Find Something To Look Forward To
This is a technique I routinely use as an anti-blues vaccination. When Im down I search for something to put on the calendar that makes me happy and excited. Indeed, this 2007 study showed that people get an emotional lift when they contemplate a future fun event, versus looking back on a fabulous activity from the past. Book a trip, buy concert tickets, plan a partywhatever brings a flush to your cheeks and rumble of joy to your belly. My biggest mood-turnarounds arise when I begin a project that can potentially create some good in the world and lead to fulfilling connections. For example, Ive volunteered as a mentor to underserved young women who want to write, sought publishing contracts to write a book, taught workshops, submitted a video to do a TedX talk . The point is: stop continually telling yourself nothing good will ever again happenyouve been there, seen that, done that.
The Upshot: Depression is a diagnosable and treatable condition. Theres no reason to suffer in silence, or to guess whether or not what youre feeling qualifies as depression. Your primary care physician can help direct you to someone who specializes in mental health. In the meantime, heres a guide to the signs and symptoms and a quick assessment quiz. You can also download one of these mental health apps for more information.
*Names of patients are changed
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At least among the five symptoms must be either clinically depressed mood or loss of interest or satisfaction. Depressive conditions are identified by despair or irritability that is extreme or relentless sufficient to interfere with functioning or create significant distress. Treatment cope depression long distance relationship is with antidepressants, helpful and cognitive-behavioral therapy, or a combination of these techniques. The searchings for are likely an underestimate, too. The Blue Cross Blue Guard information comes from 41 million wellness records as well as counts people that obtained a medical diagnosis of major depression.
Take A Different View
With depression often comes a psychological myopia: the sufferer robotically repeats to him or herself soul-sucking negative thoughts: Nothing I try ever works out How could I have been so stupid? I am not worthy of being loved. A patient deep in the throes of that kind of thinking can, if unchecked, spend an entire session staring at one spotoften the floor. At those moments I prod, You are so stuck on only seeing things one way that you miss any other possible view. Literally. If you force yourself to look up, there are a variety of objects in the room to observe and pondera bookcase lamps: paintings a window with sunlight streaming in Its not that my office is so fascinating, but there is so much you miss when you refuse to look. The patient then sheepishly lifts his or her eyes to take in the entirety of the room as I hammer home the point: There are a plethora of ways to view anything. Instead of continually convincing yourself everything is hopeless consider all the other options. There is always a Plan B.
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Improve Your Eating Habits
Research continues to find clear links between diet and mental health. In fact, there have been so many studies that have shown improving nutrition can prevent and treat mental illness that nutritional psychiatry is becoming mainstream.
There are many brain-essential nutrients that can affect depression. For example, a 2012 study found that zinc deficiency is associated with symptoms of depression.
Improving your diet could be key to reducing your symptoms.
But before you make any major changes to your diet or begin taking vitamins or supplements, talk with your physician.
Why Is Coping With Depression Difficult
Depression is a common condition, with 16.2 million adults in the U.S. experiencing at least one major depressive episode each year. Depression can be draining, negatively impacting your daily life and making it difficult to maintain the hope and energy needed to achieve goals and move forward. Many people with depression feel stuck in a cycle of exhaustion, negative thinking and sadness.
Because depression can be so tiring, it prevents many people from actively working on various aspects of their lives and improving depressive symptoms. Fortunately, numerous lifestyle changes can improve depressive symptoms and help you regain control of your life. In addition to lifestyle changes, medical treatments, medications and therapy can also improve symptoms.
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Ways To Cope With Postpartum Depression
Having a baby can make you feel like an emotional train wreck. One minute youre overjoyed and in love with your little one, and the next youre breaking down in tears.
Its normal to feel sad, worried and anxious, and utterly exhaustedits whats known as the baby blues. But if you continue to feel this way for more than two or three weeks, you might have postpartum depression, a disorder which affects one in seven moms, according to a recent study in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
All women can have postpartum depression, but women who have a history of anxiety or depression during pregnancy or at some point in their lives are more at risk. If youre a perfectionist, under stress or dont have enough support from your partner or other people in your life, its more likely that you could have it as well.
If you think you have postpartum depression, its best to talk to a professional who can make an accurate diagnosis and can suggest medication and therapy. There are also things you can do now to feel better. Here are 10.
1. Trust your instincts
If you feel like somethings not right, it probably isnt. So take your feelings seriously, and let someone know how you feel immediately. Finding the right place where you can be validated and supported is the very first step, said Karen Kleiman, a licensed clinical social worker and executive director of The Postpartum Stress Center.
