Natural Methods to Support Anxiety, Depression and Overall Mental Health

Our naturopathic providers can help you to investigate the root contributors to your mental health, such as imbalanced neurotransmitters, digestive health, nutrient deficiencies, or hormonal imbalances. Your provider can also prescribe natural medicines individualized to your specific mental health needs, giving you the mental wellness you deserve.

Feeling a lack of motivation? Too anxious to be around other people? Losing focus at work and having a hard time concentrating on getting things done? Not feeling like yourself at all? We can help optimize your mental health and overall brain function. Our holistic approach to health care takes your mental health into great account. When imbalanced it is extremely easy to feel anxiety, depression, mood swings, irritability, and more. We have focused lab tests that can explain the activity of your neurotransmitters and a variety of natural medicines to help stabilize mood and not allow your thoughts to get the best of you.

Here are three ways to flip the switch from stress to deep relaxation:

1. Meditation

Meditation is a very powerful tool for evoking the relaxation response. When you enter this state of being, your body biologically shifts. Your stress hormones lower, your heart rhythm becomes steadier, and your blood pressure lowers. These are biological sign posts that tell the body you are safe, and that it is ok to divert important resources to healing cells and restoring balance. When people are in deep states of relaxation, they experience less pain and inflammation, and their sleep improves. Numerous studies have been done on the physical and mental health benefits of meditation. By helping your body switch on the relaxation response, you are giving it the resources it needs for deep healing.

2. Breathing

Relaxing breath is another way to flip on the relaxation response in the body. It is easy to do anywhere, it’s completely free, and requires no special equipment. You can do this technique whenever you feel stressed out, whether you are in a meeting or sitting in a doctor’s office with a sick child.

The first part of a breathing exercise is to learn to relax your mouth while breathing. To do this, place the tip of your tongue lightly behind your upper front teeth and make sure to relax your jaw. Keep a soft, round feeling in your mouth while doing the exercise. One example of a breathing exercise involves envisioning a square and counting as you trace the 4 sides of the square:

Directions
1. Inhale through your nose, counting to 4.
2. Hold your breath, counting to 2.
3. Exhale through your mouth, counting to 4.
4. Hold your breath, counting to 2
Repeat the cycle until you feel your body relaxing.

3. Healthy Sleep Habits

Healthy sleep habits are another important way to boost wellness. Your body does most of its cell regeneration at night while you sleep, which is why switching on your parasympathetic system before going to bed gives your body what it needs to heal.

Here are some of our favorite tips for improving your sleep:

Keep a Schedule - Going to bed and waking up at the same time balances your sleep cycle. Going to sleep before midnight has been shown to be more restful.|

Reduce Blue Light - TV Screens, Mobile phones, and tablets emit a frequency of light that keeps the brain from producing the sleep hormone, melatonin. Power down devices at least 30 minutes before bed or use a blue light filter to protect your eyes.

Make It Dark: Keeping your bedroom as dark as possible will help balance your circadian rhythm and increase melatonin production. Wearing a sleep mask can help as well.

Reduce Caffeine: Some people have a gene variant that affects how they metabolize caffeine. If you have this variant, it can take up to 24 hours to metabolize even one cup of coffee. If you are having trouble sleeping, try switching to decaf or have a 2-week caffeine cleanse to see if your sleep improves.

Eat a Snack: A light snack high in protein and healthy fat can help keep your blood sugar levels stable, and help you stay in a deep sleep.

Other tips include stretching before bed, progressive muscle relaxation, taking melatonin or calming herbs in supplement form, and finding the right temperature for maximum comfort.

Balancing our Nervous System

Your body’s autopilot is called the autonomic nervous system, and it plays a bigger role in health than you might think. It has two modes called parasympathetic and sympathetic. Sympathetic handles stress while parasympathetic supports deep healing. When the sympathetic nervous system in running on overdrive and out of balance, it can lead to serious health issues including panic attacks, anxiety, irritability and insomnia.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Your parasympathetic nervous system helps you restore, heal, and digest. This is the ultimate relaxation state. When your muscles un-tense, your breathing gets slow and steady, and your mind is calm. It is essential for the body to spend long periods of time in this state.

Sympathetic Nervous System

The sympathetic nervous system is how your body handles stress and is often referred to as your “flight, fight, or freeze” response. Originally, this system was designed to give your body a jolt of resources to out run and out smart predators. Modern lives don’t have the same kinds of dangers, but your body still responds to stress the same way, whether it is a stressful work email or family emergency. Sometimes your body can get stuck in stress mode. It’s like a light switch that gets left on indefinitely. The stressful situation may be over, but your body hasn’t switched off. You may not even realize that your body hasn’t switched over to the healing mode. You might think you are relaxing and unwinding after a long day, but your body remains tense, your breathing is shallow, and your mind and emotions are activated with the events of the day. These are all physical signs that you are not in a state of relaxation.

