Information For Family Carers And Friends
You can get support if you are a carer, friend or family member of someone living with depression.
Being a carer might mean you can claim certain benefits that might help you and the person you care for. For more information, please see the Mental Health and Money Advice services website:www.mentalhealthandmoneyadvice.org/en/welfare-benefits/what-benefits-are-available-for-mental-health-carers/
You could also get in touch with carer support groups or sibling support groups. You can search for local groups in your area online or ask your GP.
You can ask your local authority for a carers assessment if you need more practical support to help care for someone.
As a carer you should be involved in decisions about care planning. There are rules about information sharing and confidentiality which may make it difficult for you to get all the information you need in some circumstances.
You can find out more information about:
How can I support the person that I care for?
You might find it easier to support someone with depression if you understand their symptoms, treatment and self-management skills. You can use this to support them to get help and stay well.
Below are some initial suggestions for providing practical day to day support to someone with depression.
You can find out more information about:
You can find more information about:
Website: www.web.ntw.nhs.uk/selfhelp/
Spend Time With Friends & Family
Get out and socialize. Many times, depression leaves us with the desire to stay isolated, cutting ourselves off from the rest of the world, but thats all the more reason to reconnect with friends and family. Those closest to you can provide loving support during your toughest times. Simply talking to them can help alleviate many of the symptoms you feel when depressed.
Self Care Instead Of Spiral
Its time to invest in yourself. Maybe youve been pouring it all into others, into your duties, your activities, your efforts for success. Maybe youve just kept going, white-knuckling as you go rather than processing to feel or think or simply be. Thats why scheduling self care in your life is so important.
When youre feeling depressed, you also are feeling disconnected. Most of all, youre feeling disconnected from yourself. You suffer in silence so the world will not judge you for it. But when you start to love yourself, you start to grow.
Self care can be many things. It can be walking the dog, taking a shower, writing in a journal, expressing yourself in any way or helping someone else in need can even be a way back to loving yourself.
Make a list of things you can do that are simple, that can help you how to not be depressed by connect with yourself when you feel detached, lonely, isolated and drained, the many symptoms of depression. This plan will help how to not be depressed and to adopt self care in the face of struggle rather than to spiral.
If you have to start somewhere, start in self love. Thats what self care is really all about. You are showing up to face the day because you love yourself. Because you matter. This doesnt mean you have to face everything. You dont have to figure it all out. You just have to meet yourself where you are and simply show up.
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Make It A Habit To Reward Yourself
Tired of all those things that make you stressed and depressed? Go ahead and allow yourself to take a break. Watch a movie, go to a park, invite some friends over, have a fancy meal, or do whatever pleases you, makes you happy or interested. You ought to have a good time with yourself and feel worthy of feeling well again this is how you can get back to your normal life. Take as many small joyful moments as you possibly can a the moment, especially after:
- You completed a task
- Did something you didnt want to do
- Changed a negative thought with something more helpful
- Focused on the brighter side of the situation.
Electroconvulsive Therapy Electric Shock Treatment
If you have severe depression and other treatments, like medication, haven’t worked, ECT might be recommended for you.
When receiving ECT, you will be given an anaesthetic and medication that relaxes your muscles to begin with. Electrodes will be placed on your head that give an electrical “shock” to your brain.
ECT is given over a series of sessions, normally twice a week for three to six weeks.
ECT can cause side effects including nausea, headaches, aches in the muscles and memory problems.
Most people find that ECT is good for relieving severe depression, but the beneficial effects tend to wear off when several months have passed.
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How Not To Feel Depressed: Feel Hope
Hope is real. Having a vision of hope allows you to keep going despite all of the doubts. Hope doesnt mean not having doubts or times when you feel overwhelmed and discouraged. Hope means hanging in there, being patient, and continuing working toward your values and goals despite problems . Hope wont make depression magically disappear, but hope is how not to feel depressed.
APA ReferencePeterson, T. . How Not to Feel Depressed: Whats the Secret?, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2022, September 19 from https://www.healthyplace.com/self-help/depression/how-not-to-feel-depressed-what-s-the-secret
Identity And Shadow Work
This blog focuses on some deeper domains, including reflecting on ones identity and philosophy of living, defenses and shadow works, and concludes with a general approach to psychological mindfulness. This is our last official entry, although I will offer a final summary of the blog tour summary that includes links to the entire blog series so that in the future folks can just click on one link.
