Why Meditation is Difficult When You Are Depressed, and What to Try Instead

Why is meditation so hard to focus on when you are feeling numbed out or falling into a depressive spiral? For many, the “positive vibes only” wellness culture seems to suggest meditation as the cure-all for our mental health. However, there is research and evidence suggesting that deep, focused meditation is unrealistic when experiencing clinically significant depression or in the early stages of recovering from an acute traumatic experience. 

For individuals that are suffering from depression, there is backing for a sequential entry to meditation from the ancient Eastern wisdom of yoga as well as the field of Western neuroscience and psychology. From the Vedic perspective, our entire world is comprised of three gunas, or states of being. The three states are tamasic (lethargic and inactive), rajasic (passionate and energetic), and sattvic (calm and peaceful). According to yogic theory, there is a natural sequence to these states of being. One must first come out of a depressed and tired tamasic state into an active albeit uncontrolled rajasic state before finally reaching the sattvic state. 

Similarly, Stephen Porges’ polyvagal theory expands on what we know about the nervous system. In practical terms, he suggests that there are three main functional states of the nervous system -- the dysregulated “freeze” response (tamasic type of inactivity), the dysregulated “fight or flight response” (rajasic type of overstimulation), and the “social engagement” response (sattvic type of peaceful and creative functioning). Whether due to depression or coping with extreme stress, many of us have a nervous system response stuck on an “off” freeze response. Individuals living with trauma and/or chronic stress are often switching back and forth between the “on” fight/flight response and the “off” freeze response. In both cases, play, spontaneity and flow seem very out of reach. According to Porges, the best way to reach a stable social engagement functioning of the nervous system is by first moving from a “freeze” response into a “fight or flight” response stage, where all of your emotions will bubble up to the surface. This may initially cause some anxiety and overwhelm, which is where anxiety management skills and guidance from mental health professionals can be vital. If you are able to withstand and stay present with the emotions and thoughts that arise and find ways to create safety and security in your body and mind, you can release the energy built up and finally come to a safety zone of your social engagement response. 

If this sounds like your experience, here are some ideas of things to try as a first step to break out of feeling numb and lethargic and bring your nervous system activation up:

• Moving your body, especially outdoors.
  Take a walk in the forest or by the ocean. Try surfing. Go for a swim. Get your hands dirty in the garden. Research has shown that earthing or grounding practices like walking barefoot on grass have tremendous effects on physical and mental wellbeing. 

• Dancing (or just shaking it out)
  Showing up for a dance class or simply turning on some fun music at home and moving your body. If dancing is not your thing, you can alternatively simply shake your body for a few minutes, focusing on how the sensation feels in different parts of your body. Authentic movement really helps move out of a numbed out state in the body. Shaking our bodies out mimics what animals in the wild do to release traumatic stress. 

• Body scanning
  Taking some time to notice the sensations throughout your body from head to toe, without any need to react or fix them, increases your ability over time to understand your own body’s cues and listen to them. You can set a timer for 3-5 minutes and start from your head and slowly scan down and up without skipping any major body parts. Similar to movement, body scanning orients you to what is truly happening in your own body. This practice has been shown effective in research studies to relieve PTSD in veterans.
  

• Orienting
  Sometimes, focusing on your breath immediately simply does not feel safe or accessible when your mind is foggy or if it is racing with negative thought loops. Orienting is the practice of taking the time to look around the room that you are in and noticing smells, colors, and sounds around you in a slow and gradual manner. Orienting increases neuroception, or your ability to find safety around you so that you can logically signal to your nervous system to become more regulated and calm.

• Breathing
  Yogic pranayama exercises can be very helpful to stimulate the vagus nerve and move out of a freeze state nervous system response. If the different techniques feel out of reach -- simply try inhaling and then exhaling for double the inhalation time (i.e. inhale for 4 counts, exhale for 8 counts).

• Sound
  Beyond just listening to music, it can be helpful to actually allow yourself to make intuitive, guttural sounds from your body (whether it is singing, humming, screaming, wailing, or just allowing yourself to sob with your entire body’s energy). 

Once you have reached the stage of activation and flooding of your nervous system, you can create space for your body and mind to more fully process these uncomfortable emotions through a variety of methods to bring your activation state to a safe place. Just remember to choose the experience that works best for you. Sometimes, the best practice of all is to accept whatever your experience is and feel it in a way that feels safe and accessible.

Services Offered At Repose Therapy

At Repose Therapy, our goal is to provide the best HOLISTIC PSYCHOTHERAPY services among other evidence-based therapy services to you. We enjoy working with college students, mothers, parents, couples, and individuals who are seeking better mental wellness in their life. If you’re struggling or trying to find a way to move forward, then our DIVERSE TEAM OF THERAPISTS would be thrilled to work with you. If grief counseling isn’t the service you’re seeking, no worries. We offer other services at our ONLINE THERAPY OFFICE IN NEW YORK, CONNECTICUT, AND NEW JERSEY. Other services include EMDR THERAPY, ANXIETY TREATMENT, PTSD TREATMENT, AND TRAUMA THERAPY, THERAPY FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS, MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH, MARRIAGE COUNSELING AND COUPLES THERAPY, THERAPY FOR TEENS, LGBTQIA+ THERAPY, ART THERAPY, DANCE MOVEMENT THERAPY. 

Additionally, we offer many GROUPS at our practice including an adult DBT skills group MANAGING EMOTIONS WITH DBT and Art Therapy, MINDFULNESS-BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY, EMBRACING YOUR BODY, and a Ramadan group. If you’re interested in any of our other services, please reach out, we cannot wait to work with you as you improve your well-being and begin your journey towards healing.