How To Get Motivated When You Are Depressed

How To Stay Motivated To Exercise And Lose Weight With Depression

Now that we know more about depression and its relationship with weight gain, exercise, and weight loss its time to start discussing different ways to stay motivated. One of the hallmark signs of depression is a loss of interest and motivation in anything. Depressed individuals find it difficult to focus on work, get up in the morning, so it may be particularly difficult to tell them they should exercise more.

If you struggle with depression, you already know how complicated it is to stay motivated although you do want to do something about your weight and physical activity. Below, you can see different ways you can get motivated to slim down.

How To Motivate Yourself When You Are Depressed 7 Motivation Strategies To Get You Through Depression

How to motivate yourself when you are depressed? A popular misconception is that we need to have enough inspiration to do something. So, you wait for the day when you can feel more motivated and start participating in life.

You wait to get enough motivational jolt to feel more like yourself again. But, we forget that motivation isnt something that appears out of nowhere one must nurture it. You must do something to rekindle motivation.

Here are seven proven, effective strategies to increase your motivation and get you through depression.

Create A Daily Cleaning Checklist

Depression can affect your ability to make decisions, meaning simple things like deciding where to start cleaning can suddenly become surprisingly difficult.

To help yourself find motivation and make cleaning an even simpler process, try to create a daily cleaning checklist that lists everything from making your bed to folding your clothes, washing the dishes and taking out the trash.

You can do this with a written to-do list that you keep in a visible location at home or by creating a repeating list using a to-do list app on your phone.

If you live with your partner, family or a friend, try creating a shared list so that you can take care of cleaning up together. This might help you to get things done when youre dealing with severe symptoms and dont feel like you can take care of everything by yourself.

Better yet, try cleaning together. Spending your time around other people is an important step in the recovery process, and cleaning your home together can be a good opportunity to bond with your partner, family member or friend and vent about things that are bothering you.

Not only can having a daily list make it easier to keep track of what needs to be done around the house, but it can also give you a sense of satisfaction once the days tasks are done.

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Get Help For Your Depression

While the above tips can help, it may be that you need professional support for your depression and associated motivation issues. At Priory, our depression treatment experts will be able to help you to overcome your symptoms and negative thoughts, understand the underlying triggers for your difficulties and take steps towards a lasting recovery.

We offer dedicated inpatient, day care, and outpatient treatment options, depending on the level of support you need, as well as a wide range of evidence-based therapy types.

You dont have to struggle with depression get in touch today to find out how we can support you to get back on track.

Get in touch with Priory by calling 0800 144 8969for a compassionate chat about the difficulties you’ve been experiencing and how our treatment can put you on the road to recovery.

Alternatively, , where a mental health professional will examine your symptoms and outline the best possible route to recovery.

Reframe What You Think About Depression

Simple steps can help you overcome inertia and move forward, even when you’re down.

Depression can sap your motivation to perform even the simplest of tasks, let alone tackle bigger challenges. Research shows that depressed people have a harder time finding motivation to go to work, go out with friends, even clean the house.

One way to be productive despite depression is to see depression as a habit, says Joseph Luciani, PhD, a psychologist in New York City and the author of Self-Coaching: The Powerful Program to Beat Anxiety and Depression. Viewing depression as a tendency rather than an illness puts you behind the wheel, so to speak, and may help you change your life. Here are 10 ways to find inspiration to take on daily life… despite depression.

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How To Motivate Yourself When You’re Absolutely Exhausted

Off days. We all have them from time to time.

Maybe you didn’t sleep well the night before, or perhaps you’re working on a project that isn’t particularly exciting. Or maybe there’s no viable explanation at all, and you’re just straight up not feelin’ it that day.

First of all, that’s OK. We can’t be on all the time. Motivation is an ebb and flow: We all have periods of high energy where productivity comes easily, as well as periods of low energy where your work doesn’t come so easily.

But alas … unless we’re physically ill, we’re all expected to show up at work and get our work done regardless of how tired we are or how “meh” we’re feeling.

It’s times like these when we need to find that motivation within ourselves. The next time you’re feeling exhausted, unmotivated, or lethargic at work, try one or a few of these 10 ways to get motivated again.