The principles of active change explored in the second half of this series have been focused on pragmatically reversing cycles of shutdown and finding more adaptive ways of being in the world.
This final entry is a bit more abstract, broad, and deep. It focuses on developing your philosophy of living and a fuller understanding of yourself. It is based on the idea that if we are going to truly organize our lives in a way that really allows for a growth-to-goodness trajectory, we need a core understanding of our place in the universe, a framework to make sense of right and wrong or to assess valued states of being, and ways of reflecting on things larger than our lives.
This is the moral/ethical, existential, spiritual, and/or religious dimension to living. It deals with questions such as: What makes human life valuable and worthwhile?What is our place in the cosmos? How do we know what kind of life we ought to lead? What is authentic well-being? What is evil? Who am I really? And, given that, how should I live my life?
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Understand Its Not Your Fault
Being normal or perfect is a myth. We all experience difficult times and difficult emotions. But when experiencing depression, one can feel isolated in their thoughts and feelings which if unchecked or untreated can lead to suicidal ideations. Thats why depression is so important to act upon rather than let linger.
Negative feelings will always come up. No one can walk around full of sunshine and happiness 24/7. We all get worn down. We all experience losses. We all need rest.
But when negative feelings overtake you, when you cant face the real world because of the sadness or difficult emotions you are feeling, thats when it can turn into depression.
We are a society that wants instant gratification. With that fix it now mentality we find it even harder to overcome our depression and find instead that we are masking our own feelings. It doesnt just go away. Theres no quick fix on how to not be depressed, as much as we want there to be one.
There are many causes of depression and many misconceptions about it as well. Namely, people think its an attitude thing or ungratefulness towards life. But there are many factors like genetics, chemical imbalance, stress, loss, trauma and more. Snapping out if it is not always possible. Read this article to read more about other factors that affects depression: Why Do I Feel Depressed Every Once in a While for No Reason?
How Can You Get Yourself Out Of A Funk
Although depression can become a very clinical subject, many of the ways to help yourself through this mood disorder are very simple and practical. Self-care is a key component to living a happy, healthy life and between your diet, exercise, daily routines, and social interactions there are plenty of steps you can take to influence your mood. As you move through your depression, be open to trying new approaches and understand that it might take a combination of these self-care practices before you notice a change in your mood.
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Dont Try To Cheer Them Up All The Time
This is one of the worst things you can do because it invalidates their feelings and makes them feel like theyre not allowed to be sad or down in the first place! Its important to let your loved ones know that its okay to feel however theyre feeling, without any pressure from you to change how theyre feeling.
Signs You Are Depressed
I had let myself arrogantly believe that depression was something other people dealt with.
I never thought Id personally experience depression. In fact, I was sure I wouldnt, so when it hit me, I ignored the signs. I pretended I was okay. After all, I was still seen as a happy person by my friends and co-workers. I was still getting my work done. Nobody feels great all the time, right?
Here are four clear signs of depression I experienced . If you or your spouse are experiencing these same symptoms, please know that help is available. These are not the only signs of depression, but they seem to be among the most common:
I experienced all four of these for years but attributed them to other factors. Id made excuses like:
Im just getting older.
Im just going through a stressful season.
My thyroid is messed up, so this is just the way Ill always feel.
Maybe I need to exercise more or eat healthier, and Ill feel better.
I did the things within my power, like exercising more, but it only made a marginal difference. I still felt like I was walking through life with heavy weights around my ankles and a raincloud over my head. My amazing wife, Ashley, saw what I had refused to see. I was depressed.
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Read The News In General
Most news isnt written to be educational its written to get peoples attention and make money. Same with tabloids, a lot of magazines, gossip sites, etc.
You might think its a mindless form of entertainment but its probably dragging down your mood when you keep hearing about bad things in the world.
Learn How To Stop Negative Thoughts
Depression doesn’t just make you feel bad, it can also cause you to think more negatively. Changing those negative thoughts, however, can improve your mood.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a type of therapy that works to alter common patterns of negative thinking called cognitive distortions in order to eliminate depression. There are also many self-help books, apps, and online courses that can help you learn how to change your unhealthy thinking patterns.
