Movement for Mental Health

Dr. Sheldon Bjorgaard, ND

What is Mental Health?

Mental health is defined as the combination of our psychological, emotional, and social well-being. It affects every aspect of our lives and is a vital component of personal wellness and overall functioning. Considering all of the medical advances made in the past few centuries, it is estimated that mental health is one of the leading causes of disability in the developed world.

What Factors affect Mental Health?

Because mental health encompasses so many aspects of our lives, many things can impact our mental health, including:

Life experiences
Traumatic stress or abuse
Genetic predispositions
Family history of mental health concerns
Brain chemistry
and Physiology

In addition, everyone has varying degrees of coping skills and abilities, social and family support networks, and individual resilience. All of these factors play a role in an individual’s mental state, which makes mental health a multi-factorial issue.

How is Mental Health Treated?

By focusing only on one aspect of mental health, such as brain chemistry, we miss the bigger picture and may be overlooking significant causal and contributing factors to an individual’s condition, leading to inadequate or incorrect treatment. It is important to consider each contributing aspect of mental heath and provide interventions that optimize each aspect.

By assessing the root causes and contributing factors to mental wellness a comprehensive treatment plan can be implemented to support an individuals recovery from a mental health condition. Often times, new habits and thought patterns must be created which encourage new neural connections within the brain. This can be supported with the help of a good counselor or psychologist using treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT); evidence based psychological treatment aimed at changing thinking patterns and problem solving.

Exercise as a Prescription!

Modern research into the science of mental health has provided exciting and promising findings. One of the most exciting is the use of exercise as a treatment for mild to moderate depression and anxiety. We have long known that exercise is important for overall health and wellness, however studies are now proving the benefits of exercise for specific medical conditions.

One study from researchers at Duke University divided patients with major depressive disorder into 3 groups, one to exercise therapy, one to drug therapy, and one to a combination of both exercise and drug therapy. After 10 months it was found that all groups had similar rates of remission, while the exercise group had a significantly lower relapse rate. Several other studies have also shown exercise to be of greater or equal benefit compared to medication in treating mild to moderate depression and anxiety.

[*Disclaimer: Do not attempt to discontinue any prescription medications without the supervision of a licensed health care professional, as dangerous side effects can occur.]

Fortunately, it doesn’t take hours of intense exercise each day or training to run a marathon to obtain mental health benefits. Research suggests that as little as one hour per week of moderate, enjoyable exercise divided into small daily “doses” is enough to prevent the onset of depression.

Furthermore, exercise is a prescription with few if any side effects, but many side benefits! These include improved cardiovascular function (heart health), decreased cholesterol, improved insulin sensitivity (lower blood sugar), and improved body composition (fat loss & muscle gain). As with any medical intervention check with a doctor before starting a new exercise regimen, they will also be able to give you advice on different types of exercise that may be most beneficial for your individual health state and goals. With exercise it is always best and safest to start slow and gradually build up over time as your body adjusts to new stimuli.

Sign up for Our Newsletter