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Facing Depression

Evidence on Neuroscience and the Effects of Buddhist Practices

By Samantha KristinePublished 6 years ago 17 min read
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Without altering one’s perceptions of god, or their idea of a higher power, I propose the idea of applying the Buddhist practices of yoga, meditation, and fasting into one’s weekly routine. The results of these acts vary some; however, hold their ground in the positive effects they have within the mind and body. I, too, support this thesis, given scientific and philosophical evidence that these acts can not only change the body but develop the mind enough to fight depression and “grow our ability to feel happiness.” (page 23, Cooney)

Discussion

Respectfully speaking, each human has the same neurological makeup as the woman or man next to us. Where we differ is in the experiences imprinted into our minds. These prints, like skid marks on a road, show where most have started, lost control, and then stopped. Furthermore, our minds, like a road, have small grooves and crevasses that hold all of the debris in our lives that made us lose control. Some refer to this loss of control as a mid-life crisis, early adulthood depression, or just a negative attitude towards life. In some cases, those scapegoat ideas may be to blame; however, I disagree. With evidence proving that depression, and its ties to anxiety, is a growing stature in the United States, more certainly in our young adults (ages 18-29), I struggle to believe that our nationwide fight against depression can simply be overlooked as another mid-life crisis. In solution to the depression that keeps many awake at night, or some asleep for days, I propose the incorporation of ancient Buddhist practices.

Beginning with one's understanding of depression, is then the first step in solving it. Some, naive to the concept of depression as a whole, struggle to understand what our minds are facing. Additionally, neuroscientists and psychologists seem to struggle in fully understanding it as well. However, what we have discovered is the brain activity when we experience happiness or sadness, and anxiety verses cheerfulness. Our technological advancements have given the ability to see how our brains work when depressed or when excited. Because of this, our understanding of what depression is can be loosely defined as a chemical and physical change that results in the lack of mindfulness needed to remain in control of our emotions. Through yoga, the act of meditation, and fasting, the evidence supports the idea of possible change.

With depression, rooted from stress and anxiety, on the rise in the US, moving forward with the acts of controlling or reversing it should be a more valued or publicly expressed matter. Karen Pilkington, a researcher and author with the Journal of Affective Disorders, would most likely agree with its importance to the public eye. As research in Pilkington’s journal expresses, “Davidson and colleagues carried out a study… of lifetime psychiatric diagnoses, a total of 74 percent of the British patients and 60.6 percent of the American patients had a diagnosis.” Furthering, Davidson and his teams research, it is noted in Pilkington’s journal that 52 percent of the UK and 33.3 percent of the US in relevance to major depression were patients that were diagnosed. Additionally, anxiety disorders ranked at about 50 percent of patients tested in the UK and 33.3 percent of them tested in the US were also found with positive diagnoses.

Acknowledging the number of patients that fall victim to depression leads our understanding to now oversee the causes. Simply put, poor diet, inadequate life or time management, a poor mindset, and lack of mindfulness are some of the common causes for the disease. However, brain trauma, genes, living condition, and improper upbringings can also all influence the likeliness to become depressed or repeat the cycle of depression.

What some common publishers state, such as WebMD, is that these easy to fix problems can not only increase one’s risk of developing depression but it has the potential to worsen any previously diagnosed illnesses. Authors on WebMD’s site even states that, “some illnesses can trigger depression. For example, abnormal functioning of brain messengers (neurotransmitters) such as serotonin can alter your pain threshold,” this increases your ability to feel pain; pain that may have previously been overlooked, but now is noticeable.

Furthermore, below is a diagram, featured in 2009 in a journal from Harvard Health, "What Causes Depression?" It shows the brain as a whole but breaks the sections down into pieces that directly suffer from depression and other illnesses similar to it; such as anxiety and stress. Harvard Health furthers their explanation of some parts as they get into details on the effects to the Amygdala and the Hippocampus.

(Figure 1: Areas of the Brain that Are Directly Affected by Depression)

The amygdala is a mass of grey matter in both cerebral hemispheres which contribute to our sense of emotions. Being a part of the limbic system, the amygdala plays a role in how we feel fear or nervousness. It reaches in between our stored memories and the emotions that we have with that experience. Similar to if you were bit by a dog as a child and you experienced fear, you may not grow to particularly like dogs. That association of fear with dogs is based out of our amygdala. When clinically depressed the activity in our amygdala is moving at a high rate, and even after depression, one’’s amygdala may continue to act at its increased level.

Likewise, Harvard Health went over the Hippocampus, and their publications stated that, “it is part of the limbic system [similar to the amygdala] and has a central role in processing long-term memory and recollection. Interplay between the hippocampus and the amygdala might account for the adage ‘once bitten, twice shy.’” This part of the brain also shrinks in size as an individual experiences depression or a reoccurring cycle of depression.

