Holistic Mental Health Treatment

Research indicates that yoga and similar meditative treatments have the most effective for alleviating symptoms of depression and anxiety. Because of its emphasis on deep and steady breathing, it activates the parasympathetic system and reduces stress. Besides stress reduction and mood improvement, benefits include better eating habits and anxiety relief.

At URP Behavioral Health, our mental health specialists use art therapy as a way to improve your self-awareness and self-expression. As a therapeutic method, it encourages you to open up and share your experiences, views, and feelings. It’s also a highly effective assessment tool that allows practitioners to access information that would otherwise be difficult to obtain using conventional methods.

In equine therapy, you’ll work with a horse specialist as you learn to take care of specially-trained horses. Keep in mind that you’ll spend much more time caring for a horse than learning to ride one. It’s recommended as a holistic therapy because the process of looking after a horse, like leading, grooming, or feeding, requires selflessness and concentration. As you learn more about the horse and look after it, you build empathy, confidence, and self-awareness, all of which are important for alleviating emotional or behavioral issues.

Research shows that listening to music has a variety of benefits for your physiological, emotional, and cognitive health. That’s because it can encourage you to feel emotions and helps with regulating them as well.

It engages areas of the brain, such as the brain’s reward center, the nucleus accumbens. Similarly, it alters psychophysiological factors like heart rate, respiration, blood pressure, relaxation, and pain perception. You’ll engage in activities like listening to music, discussing its elements, and playing instruments.

At the URP Behavioral Health facility, we have on-site massage therapy, which is used as a complementary technique alongside evidence-based methods like talk therapy. It’s highly effective at relieving stress, as research indicates that it reduces blood pressure and heart rate. One study involving the use of a massage chair shows that it’s highly effective in relieving anxiety. This is proven by the reduction of salivary cortisol concentrations after a 10-minute massage.

There’s scientific evidence that proves the efficacy of acupuncture in increasing central nervous system hormones like serotonin and beta-endorphins. Stimulating the increase of these hormones can reduce stress and elevate mood. It can also alleviate pain in the knees, neck, or back, which can otherwise worsen psychological symptoms like anxiety.

Healthy nutrition is an important aspect of recovery because of the connection between your diet and mental health. There’s a focus on fresh vegetables, fruits, protein, and whole grains, as well as the reduction of processed foods that are high in sugar or sodium.

A healthy concentration of amino acids, antioxidants, omega-3 fatty, and fiber can regulate your mood and enhance concentration. In contrast, poor nutrition and vitamin or mineral deficiencies can make you more susceptible to fatigue and poor decision-making, thereby exacerbating the symptoms of your underlying mental health issues.

Numerous studies indicate a link between aerobic exercises, like walking, swimming, or jogging, can alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety. During exercise, blood circulation to the brain increases. This affects the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and your body’s response to stress.

Additionally, exercise acts as a distraction and offers the potential for social interaction, both of which can be a reason for the link between physical activity and wellness.

Practicing meditation is an effective way to direct your attention and manage your impulses. This is known as mindfulness and it involves redirecting your attention so you focus on current feelings and physical sensations. There’s evidence that it can help alleviate pain, depressive thoughts, and anxiety, and it’s why URP Behavioral Health offers dedicated meditation and yoga classes.