yoga and depression

[Guest guest]

After having depression for years , former TV producer Amy Weintraub

happened into a yoga class and found that the ancient discipline helped her

more than her antidepressant drugs did. Nine months later she

was off meds, relying on daily yoga practice to bring a sense of well-being.

Now, after teaching yoga since1992, Weintraub has penned " Yoga for

Depression " (Broadway Books, 2003). We talked with her recently

about it.

How does yoga help with depression?

When you're doing yoga, you're paying

close attention to your breathing, making it

deeper, which makes for better blood flow

to the brain. . . . The stretching activates

receptors that send messages of relaxation

to the brain. And a recent study done in

Pennsylvania showed that yoga lowers

levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

You say it can even help those with

bipolar disorder? I've known and taught a number of people

with bipolar disorder who have been able to

manage their symptoms with yoga. One

person who had terrible bouts of mania had

been hospitalized eight times and was told

she'd spend the rest of her life in and out of

mental institutions. Her daughter's teacher

said, " Let me show you some yoga

moves. " She hasn't been hospitalized since.

She uses the breathing techniques she learned in yoga to control her mania.

How many hours do you have to put in to feel better?

For me, doing yoga every day is essential. I do it for an hour at home,

first thing, before I start my day. . . .

And, depending on how you feel that day, whether you're anxious or

depressed, you can practice differently --

slowly if you're anxious, more vigorously if you're feeling low. I look at

it this way: If you're on Prozac . . .

you take it every day. Yoga is no different.

-- Suz Redfearn