The symptoms of depression, such as fatigue and difficulty concentrating, make procrastination tempting.
Putting things off fuels depression. It can lead to increased guilt, worry, and stress.
It’s important to set deadlines and manage your time well. Establish short-term goals and work hard to get the most important things done first. Each task you successfully complete will help you break through the habit of procrastination.
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Keep A Spotless Home Or Cook From Scratch
Some people love cooking and cleaning, but I am not one of those people.
Im a minimalist so my apartment is usually organized and not messy, but I only spend maybe 10 or 15 minutes a week total actually cleaning things.
As for cooking, it just seems like a whole lot of time and effort for something youre going to spend 5 minutes eating. I microwave something tasty or make pasta or a sandwich in just a few minutes, and then I use all my free time to do what I love.
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How To Reach Out For Depression Support
Look for support from people who make you feel safe and cared for. The person you talk to doesnt have to be able to fix you they just need to be a good listenersomeone wholl listen attentively and compassionately without being distracted or judging you.
Make face-time a priority. Phone calls, social media, and texting are great ways to stay in touch, but they dont replace good old-fashioned in-person quality time. The simple act of talking to someone face to face about how you feel can play a big role in relieving depression and keeping it away.
Try to keep up with social activities even if you dont feel like it. Often when youre depressed, it feels more comfortable to retreat into your shell, but being around other people will make you feel less depressed.
Find ways to support others. Its nice to receive support, but research shows you get an even bigger mood boost from providing support yourself. So find waysboth big and smallto help others: volunteer, be a listening ear for a friend, do something nice for somebody.
Care for a pet. While nothing can replace the human connection, pets can bring joy and companionship into your life and help you feel less isolated. Caring for a pet can also get you outside of yourself and give you a sense of being neededboth powerful antidotes to depression.
10 tips for staying connected
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You Dont Need A Therapist
No one ever regrets getting help, Capanna-Hodge says. They only regret when they dont. Telling someone they shouldn’t get help when they are depressed is the equivalent of telling someone who is drowning to just swim faster.
As of 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 19.2% of adults had received mental health treatment in the previous 12 months.
What To Do If Your Child Is Depressed
When a child is suffering from depression, knowing what to do as a parent can feel extremely challenging and elusive. Depression in a child can trigger feelings of anxiety and worry in a parent, as well as frustration and fear. While depression can be very serious and is something that should be addressed immediately, the good news is that with therapy and sometimes other interventions, depression is treatable. Here are some things to do if your child is suffering from depression
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Assess Your Level Of Depression
Lets start by reflecting on the level of your depressive shutdown. We can do this by asking how much shutdown is present and for how long. We can think of this in terms of the intensity, duration, and frequency of the symptoms.
Put in the form of questions, we can ask: How strong are the symptoms? How long do they last? How often do they occur? Probably the easiest way to get a picture of your levels of depression is to take a brief test. Here is an easy test, the PHQ 9. Please take it and see how you score, as it gives you a sense of what level of depression you are dealing with.
Note that when you take it the meaning of your scores will depend on if you are a minimizer or exaggerator. This is hard to assess if you arent trained, just know that a minimizer tends to dismiss or downplay their symptoms and an exaggerator tends to overshoot. For now, just note that the correct interpretation depends on how you tend to respond, but it should give you a basic idea.
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The second half of this series will bring the focus more on the kinds of things you can work to change or do differently. Right now, we remain in the awareness stage, so just note your overall level of depressive symptoms and the more specific domains you are having problems with.
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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.
The key to navigating depression is to be open, accepting, and loving toward yourself and what youre going through.
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.
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Seeking Help For Depression
Get help if you’re still feeling down or depressed after a couple of weeks.
Treatments for depression include psychological therapies and antidepressants.
You can refer yourself for psychological therapies like cognitive behavioural therapy or counselling on the NHS. You don’t need a referral from your GP.
You can talk it through with your GP first if you prefer. Your GP can also tell you about antidepressants.
If you start to feel that your life isn’t worth living or about harming yourself, get help straight away.
You can:
- contact Samaritans on 116 123 for 24-hour confidential, non-judgemental emotional support