TYLER TOLMAN BLOG
The Most Effective Ways to Overcome Depression Naturally
The Most Effective Ways to Overcome Depression Naturally
Depression is far too common these days and most of us know someone who is suffering from depression. You might even have some level of depression yourself.
Something that science is getting into that is very promising is showing the gut-brain connection. We know that when our gut is in balance, it’s causing certain chemical reactions in our brain.
Most people don’t know this, but we have neurons that exist in the digestive system. If our digestive system is out of balance, the gut bacteria produce very specific nutrients and hormones and these affect the brain in a very specific way.
Often when people get a little bit sick, they take antibiotics and doing that will destroy their entire gut flora and bacteria.
I believe there’s a big connection between the foods that we eat and our mood.
Oats have been implicated as an antidepressant type of food. They have fibres that keep the digestive system moving. Then there are things like walnuts that contain the highest source of plant-based Omega-3’s that support brain function and enhance cognitive function.
But really I want to look at depression from a holistic perspective.
You see, when we look at the longest-lived cultures all around the planet, we discover that these people are very happy for most of their lives, even in old age! This probably has a major impact on why they lived to be older than 100.
When scientists studied the longest-lived cultures on the planet, there are different areas of their lifestyle that they look at. Things like the quality of the air they breathe, the quality of water they drink, the amount of sunshine they get (we all know vitamin D is an antidepressant).
These people are out in the sun and they’re walking every day. The simple act of just walking for 45-60 minutes every day balances out the brain. It’s the movement of walking that actually activates the digestive system every morning so that we can eliminate properly and the gut isn’t getting backed up with excess toxins.
For thousands of years, vegetables were used to strengthen the body, and fruits were used to enliven, to invigorate, and to add joy.
The word ‘fruit’ literally means ‘joy’. And if you think about this on a simplistic level, most people who are depressed don’t feel like eating a mango, or strawberries, or apples and bananas and papayas.
So what if we could fake it till we make it?
What if, when we are feeling depressed, we forced ourselves to eat more fruit, to go for a walk, get out into the sun, breathe clean air and maybe even do some breathing exercises. There’s a lot of science that proves that very specific breathing patterns can take us out of depression and anxiety.
These are the types of things I like to teach as a holistic approach to eliminating depression for good, and I don’t believe there’s any one simple answer. I believe there are a plethora of things we need to bring about in our lifestyle, even looking at things we’re passionate about, what our relationships are like with other people and with ourselves, and it literally is a holistic approach.
For that reason, I have a program called H•E•A•L where I really go deep in how to anchor in and start to take action on the seven areas of life that all of the longest-lived cultures have in common.
If you want to get out of depression, get out of anxiety and free yourself from all these mental and emotional conditions, it’s not a one-size fits all approach. It’s not a simple answer; it’s a holistic approach and it’s going to take some time and some education.
So check out my H•E•A•L program and you can start to integrate these practices into your lifestyle to pull you out of depression.
Thanks for reading!
