Depression

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#21

Dear Pandera,
Your Comment “Personally I view depression as an inflated ego, attaching too much importance to yourself, your physical body, your desires (even those to be happy) and your fears.” Couldn’t be further from the truth as I see it.
You have obviously never been through depression before. My depression got so deep that I was feeling physical pain. You have no idea (and I hope you never do) how black and bleak it can be in depression. And you are saying that I have an Ego problem?
How can I be putting to much importance on myself, my physical body, or desires when all I could think about is ending the pain?
So when tried to ride my motor bike into a tree @ 180km, it was an ego problem not depression? I see what you mean now, it must be, because what do I have to be depressed about? I got 2 houses, nice car, beautiful bikes, prefect job, perfect wife, earn over 200k a year so no money worries, and can retire before I’m 40. Hmmm, must be my ego. I know it sounds like I’m about material possesions, but I really don’t care about them, sure they are nice to have, but all I need to be content is my beautiful wife, but even she couldn’t stop depression. (BTW, I missed the tree, bike totalled, and all I got was a few nasty scratchs cuts and grazes, just tumbled down the hill a few hundred meters some how missing the other trees too, no breaks, not even a nail)
Depression is a dissease mate.
I’ll give it to you. Yoga is great, but it’s not a majic cure for everything.
I hope you can realise this, you may be able actually help.

Regards
Tony

#22

[QUOTE=anula;25643]How can "depression" be described and overcome in accordance with yogic teachings? I am interested in people's personal experience of yoga (not only asana) in relation to improved moods/more balanced approach/positive thinking.[/QUOTE]The best way is to awaken Kundalini.

#23

Ok, let me reveal more about myself as it is required. As a teenager at age 13 I was diagnosed as suffering from depression. And so began my road of 15 years of pills, fear, anger, desperation and attempted suicide (2 of them). For too long in my life I subscribed to a very wrong notion that I come from a family where there is a strong history of depression and suicide due to depression and as a young man I even believed that that would be also my end before age 25. At age 19 in the army it was nearly so when I tried to commit suicide and was discovered in time by one of my mates and a few years later at varsity again. I hung myself from the beams of our bungalow. I have been to the depths of hell and back and there again in my life and then I have experienced the sheer anxiety and deep fear that depression can cause as well. I have been on a myriad of anti-depressants (my body has and still has the neck to create resistance against medication very quickly), sleeping pills and anti-anxiety pills for nearly 15 years of my life, until someone one day told me: “you are so f*cking full of yourself that you don’t even see the pain of the rest of the world.”

I am forever in debt to the person who told me this and from personal experience I know today with the luxury of hindsight that much of my depression was due to how I was blinded by my ego, it was about me and my way of drawing attention to me.

To those who read this and feel that I am too harsh, I can tell you that I know how egotistical depression can be, I know how self-centered it can make you no matter what the reasons you are given why you suffer from depression. This is the bottom line of depression, whether you like it or not. Honesty is unfortunately not a nice space to be in when you are at the depths of your black pool of fear and depression.

Those of you who feel one need to be more compassionate towards depressed people. We feed our egos of your compassion. What we need is love, but with a good meassure of strictness, call it tough love if you want to.

#24

Sorry Pandara, but I disagree.

It’s a disease and it needs to be treated according to the individual and cause. Just putting depression down to ego and self-centredness, and telling a depressed person to snap out of it, may have worked for you, but would not work for many and is really not good enough. That sort of attitude may in fact make things worse.

[B]To anyone reading this who is feeling depressed or anxious, and who has felt this way for some time without being able to clearly define why, the best thing you can possibly do is get a doctor to refer you to a counsellor or psychiatrist and get treatment. If you don’t know how to go about this see the sites beyondblue.org.au or http://www.nmha.org/go/depression[/B]

#25

Yoga therapy is the adaptation of yoga practices for people with health challenges. Yoga therapists prescribe specific regimens of postures, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques to suit individual needs. Medical research shows that Yoga therapy is among the most effective complementary therapies for several common aliments. The challenges may be an illness, a temporary condition like pregnancy or childbirth, or a chronic condition associated with old age or infirmity.

-Yoga Biomedical Trust (England)
Robin Monro, Ph.D.

#26

I would like to describe one of my friends cast study in brief,

One of my friends was suffering from depression and regularly consulting Doctor since three years. And as well all know Doctors are treating depression by altering the biochemistry of the brain and using medicines to increase the levels of chemicals in brain system such as serotonin.

But the problem is he is not having positive view about antidepressant medication and looking for the other ways to treat depression such as psychological therapies or exercise and yoga practice.

And then he met one Yoga specialist by reference and understood which type of depression he is suffering from and somehow started the treatment of depression. The good thing was, after couple of Yoga sessions he realized that if he can face and see his inner being using yoga, then he will become more sensitive, and therefore he can control himself and can manage between body, mind and medication.

And now it has been since three years he is practicing in Yoga and Meditation regularly and no longer dependant on medication to treat depression.

#27

Depression is caused by loss of mood and is clinically very difficult to recognize. It has serious implications such as extreme suicidal tendencies or complete social isolation.
Yoga therapy combines yogic counselling with yogic practice to effectively address growing mental health issues. Yoga promotes cleansing and restoring physical and emotional wellbeing.

Yoga techniques include asanas (body poses), pranayama (breathing techniques), and meditation to remove toxins and activate the nervous system for relieving depression. Understand this in-depth and know how to practice yoga specifically for depression at Yoga Therapy for Depression Management