Shine A Little Light On It: Light Therapy

Everyones different. But the thing that really turned me around from someone curled into a ball of depression and hopelessness to sitting up in bed was light therapy.

Bright light therapy is often recommended for people with major depressive disorder with a seasonal pattern or sleep disorders.

More research is still needed, but evidence suggests it may have the potential to help people with depression and have antidepressant-like qualities. My psychologist, and a few other experts Ive met, also recommend these lights for people with other types of nonseasonal depression.

Sitting in front of the light for a few moments is necessary to get your dose, meaning theres no need to jump out of bed immediately. As my eyes fight to even open, I usually lean over, turn on the little box of sunshine in my room and its sort of impossible to close them again.

I can check my phone or grab a cup of warm tea and come back to face the light for 20 minutes while still in bed. By the time thats over, Ive found Im ready to get up and start moving. My boyfriend also sits with me and says he feels more awake when he does.

According to the Mayo Clinic, the typical recommendation for seasonal depression is to use a 10,000-lux light box 16 to 24 inches from your face. Use it daily for about 20 to 30 minutes, preferably early in the morning after first waking up. Find a light box online.

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The Alternative Approach: Self

Instead of trying to push through depression, learn from it. Its there for a reason a part of you is trying to tell you something.

Do you know what its trying to tell you?

Many times, just getting clarity on the source of the depression can reduce it if not release it entirely.

This approach is powerful, but there are two good reasons we dont take it:

Talking To Someone Who Has Experience Can Help Put You On The Right Track

I dont want you to suffer. Its why I always suggest focusing on that first and then moving forward. Remember, there is affordable online counseling available to you, which you can access from home at any time.

This post is for you if you are pulling yourself out of depression but are finding it hard to motivate yourself to start doing things again.

It’s for you if youre feeling ok enough to try things, but youre still in the habits you created when you were anxious, depressed, and in survival mode.

So, this blog post is about slowly pulling you out of survival mode and helping you get back on track to start pursuing your goals.

This post will teach you how to take baby steps to find your motivation when you struggle with anxiety and depression. You don’t want to overwhelm yourself with too many things at once.

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How To Motivate Yourself At Work When You Are Depressed

Many of us are forcibly having to multitask at work. We have to wear many hats at work and juggle several projects. Additionally, maintaining consistent communication with your team and clients is absolute.

You might get overwhelmed with too much going on and fall behind on your work due to multitasking. Lagging in work often breaks your spirit. You might feel less motivated to work, which might further induce your depression.

Research has shown that heavy multitaskers are less competent than employees who work one task at a time. Multitasking can make your brain go haywire and reduce productivity.

How to motivate yourself at work when you are depressed? To keep yourself motivated at work when you are depressed and distracted, opt for single-tasking.

Single-tasking can help rebuild your focus. You can assign an hour of your work time specifically for checking your emails and communicating with your team. It will give you the advantage to keep your project focus time quiet and uninterrupted.

Single-tasking can lower your stress level and make work enjoyable. Minimizing context switching can keep your train of thought unhampered. Focusing on one task at a time can flourish your creativity.

Lastly, remember to take a break and have a little me- time. Your work is no more important than your mental health. Delegate tasks to your co-workers if the pressure becomes unbearable. Enable yourself to consider less-than-perfect outcomes while focusing on motivation in depression.

Dont Focus On Your Looks

When your view of yourself and the world has hit an all-time low, the last thing you want to do is slave away at the gym for those coveted six-pack abs. By focusing on the mood-boosting benefits of exercise instead, you’re much more likely to motivate yourself to move. Get up and skip that stop right in front the mirror if it means you’ll avoid yearning over what you wish you looked like.

I wish that all men understood the value of doing daily exercises for not only their beach body, but also the value it has on their brain, helping build a stronger mindset, and more happiness when fighting against mental health struggles like anxiety and depression explains Paul Marlow, founder of Never Alone, a mental health-focused website that inspires 10,000 people a month to work on ways to feel happier.

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Causes Of Having No Motivation

Sometimes, no motivation can be the problem. At other times, its merely the symptom of a bigger problem.

For example, if youre a perfectionist, your lack of motivation may stem from the fear that you wont complete a task flawlessly. Until you address this need to be perfect, your motivation isnt likely to increase.

