Depression is a persistent and overwhelming feeling of loneliness, detachment and isolation from the world and everything in it, including your close friends and family members. Check out the following for simple tips on how to deal with your depression.
Simple Tips to Help with Depression
There are many ways on how to beat depression, although hard to apply for the depressed who find it difficult even to pick up the phone, eat, sleep and move. Don’t beat yourself, though. You can start taking small steps at a time and be able to deal with your depressive thoughts. Here are some things to help.
Mindfulness
Being mindful, individuals learn how to focus and stay in the moment. They don’t have their minds in two places at the same time. That’s the power of mindfulness. It helps you stay in the moment, feel it and engage on it entirely.
However, things are different for the depressed mind that tends to mull over negative thoughts and unnecessary worries that also include negative events that might emerge in the future.
And with such continued negative thought cycle, one suffers from misery. To prevent it from happening, learn how to focus on the moment. While it is a hard skill to master, practice, focus and engage your sense of sound, sight, smell and taste in the moment. By being mindful, you leave less space in your brain to worry.
Music
It’s true that music is the food for the soul. Listening to upbeat music can instantly fill the air with positive vibes that can make you feel good because it has the ability of altering your brain chemistry.
Touch therapy
It is one of the best ways of beating depression, according to science. What it does is lowering cortisol, the stress hormone, and increasing oxytocin, the feel good hormone. Some techniques include acupressure and massage.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Add omega-3 fatty acids in your diet and improve your mood. Studies had it that those who had it daily in their diet had lower symptoms of sleep disorders, anxiety and suicidal thoughts. These fatty acids do not just improve your mood and lower depression systems but also improve heart health and lower bad cholesterol level.
No Negative Self-Talk
Don’t dwell in your negative thoughts or see the world in a negative way. Do not blame yourself when things go wrong. Depression gets the best of people because it reinforces worthlessness and self-doubt.
Do not let it win over you. Check on yourself and stop the negative inner self-talk whenever you notice yourself starting doing it.
When feeling down, do not take your thoughts seriously. Be objective and don’t believe those even if you should recognize their presence.
Time
Accept and recognize you have depression – wherein your thoughts are imbalanced. Slowly and each day, remind yourself that being depressed tuned you into a negative channel, so do not listen to it. Your mind is distorted when depressed. Also, remind yourself that it won’t be this way for good.
Be patient, do not beat yourself and take care of your health and well-being while depressed.
Distraction
Prevent over thinking by distracting yourself. Engage in a new hobby, walk your dog, or read a good book. You can also solve a puzzle or simply do anything to keep your mind distracted from the worries and fears you have inside it.
Follow these tips and improve the way you’re feeling. You can eventually beat depression by learning how to give yourself time and distraction, practice mindfulness and block the negative self-talk. Do you have some tips on how to beat depression? Tell us in the comments.