The Science Behind Self-Care for Depression

Taking mental health management into your own hands means taking self-care seriously, especially for depression. However, when exploring self-care options, you might feel as though the most common advice for depression is too generic, vague or basic. The most typical advice involves taking care of your physical health and making time for relaxation.

If you’ve seen this advice online and thought, “Does any of this even work?” – this article is for you. We’ve gathered the research behind the most typical self-care advice so you can learn exactly how it can help you in your mental health journey.

What is Depression?

Depression is often characterized by a persistent low mood and lack of interest or enjoyment in activities you previously enjoyed. Depression can greatly affect a person’s mood and wellbeing, so getting the right support and taking steps to actively support your wellbeing is essential.

Depression can be transient or long-term in nature, but with professional help and self-care, it can be managed and overcome. We’re going to go through the science behind self-care, and give you the key takeaways for common self-care advice, so you can add them into your routine with confidence.

A woman practicing self care for depression

The Science Behind Self-Care for Depression

When taking self-care into your own hands, you might feel frustrated by the repetitive and seemingly generic advice available online. But, interestingly, many of these self-care strategies are actually backed by research – which you can utilize to make the most of your self-care routine. Lets go over the common advice for managing depression naturally with self care:

Exercise for Depression

It’s well-known that exercising is great for our physical and mental wellbeing, but if you are in a bout of depression, it can be hard to find the motivation or energy to give it a try. The effects of exercise on depression have been extensively studied, with research showing that exercise can relieve symptoms and improve outcomes in depression.

You might be wondering what types of exercise are the most effective for depression. One study reviewing the effect of exercises for depression found that overall, exercise does have a positive effect on depression symptoms. As for the specific type of exercise, the study found that aerobic exercise, like running, walking, dance and pilates had slightly better results than strength training.

Key Takeaway: Any exercise is beneficial for depression, but aerobic exercise could be a good place to start.

Mindfulness for Depression

Another common self-care approach for depression is to practice mindfulness and meditation. Practicing mindfulness is a skill that takes time and concentration, and is not a quick-fix for improving your mood. Despite mediation and mindfulness becoming more popular recently, some people still feel apprehensive about trying it, as it can be difficult to start and practice consistently.

Research into mindfulness for depression shows that it is an effective way to alleviate depressive symptoms and improve mood. Many studies support the use of mindfulness and meditation as a self-care strategy, with one study indicating improvements after only 4 weeks; another study indicated that practicing mindfulness consistently can have lasting improvements to depression symptoms in the long term. As for the type of mindfulness you can try for depression, studies indicate breathing exercises, and meditation can be effective in improving symptoms.

Key Takeaway: Mindfulness can be an effective form of self-care for depression, and meditation and breathing exercises could be a good starting point.

Taking Care of Your Gut for Depression

Did you know that your gut health and mental health are closely related? This is due to the influence of the gut-brain axis, a bidirectional channel of communication between your gut and brain. Your gut is also responsible for producing up to 90% of your body’s serotonin, a key neurotransmitter known as one of our brains ‘happy hormones’.

Supporting gut health with probiotics for depression

As the gut and brain are so closely linked, this connection has become a central feature in the discussion of mental health. With the use of specific probiotics, the gut-brain connection can be supported and lead to improvements in both mental and gut health. One probiotic that has been shown to stimulate the gut-brain axis is the PS128 strain, which is backed by over 18 research studies. PS128 has been shown to improve symptoms of Depression in clinically depressed patients and improve depressive symptoms in insomniacs.

PS128 has been shown to also improve ADHD, ASD and Parkinson’s symptoms, with no side effects. Since it is a probiotic, PS128 does not require a prescription or diagnosis to use, making it an effective and accessible option for your self-care routine. You can learn more about PS128 here.

Key Takeaway: Supporting the gut-brain connection with probiotics can provide an extra boost to your self-care routine. You can consider starting with PS128, as it is one probiotic that has been clinically proven to improve symptoms of depression.

A self-care routine you enjoy and find comfort in can be incredibly helpful to your mental health. Adding in science backed strategies can provide you with more confidence in your self-care, and allow you to reap real benefits for your wellbeing. Use our key takeaways as a starting point for forming your self-care routine, and see the results for yourself!