At other times, your lack of motivation may cause you to procrastinate. And the more you procrastinate, the less motivated you feel. In this case, improving your motivation to get work done can help you feel better and perform better.

So its important to take a few minutes to consider why you might have trouble motivating yourself. Here are some common reasons for a lack of motivation:

These are just a few common reasons why people sometimes lack motivation. You might find that your lack of motivation stems from other issues, like the fear of what people think or a desire to please everyone. So carefully consider the underlying thoughts and feelings that are affecting your drive.

Signs To Notice When Feeling Depressed

When you feel depressed, you may experience one or multiple symptoms of depression. Such feelings are persistent, and its not easy to shake them off. Since symptoms affect people differently, they should be a red flag to see your doctor or mental health professional. Signs of depression include the following:

Why Does Depression Happen?

Why Its Important to Know the Signs

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Look At External Factors

Sometimes external factors kill motivation, trigger negative emotions, and contribute to clinical depression. Lets say you are stuck in a dead end job. The only motivation you have to do good work is to keep your job and put food on the table. This is obviously not as stimulating as an environment where you can eventually move up and have increased responsibilities if you work hard.

Here are a few more common situations that might be hurting your motivation:

• Having romantic partners, friends, or family members who abuse you, put you down, or dont treat you with respect
• Abuse or bullying in the workplace or school
• A debilitating health issue or chronic illness
• Being a victim of discrimination or sexism

Think about whether one or more of these factors are present in your life. Then examine their effect on your ability to feel motivated.

Get Yourself Motivated With Routine

Dont rush yourself to get up and get ready and take all the pleasure out of the morning. You can also try using other forms of motivation to get up, like your phone.

Let yourself check your email or watch a cute animal video to start your day. Just to ensure that youre not staying on your phone all morning in bed, set a timer. Keep it around 15 minutes for phone time. Another option is to place your phone out of reach so you have to get up to use it.

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How To Get Motivated When Depressed

If youre feeling unmotivated as a result of your depression, the prospect of doing things to try and motivate yourself may seem impossible and somewhat paradoxical. You may be wondering how youll find the motivation to motivate yourself!

However, there are a number of really simple things you can do that can help to boost your mood and motivation levels, helping you to feel better, more in control and enable you to cope with depression symptoms when they arise.

You could try the following:

Create A Morning Routine Worth Waking Up For

Many people myself included get stuck in a routine of dragging themselves out of bed to get to work and thats it. We barely have time for breakfast in our routine. Were just trying to get out the door.

But if you create a morning routine worth waking up for, you may have a different outlook for your morning.

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Talk To A Mental Health Professional

Consult a licensed therapist or a psychiatrist to see if you require treatment for your depression. A healthcare provider can also help you work through your depression symptoms by giving you information and coping methods.

Talking about your mental health with someone you dont know well might be intimidating, but most people find that speaking with a healthcare professional and receiving the treatment and support they need can make a huge difference in their lives.

Ways To Stay Motivated

Here are some tips:

• Regularly review your goals and progress. Seeing progress is a great motivator in itself, and also improves your self-esteem.
• Continue to set new goals. Think about what you want to achieve next week, next month and next year. Tackle one goal at a time so you dont feel overwhelmed.
• Keep the momentum up. It takes up to 3 months to develop a new habit, so keeping the momentum and routine helps it feel more automatic over time.
• Find mentors a mentor is someone who is experienced in the habit you want to change. Finding social or support groups with the same interest can help you find a mentor.
• Surround yourself with positive people. Positive friends and family enhance your positive self-talk, which also helps to manage the symptoms of depression and anxiety.
• Use exercise as one of your daily goals to improve your mental health.

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The Standard Approach: What Not To Do

When most people feel depressed, they try to push through it.

In a culture that has a bias toward happiness, we believe depression is a bad thing. If we have depression, we need to change it right away.

And how do we go about changing it? By using brute forcepushing ourselves to do that which we dont want to do.

But heres the most valuable lesson anyone can learn about their subconscious mind:

What we resist, persists.

What does this mean?

Resisting depression or frustration will not only prolong its existence it may even make it stronger. So, when we try to motivate ourselves through sheer will, we are feeding the very monster were trying to overcome.