10 Ways To Deal With Depression
A lot of young people tend to silently suffer from depression caused by school, relationships, and financial problems. Depression can make you feel helpless. Donβt, there’s a lot you can do on their own to fight back. Changing your behaviour, lifestyle, and even your way of thinking, are all natural depression treatments.
These tips can help you feel better, start right now;
1. Get in a routine.
If youβre depressed, you need a routine. Depression can strip away the structure from your life. One day melts into the next. Setting a gentle daily schedule can help you get back on track.
2. Set Goals.
When you’re depressed, you may feel like you can’t accomplish anything. That makes you feel worse about yourself. To push back, set daily goals for yourself.
Make your goal something that you can succeed at, like doing the dishes every other day.”
As you start to feel better, you can add more challenging daily goals.
3. Exercise.
It temporarily boosts feel-good chemicals called endorphins. It may also have long-term benefits for people with depression. Regular exercise seems to encourage the brain to rewire itself in positive ways.
How much exercise do you need? You donβt need to run marathons to get a benefit. Just walking a few times a week can help.
4. Eat Healthy.
There is no magic diet that fixes depression. It’s a good idea to watch what you eat, though. If depression tends to make you overeat, getting in control of your eating will help you feel better.
Although nothing is definitive, there is evidence that foods with omega-3 fatty acids (such as salmon and tuna) andfolic acid (such as spinach and avocado) could help ease depression.
5. Get Enough Sleep.
Depression can make it hard to get enough shut-eye, and too little sleep can make depression worse.
What can you do? Start by making some changes to your lifestyle. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day. Try not to nap. Take all the distractions out of your bedroom; no computer and no TV. In time, you may find your sleep improves.
6. Take On Responsibilities.
When youβre depressed, you may want to pull back from life and give up your responsibilities at home and at work. Don’t. Staying involved and having daily responsibilities can help you maintain a lifestyle that can help counter depression. They ground you and give you a sense of accomplishment.
If you’re not up to full-time school or work, thatβs fine. Think about part-time. If that seems like too much, consider volunteer work.
7. Challenge Negative Thoughts.
In your fight against depression, a lot of the work is mental, changing how you think. When you’re depressed, you leap to the worst possible conclusions.
The next time you’re feeling terrible about yourself, use logic as a natural depression treatment. You might feel like no one likes you, but is there real evidence for that? You might feel like the most worthless person on the planet, but is that really likely? It takes practice, but in time you can beat back those negative thoughts before they get out of control.
8. Check With Your Doctor Before Using Supplements.
There’s promising evidence for certain supplements for depression, those include fish oil, folic acid, and SAMe. But more research needs to be done before we’ll know for sure. Always check with your doctor before starting any supplement, especially if youβre already taking medications.
9. Do Something New.
When youβre depressed, youβre in a rut. Push yourself to do something different. Go to a museum. Pick up a used book and read it on a park bench. Volunteer at a soup kitchen. Take a language class.
“When we challenge ourselves to do something different, there are chemical changes in the brain,” Cook says. “Trying something new alters the levels of [the brain chemical] dopamine, which is associated with pleasure, enjoyment, and learning.”
10. Try To Have Fun.
If youβre depressed, make time for things you enjoy. Even if nothing seems fun, try doing it anyway.