2. Cry
3. Breastfeed but
4. Get enough sleep
5. Re-evaluate your time
6. Find friends
Find What Works For You
The coping strategies that work for someone else might not work for you. Going for a walk might help your partner calm down. But you might find going for a walk when youre angry causes you to think more about why youre madand it fuels your angry feelings. So you might decide watching a funny video for a few minutes helps you relax.
You might find that certain coping strategies work best for specific issues or emotions. For example, engaging in a hobby may be an effective way to unwind after a long day at work. But, going for a walk in nature might be the best approach when youre feeling sad.
When it comes to coping skills, theres always room for improvement. So, assess what other tools and resources you can use and consider how you might continue to sharpen your skills in the future.
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Socialize With Friends And Family
Humans are social beings and require connection and communication to lead a healthy lifestyle. Supportive relationships with friends and family can enhance a persons mood and improve self-worth while lowering symptoms of depression. Close relationships can also help a person feel welcomed, loved and accepted, which can boost the mood.
Friendships and close relationships directly affect a persons overall quality of life and satisfaction. Many people with depression may self-isolate due to depressive symptoms, which can worsen symptoms. Socialization can ensure a person feels wanted and important to increase overall feelings of belonging connection.
Hanging out with friends and family can also help take your mind off negative feelings. With depression, it is common to focus on negative emotions or situations, causing many people to spiral into a deeper depression. Fortunately, hanging out with friends can be fun and help stave off intrusive or negative thoughts that can be detrimental to your health.
Spending too much time alone or isolating yourself from friends can greatly increase your risk of depression and anxiety and lead to lower life satisfaction. Regularly connecting with others throughout the week can improve depressive symptoms and promote positive thinking.
Create A Routine And Stick To It
One of the best things you can do for your depression is stick to a regular routine. If you have a routine, you will be less likely to lie in bed all day and feel sorry for yourself. Make a list of a few things you want to accomplish the next day, and do them. For example, you might want to start out your morning with a brisk walk and then eat breakfast while answering emails. It may be best to focus on easier tasks first to avoid getting overwhelmed.
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Know That Today Isnt Indicative Of Tomorrow
Todays mood, emotions, or thoughts dont belong to tomorrow.
If you were unsuccessful at getting out of bed or accomplishing your goals today, remember that you havent lost tomorrows opportunity to try again.
Give yourself the grace to accept that while some days will be difficult, some days will also be great. Try to look forward to tomorrows fresh start.
Track Triggers And Symptoms
Keeping track of moods and symptoms might help a person understand what triggers a depressive episode. Spotting the signs of depression early on may help them avoid a full-blown depressive episode.
Use a diary to log important events, changes to daily routines, and moods. Rate moods on a scale of 1 to 10 to help identify which events or activities cause specific responses. See a doctor if symptoms persist for 14 days or more.
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Exercise Is Something You Can Do Right Now To Boost Your Mood
Your fatigue will improve if you stick with it. Starting to exercise can be difficult when youre depressed and feeling exhausted. But research shows that your energy levels will improve if you keep with it. Exercise will help you to feel energized and less fatigued, not more.
Find exercises that are continuous and rhythmic. The most benefits for depression come from rhythmic exercisesuch as walking, weight training, swimming, martial arts, or dancingwhere you move both your arms and legs.
Add a mindfulness element, especially if your depression is rooted in unresolved trauma or fed by obsessive, negative thoughts. Focus on how your body feels as you movesuch as the sensation of your feet hitting the ground, or the feeling of the wind on your skin, or the rhythm of your breathing.
Pair up with an exercise partner. Not only does working out with others enable you to spend time socializing, it can also help to keep you motivated. Try joining a running club, taking a water aerobics or dance class, seeking out tennis partners, or enrolling in a soccer or volleyball league.
Take a dog for a walk.If you dont own a dog, you can volunteer to walk homeless dogs for an animal shelter or rescue group. Youll not only be helping yourself but also be helping to socialize and exercise the dogs, making them more adoptable.
Avoid Using Alcohol And Drugs
If youre using alcohol and drugs to cope, you could actually be making your symptoms worse. Sometimes, drugs and alcohol make us feel worse straight away other times, they might make us feel better initially but later can bring our mood down even lower. Get some tips on how you can reduce your alcohol or drug usage.
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The Ways People Cope With Depression
Depression can be difficult to tolerate. It can run the spectrum from a gnawing feeling of low and constant fatigue and worry to feeling hopeless, despairing, trapped, and desperately alone. When depression is at its worst, the prospect of suicide can feel like the only way to get beyond the pain.
If you experience any or all of this, you have a lot on your plate.
Unfortunately, many people struggling with depression complicate matters by employing coping mechanisms that actually work against them and compound the suffering. In the paragraphs that follow, Ill identify some of these unhelpful coping mechanisms and explore a possible better path.
