Yoga + Ayurveda for Seasonal Affective Disorder

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Do you start to feel depressed, moody, or in a bit of a ‘funk’ around this time of year? If so, you’re not alone. For many people, Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD–a type of depression that’s related to changes in seasons–starts in the fall and continues into the winter months. Since the days are getting darker and shorter, I thought now would be the perfect time to share some advice on what kind of yoga to do for Seasonal Affective Disorder to keep your mood and motivation steady throughout the long winter ahead.

I personally think that we should separate the winter season into two parts: Late-fall to early-winter and late-winter to early-spring. If we think in terms of Ayurveda, the sister science to yoga, late-fall to early-winter is Vata time, and late-winter to early-spring is Kapha time. We want to do a slower, more grounding practice to balance excess Vata energy, which is moving and changeable. We want to do a more active practice for balancing excess Kapha energy, which tends toward stagnation and heaviness. (Remember, ayurveda works with opposites to find balance in our system.) This totally makes sense to me. Early winter is full-on holiday season: Thanksgiving, holiday parties, New Year’s Eve. Lots of eating, drinking, shopping and socializing. Busy, busy, busy. To ground ourselves and help our body and mind unwind–to find balance–our yoga practice should include more restorative, yin-like poses and forward bends. Some good examples are Child’s pose, Legs Up the Wall and Reclined Butterfly.

By the time late-winter to early-spring rolls around we’ve all had enough of the cold weather. Our bodies and minds are feeling pretty sluggish and heavy. That’s when we need a more active yoga practice, including things like Sun Salutations, dynamic poses (moving in out and out of poses with the breath) and energizing backbends like the one pictured above, or it’s more accessible variation, Bridge pose.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to take care of yourself with Yoga + Ayurveda: