 So, exercise and mood disorders like depression and anxiety, let's talk about how effective they are and is exercise really that important in terms of healing from these conditions? I'm going to talk about a study here and a couple of studies just to kind of really show that the research is there and this was actually highlighted by the New York Times recently. It was a study of 1.1 million adult men and women, so a massive, massive study and they were assessed for levels of aerobic fitness and levels of depression, okay? So they found a striking correlation, very, very strong positive correlation. People in the lower third of fitness were 75% more likely to experience depression than those in the top third, okay, so a huge, huge difference and they also found that those in the middle third were 25% more likely to be depressed than those at the top. So, now this is a correlational study, but it does show that there's definitely a very least, very strong association between levels of aerobic fitness and depression, okay? So there is a lot of research out there for this. There was another one and this was actually a larger study, it actually took 25 other studies and it was a meta-analysis of all of those and it said people experiencing a depressive mood were asked to begin an exercise program, so they're already depressed, these people. Now this consisted of moderate exercise, so something like brisk walking, hiking, going for a bike ride and the participants who actually completed the exercise routine significantly reduced their levels of depression and they found that they were better equipped to handle pressure when it came on and anecdotally, some of them said things like they just started to feel more relaxed and took things less personally than they used to. So that's a meta-analysis which is very, very indicative that exercise is important. Now this might not be surprising to hear given that a lot of people talk about how important exercise is nowadays, but it does bear repeating and I'm actually going to talk about now in a minute cases where it can maybe not be that effective and why that might be. So we're beginning to get a picture here from the research that it's very important to move, to increase your heart rate daily, it's actually one of the reasons the problems I have with modern schooling is that children in schools are, we're all social animals and all we want to do is talk and move when we're kids and what do we do in school? We sit still and we listen and we don't move nearly as much as we need to. So is it any wonder we have all the ADHD rates and depression problems in elementary schools and high schools, secondary schools? So it's definitely something that I think could be a huge, huge help if we were to allow kids to move more freely. But what if a person is already depressed? So this is important to point out. Exercise is not just, it's not as simple as a person's depressed. So you say, well, look, you need to start exercising more and you talk to that person at doing some sort of a elaborate exercise routine. It's not as simple as that. There's a thing, we're talking severe depression here. So at that point, something called psychomotor retardation is there. So what that's like is a person who is very depressed, basic movements, lifting your arm or getting out of bed or getting out of a chair or even speaking, okay? Basic things that require some kind of movement become almost impossible. It feels like you're moving through molasses or something. It's just a struggle the whole way. Now really what that's the result of is an internal struggle, sort of a hormonal struggle because their fight or flight responses kicked in and then their nervous system is trying to bring them back down. So there's all these hormones going on competing against each other externally. It looks like the person is exerting no energy at all. But internally, metabolically, there's a huge, huge sort of a balancing act that's going on there, a huge, huge competition to calm the person down. Well, the brain and nervous system is also trying to tell them to be aware and be on edge. So if that goes on for long enough, this thing called psychomotor retardation comes in and at that point, you can forget basically just telling the person to go and exercise because it's not as simple as that. Horrendous feeling for people when they have that, not to mention the feelings of hopelessness and despair and everything piled in atop of that. So the point of this is, what do people need when they're depressed? Well, we need compassion and we need a listening ear. We need to be able to talk about our lives and our feelings. And gradually, with support, which is another thing people need when they're depressed, they can begin to take small, small steps towards being a little bit more active. So it's not as simple as exercise cures depression. It depends really what level it's at. I personally like to think of exercise as kind of maintenance, maintenance of mental health. It's something that has to be a priority. And if we're serious about maintaining our mental health, exercise cannot really be optional. Now, I'm not talking about forcing yourself to go to the gym. Actually, what I think is really important is that we find ways to exercise that are not about looking good on Instagram and getting the six pack. Just things that we enjoy doing that raise our heart rate. Another thing we can do is to include someone socially. So if we do play team sports or just decide to go for a walk with a friend to make it even more of a social event, that can be something that can be really, really helpful if we're talking about doing this for our mental health. So I suppose to conclude on this video today. The research is there that it shows that exercise is very, very helpful for mild to moderate depression or anxiety. And in more severe cases, treatment of psychotherapy or social supports put in place are needed before that can actually, those benefits can be seen to get over those symptoms of psychomotor retardation and just that malaise that sets in when people are depressed. But for the most part, see exercise as vitally important, something to be enjoying and corporate into your life as a way to maintain and keep your mood elevated. It was actually the head of the American Psychiatric Association said recently that before psychiatrists start to prescribe any sort of antidepressants, they should prescribe 30 minutes of daily activity, so to get the heart rate up. So I think that's a fantastic thing. I think probably a lot of these meds are too easily prescribed or too quickly without looking at what exercise can do to increase your serotonin levels in your brain and it's natural. And there are no side effects. You just start to feel a little bit happier and more peaceful, plus you're a lot healthier when you exercise as well. So there's a real downside. So bear in mind, guys, you don't have to do it for Instagram. You don't have to do it for to look great. Our loader is not wrong with those things, but really the most important part of it is as a species, we were designed to move. We were designed to walk long distances. So we need to find a way to incorporate exercise into our daily life that will make it enjoyable for us so that we won't resist it and we will actually look forward to doing it on a daily basis. And you will notice if you're depressed right now, if you're feeling mildly depressed or maybe even severely depressed, it can be a route out of that without going down to psychiatric and to the press it route. So bear in mind. Guys, thanks for watching. I hope this was helpful. If you like this content, you can subscribe to this channel, like the video and you can contact me on my website. If you would like to work with me, I do counseling sessions in my practice and also online Skype counseling. Thanks guys. Take care of yourselves and I'll see you soon. All the best.