Ever since humans started keeping score of which ailment causes the most deaths, depression pokes its ugly head high above the rest as the unparalleled trendsetter. If you are suffering from depression, it not only affects you physically, but also causes you severe mental issues as well, definitely life-threatening. Be it chronic fatigue, decreased appetite for food and sex, lack of sleeping, or sleeping all day long, depression influences your body and mind alike, all in a negative way. And after checking out all these harmful effects of such a problem, it makes sense if you want to find out how you can fight it, or even prevent it, so without much fuss, let’s discuss the best tips you can utilize to make sure depression never comes close to you.

Moderate the time you sleep:
You can define sleep as our body’s natural way of handling the stress accumulated throughout the day. In most cases, the people who suffer from depression, also suffer from a constant lack of sleep. It is not like they don’t want to sleep or don’t feel drowsy at all, it’s just that they cannot sleep no matter what, apparently. The best way to counteract your depression and your lack of sleep, is by following the 10-3-2-1 rule. By 10, means the number of hours before your bedtime you should stop ingesting caffeine. 3 means the number of hours you should abolish doing any sort of strenuous physical activity before your bedtime. 2 means, the number of hours you stop taking any food before going to sleep. And finally, 1 means the number of hours you should stop looking at a computer, mobile or a TV screen before your bedtime.

Talk to a specialist:
If you or your loved ones are facing depression, the best advice anyone can give you is to seek out the help of a medical professional. Most of the times people suffering from depression, think they are alone, and cannot be helped. This further increases the level of depression, and becomes more of a threat. To tackle this problem, the optimal choice is to talk to a specialist and get help. There are many experts who are ready to help you, be it on call, or during a personal face to face meeting. You can talk to a therapist online, and it would definitely help you with your depression.

Join in on the fun with the family:
Of all the great bounties we are blessed with, a healthy and supportive family is right up there at the top of the list. Families help you if you are down, revel in your success, share your sorrow, and even celebrate your joy. So if at any stage, you feel even a tiny bit depressed, make sure you make time out for your family and try to push the negative thoughts out by stuffing in new positive thoughts. Of course, fun opportunities with the family do give you a chance to forget about your problems for a while and enjoy the present, so it is definitely a life-saver.

Staying responsible:
One of the main causes of depression, is the feeling of being stuck, be it your professional career, or your personal life. In such situations, the best way to get out of this rut is to take on responsibilities instead of letting them go. These responsibilities help you to keep up with a lifestyle that helps you keep depression at bay, so definitely a good thing to do.

Set goals:
If you are suffering from depression, you feel like there is nothing to do because your life isn’t going anywhere. So if you want to tackle this depression, you need to do the opposite of that.You need to set goals for yourself, start with very small ones, like doing the dishes, or walking the dog. Then if you are comfortable with that, bring out the big guns, like taking on a new job, moving to a new location, making good choices when it comes to food, and you will say sayonara to depression in no time at all.

Author's Bio: 

Success Coach, Business Development Consultant, Strategist,Blogger, Traveller, Motivational Writer & Speaker