10 PRACTICAL WAYS TO DEAL WITH DEPRESSION
It’s understandable that you might be depressed, a lot of people are nowadays.
As human beings we have not been evolutionarily prepared for the amount of information we receive on a daily basis. Our bodies do not catch up with the mental stress to be able to balance it on a physical level.
All daily pressure is focused on our psyche. The statistics for mental illnesses are growing and what you feel is more than normal in modern day sociality. Go through my other article that i also present in video version TOUGH TIMES to dive into this subject.
And in this article, I will give you practical tips on how to deal with depression yourself. Please note that depression and life crises could be the best trampoline to your future best self 💜
THE FOCUS MUST BE ON YOU
You are making yourself and your well-being a priority now.
No more seeing yourself from other people’s eyes. no more “I got to take care of million things first before I actively show myself love.” No more chasing things and people, creating bigger resistance and as a result widen gap between you and them. No longer knocking on closed doors and one-sided efforts, holding on to losses no matter how hard is to let go. Most importantly, no more pain and grudges. NOW ONLY YOU and SELF LOVE! You hear your own thoughts and correct them, you feel your own body and taking care of its needs, you remember what you like to do and what brings you joy, you find yourself again. It is an illusion that you lost yourself, it’s just a matter of reconnecting again.
Now it is you, YOU ARE YOUR FIRST PRIORITY. You are active in practical self-love. Refocus on you and your wellbeing it will probably the only one tough task when dealing with depression, because when it’s achieved everything else will follow. What creates a strong minded healthy and happy person? Daily healthy habits and self-care rituals! No one can help you out with your depression against your will and you are the main participant in the process. So, give yourself some love by finding your rituals that bring you pleasure and here are just some examples: walks in parks/nature, sunbaths, massage, focused quality time, playing with your pet, hot cocoa + comedy movie, relaxing bath, aroma meditation, guided breath work, yoga, inspirational podcasts, painting, puzzles… Make an effort and create the list of things you like to do. These activities should be resonating personally with you 💜
FOOD
You should eat right. Make it a hobby and fall in love with food preparation. Experiment and find easy healthy meals for yourself. As you start to fall in love with yourself again you will start to fall in love with taking care of yourself. These two works in harmony. Let the meal planning and preparation be the first task on the way out of your depression. You only need to know few recipes that you personally enjoy eating and make sure you always have ingredients at home. Walking to a supermarket and back is a great opportunity to move your body and see the world. