At this day and age, because of the struggles which become harder with every passing minute, every person feels depressed. Although there is a difference between being sad and being depressed, being sad for long periods can progress to depression. Depression may show itself in simple ways: a person sleeping for a very long time or not sleeping at all, loss of motivation, eating too much or too little, etc. If you feel these symptoms for more than a week, it may be depression. Such a slow routine and such negative thinking can ultimately lead depressive patients starting to contract suicidal tendencies.
However, there comes a point when a person gets fed up of what they are dealing with. Venting doesn’t work, talking to a therapist wouldn’t work or even medication wouldn’t work. However there are a few simple ways you can try to combat depression. You have to start by staying positive, as Helen Keller says Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow’.
• Get in a routine. Many people who have survived depression, as well as many psychiatrists, recommend trying to get in a routine. It can be something as simple as getting out of bed at 9AM, having breakfast at 11AM, writing in your journal, etc.
• Start setting goals. No matter how small they are, you need to build up the motivation to set a goal. Motivate yourself into staying positive, as Lyndon B. Johnson says ‘ Yesterday is not ours to recover but tomorrow is ours to win or lose’.
• Exercise. Exercising releases chemicals in your brain which cause you to feel good. The brain rewires itself with activity. The exercise routine can be anything, from a 10 minute walk to squatting. Whatever suits you.
• Start eating healthy. Of course there is no specific diet routine which is prescribed to people with depression. If you tend to overeat during depression, you can start by limiting the amount of food you eat. If you tend to not have any appetite , encourage and force yourself to eat. Avoid junk foods.
• Get adequate sleep. Many people with depression tend to struggle with their sleeping schedule. They tend to not feel sleepy at all but when they do sleep, they sleep for hours at end. Set a schedule and timing for when you’d sleep and when you’d wake up. Staying positive is the key all the while. As Willie Nelson says ‘once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, youll start having positive results’.
• Fighting negativity. Negativity is what leads people to depression and negativity is what keeps people in depression. Fight your negative thoughts with logic. If you think that everyone hates you, think of the friends and the people you have in your life who love you. If you think you are worthless, think of all the things you can do if you put yourself to good use. Think of how you can make this world a better place. One life can make great difference in this world.
As Zig Ziglar said “Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will”.
Author, Freelance writer