As we saw in Part 1, poets have often touched on the subject of grief and its effects, both in reference to those who mourn as well as to those who attempt to comfort them.
In Macbeth, Shakespeare’s Malcolm advises:
“Give sorrow words: the grief that does not speak
Whispers the o’er-fraught heart and bids it break.”
William Cowper insisted that “grief is itself a medicine,” and Shakespeare remarked wryly about would-be comforters in Much Ado About Nothing:
“… ‘Tis all men’s office to speak patience
To those that wring under the load of sorrow,
But no man’s virtue nor sufficiency
To be so moral when he shall endure
The like himself.”
Whatever our loss, however, allowing sorrow to spiral into clinical depression is not a healthy option. So, what can we do to keep our minds healthy even during long periods of grief? Because neurogenesis and depression are incompatible states, reason compels us to pursue those activities that are known to increase neurogenesis. Researchers suggest that this boils down to exercise in three key areas: the body, the mind, and the heart.
The Body
Anyone who exercises regularly knows the feeling of well-being that results from sustained physical activity, so it’s no surprise that exercise has repeatedly been found to promote neurogenesis in that crucial region, the hippocampus. One study by the Salk Institute in California found that while “exercise increases hippocampal neurogenesis and improves learning,” these benefits can be realized by old and young alike, because “maturation of newborn neurons [is] not affected by aging.”
Behavioral biologist Paul Martin adds encouragingly: “Measurements have confirmed that even a brisk ten-minute walk can help to lift mood and dispel gloom for a few hours. More vigorous and regular exercise produces bigger and longer-lasting improvements in mood and vitality … There is good evidence that exercise reduces anxiety and helps to cope with stress. It even provides relief in some cases of mild depression” (Making Happy People, 2006).
A recent study from the University of Texas at Austin confirms this. For clinically depressed patients, even one thirty-minute exercise session was enough to elevate scores relating to “vigor” and “well-being,” at least in the short term. John Bartholomew, one of the researchers involved in the study, feels this is significant considering that depressed people often try to self-medicate using alcohol or other questionable methods. “Low-to-moderate-intensity exercise appears to be an alternate way to manage depression,” he suggests.