As some research suggests, individuals with high stress levels tend to face depression more often than ones with a healthier and less stressful life. Taking a closer look at individuals that lay within the age group of 18 to 29 years of age, we see a higher level of college students. Being one, I can testify to experiencing high levels of stress throughout a school year. As covered in Ranjita Misra and Michelle McKean’s article, they state that, “Students, in general, experienced higher stress due to pressure and self-imposed stress…” and concluding that living with more deadlines, worrying about money, missing home, and maintaining school and sports or school and work, can all contribute to higher levels of stress. Cortisol, being a stress hormone and one related to depression, also makes the direct connection between a stressful student and one prone to depression.

However, the results of the brains physical changes and chemical releases when experiencing depression have multiple effects. From over producing cytokines to under producing cortisol, the brain undergoes a variety of changes. Confirmed by Dr. Mercola, “depression, bipolar disorder, and postpartum depression are associated with elevated levels of cytokines in combination with decreased cortisol sensitivity.” In his article, Mercola goes forward with the evidence of the brains activity while experiencing depression. Accordingly, so, our hippocampus is subject to shrink if exposed to reoccurring depression. As covered by Harvard Health, the hippocampus is involved with the forming of emotions and their relation to memories. Furthering that account, Mercola expressed that the result of a shrunken hippocampus can too, result in a misjudgment of one’s sense of self, and one's “general loss of emotional and behavioral function.”

Moving on to ways of curing one’s depression, home remedies and self-diagnostic cures are some of the preferred treatments. In addition to medications, drugs and alcohol and some self-implemented cures are not used within proper guidelines or with any beneficial evidence to support them. Now not to be confused with monitored medication usage, seeing a psychologist or attending therapy sessions which are theories that hold up in their quart. The proposal of incorporating Buddhist practices into one’s routine, however, sits shoulder deep in evidence supporting its claims. Through yoga, meditation, and fasting, the brain then undergoes additional changes, sometimes proven to redo the damage put there by depression.

Yoga, an ancient and ongoing practice, shows up in the Indian culture, the Hindu and Buddhist religions, and even in common times today in scientific studies, college campuses, and as a fun “mommy and me” activity. Yoga, or the act to “yoke up with,” has spread its roots into modern and Eastern cultures. With multiple branches and classes within Yoga as a practice, the available options, in terms of how one would want to partake in it, are endless.

Reflecting back onto Pilkington’s views, her explanation of yoga is that it is a “complex system of spiritual, moral and physical practices aimed at attaining ‘self-awareness… [and] is based out of three main focus’s asanas (postures), pranayama (breathing exercises) and dhyana (meditation).” Yoga as a self-discipline or training technique based out of Buddhism is also backed up by the works of Cohen and Blum (2002). They work with specific training, as mentioned by Alan B. Wallace and Shauna L. Shapiro, stating that it is a “central role of attention and cognitive control in guiding thought, behavior, and decision making.” This work is known as attentional training. As yoga focuses on psychological and physical strength in its practice, one’s body undergoes multiple changes. From increase in physical strength, brain activity and growth, balance, awareness of one’s self, and mindfulness, the mind and body are put on an enlightenment passage when practicing yoga.

Furthermore, psychologist Csikszentmihalyi (1990) theorizes flow and with that validates the idea of “sustained attention.” Also covered by Wallace and Shapiro, the definition of flow is to be fully engaged or consumed by an activity of its whole. That the concept of flow

“…demonstrates that happiness comes from deep attention and engagement in activity (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). One of the most intriguing aspects of Buddhist attentional training has to do with the development of the simultaneous qualities of relaxation, attentional stability, and vividness. In the course of such meditative practice, one experiences a growing sense of physical and mental ease, yet at the same time, the coherence and vividness of attention increase (Wallace, 2006a, pp. 13–22, 155–162). This physical and mental ease is akin to the “relaxation response” and has been posited by many Western psychologists as the mechanism by which meditation affects mental and physical health (Benson, 1984).” –Wallace and Shapiro (2006)

In the act of fully consuming one’s self in a part of an activity is similar to how most musicians and artists become a part of their pieces. Without eliminating thought or multitasking while painting, would nearly makes it impossible to enjoy the act of art. As a personal victim to the idea of “losing one’s self in art,” experiencing flow is like leaving behind reality and returning with a sense of mindfulness. To translate that into terms of yoga and meditation, Wallace and Shapiro state that, “developing attentional balance is [through] mindfulness of breathing.” When the mind has reached a level of relaxation to a point that there is recognition of each in- and out-breath and the mind notices the abdomen moving up and down, one can then experience mindfulness; through flow or breathing.

Yoga’s effects on a depressed brain, as supported from Western psychology, shows a positive correlation between itself and a new sense of mindfulness. There’s also correlation of positive psychological and physical health results; as previously mentioned from Wallace and Shapiro’s earlier research. Yet again, akin to research done by Davidson and his team (2003), they, “found that novice meditation practice was associated with significantly greater activity in the left prefrontal cortex,” this happens to be part of the brain linked to positive emotion. Similarly, meditations effect on the brain shows that “well-being arises from a mind that is balanced… attentionally, cognitively, and affectively,” (Wallace and Shapiro). With this combination of balance, a relation is formed between Buddhism and Western psychology, additionally showing support of Buddha’s theory.

As yoga and meditation both affect the brain, Mercola furthers his research with evidence showing a difference in the brains of a yogi and a non-yogi. Comparing a brain that experiences mindfulness to a brain that hasn’t or doesn’t experience it frequently is similar to comparing an athlete to a couch-potato. An athlete, someone more likely to be physically fit and less likely to be prone to depression, shows tremendously different brain activity then a person that sits isolated in a house all day. Mercola explains that, “like exercise, mindfulness meditation has also been shown to increase cortisol thickness in the hippocampus;” a redevelopment in an area of the brain that suffers in sustaining size while experiencing depression. Mercola also reaches out to Forbes, who states that,

"The practice appears to have an amazing variety of neurological benefits – from changes in grey matter volume to reduced activity in the 'me' centers of the brain to enhanced connectivity between brain regions...Skeptics, of course, may ask what good are a few brain changes if the psychological effects aren't simultaneously being illustrated? Luckily, there's good evidence for those as well, with studies reporting that meditation helps relieve our subjective levels of anxiety and depression, and improve attention, concentration, and overall psychological well-being."- Forbes (2015)

Furthermore, journalists Kumar Ram Gupta and Shailendra and Narendra Singh have researched various studies on yoga and meditations effects on one’s happiness and mental balance. What they found were copious amounts of studies documenting the relation of the two. One of the studies found was of 50 medical students that reportedly “showed an improvement in better sense of wellbeing, feeling of relaxation, concentration, self-confidence, efficiency, good interpersonal relationship, increased attentiveness, lowered irritability levels, and an optimistic outlook in life after 3 months (for an hour thrice a week),” as experimented by Malathi and Damodaran in 1999. On the other hand, similar to yoga and meditation, other self-disciplines rooted in the Buddhist religion have been scientifically studied as well.

Most popularly known as an act of starvation and done frequently by Gandhi, fasting is, however, another excellent self-discipline. It has been utilized since ancient times in various religions, for multiple reasons and in multiple ways. There are numerous types of fasting and each one entails a different challenge. Fasting, in simplest terms, is the elimination of food. Hence the word breakfast; after a night of sleeping and fasting, one may break the fast with a morning meal.

From physiologists with The Journal of Physiological Sciences, Hirofumi Tanaka and his team cover what fasting can do, stating that, “Danjiki [one type of fast] is an ascetic traditional ritual in the Japanese Buddhism training that involves fasting, meditation, and strenuous physical training.” In some fasting rituals, physical training and meditation is also part of the experience. Mental and physical challenges are to combine mind, body, and spirit into one so that complete self-awareness and mindfulness is reached. Some of the additional benefits from the Danjiki fast and ritual also include detoxification, weight loss, and some psychological changes like the feeling of happiness.

Brain examinations while undergoing a fast shows a multitude of mass brain activity and growth. Fasting not only changes the physical body in terms of weight loss and muscular tone, but it also affects the reproductive cells in the brain. These same changes in the brain during a fast are similar to what happens when a body experiences regular exercise. A variety of positive changes occur in the brain such as,

“improved cognitive function, increased neurotrophic factors, stress resistors, and reduces inflammation…[Fasting] increases the production of proteins in the brain, which in turn promotes the growth of neurons, the connection between neurons, and the strength of synapses. [Fasting] stimulates the production of new nerve cells from stem cells in the hippocampus…Fasting stimulates the production of ketones [which in turn] increase the number of mitochondria in neurons. Fasting increases the number of mitochondria in nerve cells” - Arjun Walia

With increasing one's amount of mitochondria in the neurons, eventually one’s ability to learn and recall memories would also improve.

Akin to exercise, healthy diets, and a positive mindset, depression is less likely to begin or reoccur. With the incorporation of these Buddhist practices brain activity and psychological and physical health would all begin to improve as well, further reversing the deterioration of the brain which begun as a part of the depression. Recalling the understanding of depression, as previously covered, now looking into how happiness exists in the brain is just as relevant. When one experiences happiness, in terms of a mind set and not a reaction to a reward, one’s brain excretes endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin. These are some of the feel-good chemicals in the brains that come with accomplishment, cheerfulness, sexual arousal or joy. As noted, depression, stress or anxiety have bad effects on the biology of the brain, however research done by Dr. Marianna Pochelli states, “that happiness has the opposite effect and protective effect on these same biological pathways” (Mr. Steptoe), that are damaged by depression. Because of this some scientists and psychologists believe that a damaged brain can be rewired to feel happiness.