When Youre Depressed You Cant Just Will Yourself To Snap Out Of It But This Guide To Depression Help Can Put You On The Road To Recovery
Coronavirus update
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, many of us are dealing with social distancing, isolation, and lockdowns that make it even harder to cope with symptoms of depression. Whatever your circumstances, though, there are ways to overcome feelings of sadness and despair, improve your mood, and regain a sense of hope. In addition to the tips in this article, you can also find help for depression in our Coronavirus Mental Health Toolkit.
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Tip : Eat A Healthy Depression
What you eat has a direct impact on the way you feel. Reduce your intake of foods that can adversely affect your brain and mood, such as caffeine, alcohol, trans fats, and foods with high levels of chemical preservatives or hormones .
Dont skip meals. Going too long between meals can make you feel irritable and tired, so aim to eat something at least every three to four hours.
Minimize sugar and refined carbs. You may crave sugary snacks, baked goods, or comfort foods such as pasta or French fries, but these feel-good foods quickly lead to a crash in mood and energy. Aim to cut out as much of these foods as possible.
Boost your B vitamins. Deficiencies in B vitamins such as folic acid and B-12 can trigger depression. To get more, take a B-complex vitamin supplement or eat more citrus fruit, leafy greens, beans, chicken, and eggs.
Boost your mood with foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids.Omega-3 fatty acids play an essential role in stabilizing mood. The best sources are fatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, tuna, and some cold-water fish oil supplements.
Meet Yourself Where You Are
Depression is common. It affects millions of people, including some in your life. You may not realize they face similar challenges, emotions, and obstacles.
Every day with this disorder is different. Its important to take your mental health seriously and accept that where you are right now isnt where youll always be.
The key to self-treatment for depression is to be open, accepting, and loving toward yourself and what youre going through.
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Things That Have Helped Me Cope With Depression
Thursday, 24 July 2014Alice
Alice blogs about her experience of depression and the 10 things that have helped her cope.
It has been six months since I was first diagnosed with depression. It has been an up and down slope towards recovery, and Im definitely not completely there yet. I am a second year PhD student and to be honest, Im surprised Im still doing it. I want to talk about what has helped me recover.
One of the most difficult decisions I made was telling my boss/supervisor about the illness. I had to, because I couldnt work at the same level anymore and I was struggling to keep up. If you dont tell your boss, perhaps you can tell another member of staff or an advisor, but from my experience I would say dont suffer in silence, especially if its affecting your ability to work.
Create A Wellness Toolbox
A wellness toolbox is a set of tools that you can use to help soothe yourself when you are feeling down.
The tools you find most helpful might not work for someone else so it’s important to carefully consider what things can help you feel your best.
Think of things you like to do when you’re happy. Then, when you’re feeling down, try one of those activities.
Cuddling your pet, listening to your favorite music, taking a warm bath, or reading a good book are just a few tools you might find helpful.
Create a list of the activities you might try when you’re feeling bad. Then, choose an activity to try when you’re having a particularly rough time.
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The Power Of Magnesium
Magnesium is responsible for hundreds, if not thousands, of biological processes. It aids sleep quality, mood regulation, and is an anti-inflammatory, to name a few benefits. Magnesium directly helps in coping with depression.
Most people are magnesium deficient because it used to be more prevalent in the soil it no longer is. Foods grown in soil depleted of magnesium are less nutritious.
Magnesium is also depleted by pretty much everything. Exercise, sex, eating, drinking alcohol are all among things that deplete magnesium.
Missing magnesium in the diet lowers mood, lowers energy, causes fatigue, depression, and anxiety.
Magnesium is well tolerated. Starting with a 1/4 of a teaspoon dissolved in water daily and working your way up as your body takes it will show results.
Get A Handle On Stress
Stress can drive up levels of a brain chemical called cortisol, which has been found to be higher in folks with depression. There are lots of strategies for coping with stress, such as time management, meditation, and biofeedback training.
Some stress-relieving activities that you might want to incorporate into your daily life include:
- Deep breathing: A few minutes to slow your breathing and focus your attention on your body in the moment can help you get a better handle on your worries.
- Exercise: Regular physical activity is a great way to blow off steam.
- Progressive muscle relaxation: This process involves intentionally tightening muscles throughout the body, holding that tension for several counts, and then releasing that tension until the muscles are completely relaxed. With regular practice, you may be able to learn how to intentionally relax your body fairly quickly whenever you are feeling tense.
Learning to manage your stress takes time and practice. Talk to your doctor or therapist about other strategies you might try to minimize the stress and your response to it.
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