Feeling down, overwhelmed with sadness and losing interest in going about daily any sorts of activities are common emotions we all are bound to feel sometimes. When it starts to interfere with productivity on a daily basis for a consistent period of time, it then becomes a matter of depression — and that is totally fine. Having natural ways to soothe your depression is undoubtedly useful in the long run, and tea is definitely a natural soothing remedy for depression.
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What is Depression?
Depression is a mood disorder. It’s when someone feels a constant feeling of sadness and disinterest for periods of time. It’s not a moderate emotion but a rather significant and drastic slump. Someone with depression can feel normal and happy at one point and then all of a sudden a huge wave of sadness crashes over them. These mood fluctuations can come and go at any time on a regular basis.
There’s no specific duration for depression. It’s not a one-size-fits-all. For some people it can last hours, for some it can be days, weeks, months or even years. It’s an ongoing situation rather than a one-time thing, and it never really goes away. It’s just a matter of how one deals with it when it comes.
What Triggers Depression?
Similarly, the triggering factor can differ for different people. Someone’s trigger might not be the same as another’s. Usually, depression comes from major life events or traume like losing a job or a loved one, being bullied or being outcasted. Minor events can also trigger depression, and those are case-to-case and based on individual circumstances.
How Can Tea Help with Depression?
Now the question is, how can tea help with depression? There are two ways tea can help: by the act of drinking tea and also with the ingredients in the tea.
The whole process of making tea can be extremely therapeutic, from boiling the water in the kettle to pouring the well-brewed tea into a cup. Enjoying the fruits of your labour by sipping on the piping hot, delicious tea is the cherry on top of the cake. All of these plays a part in relaxing your mind and body, and eventually you’ll feel less stressed and more willing to get out of bed — even if it’s just to brew your cup of tea.
The other way tea can help with depression is with the actual ingredients in the tea itself. Depending on the tea of your choosing, the ingredients will react with your body to calm you down, make you feel more relaxed or even put you to sleep easier. Most teas that are made to aid depression have relaxants in their list of ingredients which calms not only the body but also the mind.
Here’s a list of 7 best teas that can help with depression:
1. Peppermint Tea
Peppermint tea is without a doubt the top tea to drink if you need a cuppa to relax yourself and in need of help with depression. It’s the natural blend of water, spearmint and mint, making it full of menthol concentration. Menthol is great for relaxing the muscles naturally. When your muscles relax, so does your mind. Usually, peppermint tea is consumed in the evening or before bed when you’re supposed to be in a peaceful state of mind. This tea is also recommended for those with high levels of stress and in need for a natural de-stress tool.
2. Lemon Balm Tea
This tea does wonders for those with depression. Lemon balm tea is extremely popular for its calming effects as well as memory boosting properties. As it is known to be part of the mint family, it has content that relaxes the mind and body naturally. Lemon balm tea is also a cognitive enhancer, which helps you to clear your mind. This then boosts the consumer’s ability to think clearly and process things more quickly. With a clearer, calmer mind comes the ability to think and decide better, making one feel better about themselves and hence more motivated in life.
3. Lavender Tea
We all know that lavender is used in a lot of things because of its soothing properties, from essential oils to bathing and skincare products. Lavender in tea form is one of those that you can literally feel its effects on your mindset. It’s one of those teas that’s all-purpose, but it’s extremely powerful when it comes to dealing with stress and depression. It’s the perfect decompressor tea. The antioxidants in lavender is the key to its calming attributes, and the fact that it does not have caffeine in it makes it multiple times more effective.
4. Chamomile Tea
This tea needs no introduction. Chamomile tea is one of the most well known types of tea that has extreme calming effects, perfect for destressing as well as helping with depression. Chamomile tea not only tackles the mind muscles but also your body muscles and makes them more relaxed. This tea is often consumed in the evening or before bed as it’s known to have drowsy symptoms after drinking it. This can work in your benefit if you’re looking to have a more peaceful, much sounder sleep — killing two birds with one stone!
5. Valerian Tea
As the tea name suggests, this tea is made from valerian root, which is well known for its drowsy properties. Valerian tea does wonders to the mind and body to enhance relaxation. It relaxes your actual muscles which will automatically calm your thoughts and overall mind. Valerian tea can be used to treat insomnia on top of stress and depression. What’s more, valerian tea lowers cortisol and has anti inflammatory properties to boost.
6. Tulsi Tea
Known as the holy basil, tulsi tea is one of the best teas that can help depression. It’s been used for centuries to boost one’s overall wellbeing. But what’s significant about this tea is that it has the ability to balance the consumer’s mood and also keep them calm. Because of that. Tulsi tea has been known as an anxiety reliever. On top of that, this tea can boost your motivation due to its energising properties. It’s a mild tea, and you’re able to combine it with other types of tea without having unwanted reactions.
7. Ashwagandha Tea
Last but definitely not least, we have the ashwagandha tea. This tea has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for numerous reasons for quite some time, but mainly for anxiety and depression. Not many people know that this tea can be beneficial to soothing depression symptoms. The ashwagandha tea reduces cortisol levels, hence reducing stress and tension, and thus helping with some depression symptoms.
Other Natural Ways That Help Depression
There are quite a number of teas to aid depression, and they’re all pretty successful at it. Why not add more natural ways that can help depression to be more effective in combating it? They’re just as easy and convenient, and can be added into your daily routine effortlessly. Here are our suggestions for other natural ways that help depression.
1. Meditation
Meditation is one of the easiest natural ways that can help with depression. The aim of meditation is to actively calm your mind on your own will. It teaches you how to control your thoughts and how to empty your head of all the unwanted ones. With consistent meditation, you’re definitely going to get the hang of relaxing yourself, physically and mentally. Meditation is the best way of being in the driver’s seat of your own brain, and not letting the depression get a hold of the wheel.
2. Exercise
It’s become common knowledge that exercise does wonders for the brain. Getting yourself all pumped up and active releases endorphins and makes you feel extremely good naturally. This method works miracles for the mental health and there have been countless studies that have proven it. It’s killing two birds with one stone — not only are you improving your depression symptoms, but you’re also getting fit while doing it!
3. Eat Healthy
This may be easy for some and hard for others. Your body needs the proper vitamins and nutrients, and if you don’t feed yourself with food that has those, you won’t feel good physically and mentally. Adding some greens and fruits in your diet is a great first step. Cutting down junk food might be difficult, but it’s definitely worth it if you’re prioritising your mental health.
Conclusion
From the process of making tea and consuming it to the ingredients in the tea itself, tea might arguably be one of the essential methods to aiding depression. Not only do the teas recommended in this list help with stress, anxiety and other depression symptoms, most of them also have other benefits like improving health and diet. With a variety of flavours from the different types of tea, there’s bound to be one for anyone who’s looking to get into tea to help with depression.
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