Stress Management

While these autopilot systems run in the background, it doesn’t mean you are powerless to change them. There are many home remedies that you can use to shift out of stress and into relaxation and healing.

First, it’s important to check in with your body to see which system is activated. It is easy to do if you close your eyes and practice a few moments of mindfulness. How are you feeling? Are you agitated, angry, or upset? Are your thoughts racing or dwelling on something that happened? How are your muscles? Do you have tension anywhere? Are you clenching your jaw or hunching your shoulders? And finally, how is your breathing? Have you been taking short, shallow breaths?

All of these tips, especially when used in combination, will help reduce your stress, improve mood and mental clarity, increase deep sleep, and support your energy levels. We know the devastating effects of stress on wellness, and that is why we encourage you to use these techniques to help your body turn off stress and enter a deep state of relaxation.

7 Natural Ways to Boost Your Mood and Mind

While it can be appealing to pop a pill for enhanced focus, we believe in supporting the body in natural ways that help keep the body in balance. Natural nootropics are a safe and effective way to enhance mood, improve concentration, and increase your focus, while also promoting overall health. They work by increasing circulation to the brain, which provides more resources for information processing and cell regeneration. They also support the production of neurotransmitters, reduce brain inflammation and protect cells from damage. Here are 7 herbal nootropics that can boost your brain power, while also supporting mood, and protecting your brain from damage.

1. Rhodiola Rosea (Arctic Root)

Arctic Root has been scientifically proven to help the body deal with and recover from chronic stress, easing symptoms like exhaustion, anxiety, and mental fog. Research has also shown that it increases mental alertness and reduces mental fatigue. Studies have even shown that it helps improve symptoms of depression. If you are looking for support for both your energy levels and mental performance, studies have shown you may feel the effects within 3 days of taking the supplement regularly. These health benefits are from two compounds in the herb called rosavin and salidroside.

2. Lion's Mane

You might be familiar with Lion’s Mane as a culinary mushroom, but research is proving that it can significantly boost mental performance, and help with depression and anxiety. Two of its main compounds, hericenones and erinacines, help the brain grow new cells that can help improve memory, cognition, and protect the brain from the damaging plaques that build up in conditions like Alzheimer's. It also has been shown to reduce inflammation. If you are looking for a safe brain tonic that can help you function at peak performance, Lion’s Mane is an all around winner.

3. Bacopa Monnieri

Bacopa Monnieri is a traditional Ayurvedic herb used to support brain function, memory, depression, and anxiety. The antioxidant properties of the herb help protect the brain while also boosting memory and recall. It is being studied further for its ability to help neurodegenerative diseases and cognitive decline, but the benefits can be seen in healthy adults as well. If you need a boost to your memory, research is showing this supplement can help.

4. Tyrosine

This amino acid helps the body create two important neurotransmitters for mood, energy, and cognition - norepinephrine and dopamine. When these neurotransmitters are low, you might experience depression, apathy, fatigue, and lack of concentration. This natural substance is effective at boosting low cognitive performance due to high stress.

5. Acetyl-l-carnitine

This amino acid supports the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter responsible for memory, learning, and cognition. Research has shown that supplementing with acetyl-l-carnitine can improve focus, alertness, clarity, and memory, and is especially helpful for Alzheimer’s and dementia. As an added benefit, the amino acid has also been shown to help boost mood. One study proved that it helped with symptoms of depression faster than prescription drugs.

6. L-theanine

L-theanine is a phytochemical found in green, white, and black teas. Research has shown that it has significant effect on your ability to concentrate with a calm focus, similar to meditation. Ultimately it increases levels of serotonin, dopamine, and GABA, all neurotransmitters that improve mood and cognitive function. Research is even suggesting that is has a protective mechanism that prevents cell death in the brain.

7. Citicoline (or CDP Choline)

A naturally occurring chemical in the brain that can be boosted through supplementation. Citicoline has many positive impacts on the brain. It boosts phosphatidylcholine, an essential nutrient for brain function, increases circulation to the brain, and helps regenerate the brains form and structure after injury. It is used to treat Alzheimer's and dementia, as well as head injuries because of its regenerative properties. Studies have also shown that citicoline can improve motor speed and attention in adolescents and healthy adults, making it a good treatment for ADHD.

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