The natural world is full of powerful antidepressants. Learn how getting a good night’s sleep, overcoming a vitamin D deficiency, and taking the best ashwagandha supplement can help boost your mood naturally.
For chronic depression, there is nothing wrong with seeing a mental health professional and getting the medication your need to feel better. In fact, we encourage that. However, if you are just seeking a general mood boost, there are plenty of ways to get what you are looking for naturally. Today we are going to discuss three ways to cheer up your disposition. A combination of improving your sleep habits, getting enough vitamin D, and taking the best ashwagandha supplement may help you chase away those occasional blues. Let’s take a closer look at these powerful, natural antidepressants.
#1. Better Sleep = Better Mental Health
Very often, when a person is depressed, they begin to sleep more. But that is not what we are talking about when we recommend better sleep as a mood booster. First, we’re going to look at a few ways that a lack of sleep can impact your mental state. Then we will consider how to get a better night’s sleep to increase your happiness.
How Does Sleep Impact Mood?
- Cognitive impairment – You can’t think as clearly if you don’t sleep well. Sure, you can reach for another cup of coffee to feel a little more awake after a rough night. But that is not the same as getting a good night’s sleep. Plus, caffeine isn’t always the best thing for a person’s mood. Keep in mind that the worse your sleep habits are, the more you will experience problems with memory, attention, and cognition in general.
- Eating habits – Poor sleep habits often relate to food cravings. The more tired you become, the more difficult it will be to fight those cravings, maintain a healthy weight, and maintain your physical health as a result.
- Mood swings – A lack of sleep goes hand in hand with irritability.
- Stress levels – Not sleeping enough can throw off your entire week. You get behind on work or household responsibilities, and that ramps up stress levels. The stress can make it even tougher to sleep and compounds the problem.
How Can You Get Better Sleep?
- Have a schedule – When you go to bed and wake up at the exact times every day, your body gets used to it. You will fall asleep faster, stay asleep better, and wake up feeling refreshed.
- Create a proper sleep environment – Comfort matters! From your choice of pillow and mattress to your bedding to the room temperature, you need to be comfortable when you sleep. Other factors for the right sleep environment include blocking out lights and sounds.
- Only use your bed for the 3 S’s – Keep use of your bed to the three S’s – sleep, sex, and sickness. If you only spend time in bed when you should be asleep (and for the other two reasons, of course), then your body will equate getting into bed with sleeping and help you to drift off faster.
#2. Vitamin D Does a Body (and Mind) Good
You can get all the vitamin D your body needs from the sun. Unfortunately, most of us don’t spend enough time outside, and winter decreases the amount of daylight available. This combination results in vitamin D deficiency for many Americans. What does vitamin D have to do with your mood?
Researchers often make the connection between a vitamin D deficiency and depression. In fact, vitamin D is one of the natural ways to cope with seasonal affective disorder. This vitamin is also necessary for immune health, proper absorption of calcium, and it may be beneficial for dieters who are trying to lose weight.
How can you get more vitamin D? There are three main ways:
- Sun exposure – Remember to wear sunscreen. You don’t want to trade moodiness for skin cancer. But spending a little time in the sun is beneficial for you, and it’s a free way to get a mood boost.
- Supplementation – This is the easiest (albeit most expensive) means of increasing the vitamin D you get.
- Food – Foods don’t contain very much vitamin D, and that’s another reason for so many being deficient. A few foods that contain vitamin D naturally are fatty fish (like salmon), mushrooms, and milk. Cereals and milk-substitutes may have vitamin D added later.
#3. Taking the Best Ashwagandha Supplement
Ashwagandha supplements are well known for fighting stress hormones in the body. A randomized, double-blind study reveals that taking ashwagandha can help cut down cortisol levels and reduce the effects of chronic stress. Since chronic stress can undoubtedly leave a person in a bad mood, ashwagandha is another natural mood booster. Researchers even found that ashwagandha produces results for those coping with anxiety. Other benefits include:
- Sleep benefits
- Reduced inflammation
- Energy production
- Brain health
- Adrenal health
- Antioxidant function
- Thyroid support
- Reduced blood sugar – based on studies in rats
Where Can You Find the Best Ashwagandha Supplement?
Warrior Strong Wellness is proud to present our Pure Organic Ashwagandha Max. This 1200mg dose of organic ashwagandha also contains Bioperine for easy absorption. It is a natural mood booster and is one of the most potent ayurvedic herbs. If you are trying to improve your mood, fight anxiety, and get the many other health benefits of ashwagandha, this is the supplement for you!
About The Author
Warrior Strong Wellness
Warrior Strong Wellness provides innovative and high quality transformational supplements and raises awareness and funds to fight childhood cancer by giving a portion of our proceeds to childhood cancer research. In our weekly blogs, we share wisdom about wellness and living a Warrior Strong lifestyle.