(Figure 2: This is what happens to your brain when you experience happiness.)

Shown above is a comparison of a brain in isolation to a brain after triggering endorphins. This figure, from Pochelli’s article, shows how physical experiences channel different sections in the brain. When excited or joyful, our brain releases endorphins. Because of this, the endorphins help fight depression through the rebuilding of deteriorated areas. As noted in William Cooney’s book, “the brain is a malleable organ and continues to change: this is known as ‘neuroplasticity’… we can be positive about the fact that can grow our ability to feel happiness,” (page 23, Cooney). With the proposal of neuroplasticity, one’s chances to regenerate a happy mind are made possible. In one understanding, the ability to grow new brain matter is then possible. Furthermore, the ability to channel specifically damaged brain matter comes through practices that isolate a section of the brain. Yoga, meditation, and fasting all isolate and reproduce the sections of the brain that are specifically damaged during depression. In a way it is secluded neuroplasticity; a practice or group of self-disciplines that are specific for victims of depression.

Through scientific and philosophical evidence these practices work. According to Alison Woolery, in her study, “subjects who participated in the yoga course demonstrated significant decreases in self-reported symptoms of depression and trait anxiety,” while furthering the evidence that yoga, or to extend that to any self-discipline, refocusing a mind can in fact better it. A second study covered by Woolery showed that asanas or a repeated sequence of asanas had specific relevance to alleviating depression.

Moreover, I too support the claims that these ancient Buddhist practices can in fact affect the neuroscience and biology of a brain. From targeting damaged areas and rebuilding them to quieting the world, reaching a sense of flow and ultimately resulting in mindfulness. With my loose definition of depression being that it is a chemical and physical change that results in the lack of mindfulness, I also state that a relevant cure for the problem would be regaining that’s mindfulness. Some search for that through advice, therapy, or in alcohol and drugs, whereas I stand for a healthier solution. My solution consists of renewing our brain matter and connecting with a part of ourselves that went missing or was never previously discovered.

Considering that each brain has similar neurological makeup as the woman or man next to us, one’s cure for depression is also similar. As the mind holds different roads linking emotions to memories and associations of a fear of rejection to a link of depression, our minds also hold the cure. Life experiences imprint our brains and stay in our amygdala and hippocampus, but with damage to them, like a car swerving off a road; it is hard to regain control. A depressed brain, like a skid mark, shows where one started, lost control, and then stopped. But with the rejuvenation of a damaged brain through Buddhist practices and self-disciplines, one’s chance to regain control is possible.

Work Cited

• Cooney, Willaim, Professor. "History of Ideas." Class Lecture. Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers. Oct. 2016. Lecture.

• Cooney, William. The Wild Longing of the Human Heart: The Search for Happiness and Something More., 2016. Print.

• "Depression Physical Effects: Weight Gain, Fatigue, Pain, Insomnia." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2016.

• Gupta, Ram Kumar, Shailendra Singh, and Narendra Singh. "Does yoga influence happiness and mental balance: a comparison between yoga practitioners and non-yoga practitioners?" Online Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (OJMR) 2.3 (2016): 1-5.

• Misra, Ranjita, and Michelle McKean. "College Students' Academic Stress and its Relation to their Anxiety, Time Management, and Leisure Satisfaction." American Journal of Health Studies 16.1 (2000): 41-51. ProQuest. Web. 21 Nov. 2016.

• Mercola, Dr. "Depression Affects Brain Structure." Mercola.com. N.p., 30 Jan. 2015. Web. 02 Dec. 2016.

• Pilkington, Karen, et al. "Yoga for depression: the research evidence." Journal of affective disorders 89.1 (2005): 13-24.

• Pochelli, Marianna, Dr. "This Is What Happens To Your Brain When You Experience Happiness - Reset.me." Reset.me. N.p., 10 Nov. 2015. Web. 02 Dec. 2016.

• Publications, Harvard Health. "What Causes Depression? - Harvard Health." Harvard Health. N.p., June 2009. Web. 02 Dec. 2016.

• Schulte, Brigid. "Harvard Neuroscientist: Meditation Not Only Reduces Stress, Here’s How It Changes Your Brain." The Washington Post. WP Company, 26 May 2015. Web. 02 Dec. 2016.

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About the Creator

Samantha Kristine

I am an artist, a feminist and a blogger!

Check me out on IG @sam_dallett | @samanthakristine_

and follow my art here https://samanthakristine.wixsite.com/samanthakristine

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