World Mental Health Day 2022: Everyday Yoga and Ayurveda rituals to boost mental health

World Mental Health Day 2022: Here are some daily changes in our lifestyle as per Yoga and Ayurveda that can increase our happiness quotient and help in beating the daily stress.

World Mental Health Day (October 10) is round the corner and the spotlight is once again on mental health, one of the most ignored aspects of our daily life. The day is celebrated to raise awareness about mental health around the world and to mobilise efforts to support those experiencing mental health issues. Hectic lifestyles, juggling with multiple duties, not being able to spend time with loved ones could take a heavy toll on our mental health and the accumulation of all these woes could make us susceptible to depression, anxiety and related issues. The solution is to perhaps to introduce some sustainable and daily changes in our lifestyle that can increase our happiness quotient and help in beating the daily stress. (

"Ayurvedic and Yogic based lifestyle changes can improve your mental health. These are sister sciences that originated thousands of years ago in India. These ancient sciences honour the individual based on the understanding of everyone’s unique inherent nature. If you have ever visited an ayurvedic doctor you are familiar with the diagnosis that involves a pulse reading, examination of the eyes, tongue, structure and whether you know it or not a good ayurvedic physician or even a Yoga Therapist for that matter is even gauging the way you speak, do things, may ask you about your thoughts and dreams etc. This is all done to understand your "Prakrit" or Nature and suggest preventions or treatments/cures," says Mihir Jogh, Yoga Teacher & Founder of JogaShala.

Jogh suggests some of the ways Yoga and Ayurveda can help boost mental health:

1. Routine: Adopting a daily routine or ‘Dincharya’ which consists of waking up in the morning practising yoga or exercising, keeping enough time for rest, recreation and reflection and sleeping on time. Nowadays we call this wellness or drawing boundaries, but this was just part of life of our grandparents and older generations.

Finding balance and alignment with nature on a daily basis can significantly help relieve stress and can help ease self-induced pressure. As with a daily routine it’s also important to adapt our lifestyle diet etc based on the seasonal changes for example on a long summer day, a nap can be a good idea to prevent fatigue and exhaustion but that same nap during the winter may make you lethargic and inert in your mind.

2. Diet: We often forget how our gut health is so closely linked to our mental health. Diet must be adapted according to one’s individual needs and according to any imbalance that one is facing. Nourishing meals are better for someone who suffers “Vata” imbalances like sleeplessness, insomnia, nervous disorders. Whereas a lighter but flavourful meal with spices is useful for someone who is suffering from “Kapha” imbalance being depressed. A soothing meal for a pitta aggravated state or agitated state is advisable.

Eating seasonal, local, and at the right time is important and so is understanding food intolerances and also food combinations that are harmful to health. There are so many herbs in our kitchen that can be used to prevent and cure smaller illnesses like the cold, flu, stomach disorders.

3. Yoga and Beyond: Yogasana is used both preventatively and as a therapy for mental health. Based on your needs of age, metabolism, phase of life, imbalances that you may be facing, you can choose a style of physical asana practice. This is why yoga is different from most other physical activity and exercises because it can be modified and tailored to suit the individual whereas a group workout or exercise can be quite general.

The physical practice of asana helps release physical tension in the body, enhance the flow of energy through the body, release feel good hormones, and helps ground and associate with our bodies. Most people suffering from mental health issues a lot of times are disassociated from their bodies and not present.

Easing anxiety through Yoga

Since Yoga and Ayurveda is such an expansive spectrum of practice and a way of living, there is something everyone can imbibe and adapt as per their modern-day requirements - active practices for people suffering from mental inertia, grounding practice for restlessness and anxiety, cooling, calming practice for agitation. Anything that you feel most resistant towards to is what your mind, body and soul needs the most. A simple act of walking in nature or barefoot on grass can immediately elevate your mood.

"Aligning yourself with nature and its needs, will help you align with your inner self to live a balance content life. Everything material is impermanent, what stays on forever is energy or soul matter. We can all learn to attend to it and look after it," says Mihir Jogh.