life, gain control over your mental health and understand who you are. The freedom you gain is well worth the effort needed to make these changes.