Stress and anxiety are already considered epidemics of modern life, affecting people of all ages and lifestyles. In the search for solutions, many individuals go beyond allopathic medicine and look for alternative therapies to solve their symptoms in a more natural and definitive way.
Want to discover nine alternative therapies that can help reduce stress and anxiety?
Acupuncture
Of Chinese origin, acupuncture usually works by stimulating specific points of the body – acupuncture – through the use of needles. The technique is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and proven to contribute to the treatment of depression, chronic pain, nausea and fibromyalgia.
The meaning, depth, time and form of stimulation vary according to each treatment, and it is necessary that the professional is trained to make these decisions.
Hypnotherapy
Hypnotherapy has been gaining space in recent years as an excellent form of treatment for phobias, traumas, addictions, eating disorders, nocturnal enuresis, psychological impotence and other diseases, such as migraine, gastritis and urticaria.
Through techniques of hypnosis, the patient enters a mental state of focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness, increasing their susceptibility to suggestion and allowing the incorporation of new behaviors and habits.
Homeopathy
Based on the concept that the similar cure the similar and established in the eighteenth century, Homeopathy uses diluted and dynamized drugs in the treatment of the individual.
Through these processes of serial dilution and dynamization – repeated agitation of the solution bottle -, the drug becomes more potent as water molecules also start to have therapeutic effect (memory capacity of the water).
Despite the criticism, homeopathy remains strong all over the world and is commonly used in the treatment of stress and anxiety.
Meditation and Yoga
From Sanskrit, the word yoga means union, indicating the integration of mind, body, and spirit that occurs during the practice of this technique. That is why, combined with meditation, yoga positions help to calm the mind, relax the body, improve sleep, and relieve stress and anxiety.
Shiatsu and watsu
Based on the same theory that inspired acupuncture, shiatsu and watsu use touch, massage and stretching to stimulate points in the body.
In shiatsu, these activities are performed on a massage bed, while in watsu a pool is used to enhance the relaxing effect and reduce the trauma of drowning victims.
The techniques reduce tension regions, combat pain, relieve stress, reduce high pressure, solve gastrointestinal problems and promote relaxation of body and mind.
Aromatherapy
Through the aroma of essential oils distilled from plants, it causes effects on individuals and helps in the treatment of various pathologies. As it is based on the use of plants, it is usually considered a branch of phytotherapy.
The aroma of essential oil can be transmitted in various ways – diffusion, direct inhalation, compresses, foot-scalp or combined with massage techniques – and each aroma has a different effect. Lavender, for example, is excellent for combating insomnia, anxiety and depression, while rosemary reduces stress and stimulates circulation.
Chromotherapy
As the name may suggest, chromotherapy uses colors to make a harmony between body and mind. Each color acts on an organ in a specific way, because each one has a different therapeutic function. They have the power to restore the balance of the body and help in the treatment of various diseases.
The chromotherapy uses the seven colors of the rainbow and, through these colors, helps to highlight some of our most important qualities, balancing emotions, including stress and anxiety:
Blue
Its main function is to offer tranquility and peace, being very suitable for those who suffer from stress and have problems sleeping.
Violet or lilac
It has the power to eliminate bad vibration within the environment and helps in emotional balance.
Green
It is the only colour that has no contraindication and, like blue, has the ability to calm down, but also energizes the body leaving it ready for the daily tasks.
Red
It’s a very stimulating color and widely used to ward off depression.
Orange
It’s color that represents courage. Therefore, when your strength is running out and discouragement appears, this color can bring more vitality.
Yellow
It’s a great color to activate intelligence, improving brain function.
Anil
It is excellent for purifying environments and helping to sharpen intuition.
You can apply this therapy to your day-to-day life using clothes in the colors necessary for that moment, eating something or even renewing the environment with a new painting.
Feng shui
This is a practice that is millenary and already well known in the West. Feng shui is quite versatile because, even though it is an ancient technique, it manages to ally itself with modernity. It shows a way to organize the objects within an environment to bring more harmony and balance the energies, removing bad vibrations.
The practice follows some principles and, to start applying it, you need to know some of them. The bagua, for example, is a map used to help position the items in each room of the house. It has the shape of an octagon and is divided into elements that directly influence our lives: family, relationship, success, prosperity, creativity, work, friends and spirituality.
Let us cite here an example of the practices of feng shui so that you understand it better. One of the principles is not to put any object that obstructs, even if little, the entrance of the house. While visitors should feel welcome in your home, it is necessary to control the hectic energy that comes from outside.
Landscaping for the entrance to the house is one of the indications. Placing plant pots – taking care that they do not grow towards the entrance door – is an excellent way to improve the energy from the moment we arrive.
Music Therapy
Who doesn’t like music? It is often an immediate relief from our worries and also helps us to dream and forget a little about the hectic life.
The rhythm, the melody, the sound and the harmony of the notes are being widely used for the physical and mental healing of many people. Individuals with speech, hearing or psychiatric problems are the main targets, but music therapy is beneficial for everyone.
Our mind, like music, works with waves at certain frequencies. The sound frequency reaches several areas of our brain bringing tranquility and emotional balance. Music therapy is so powerful that it is being widely used to treat chemical dependents.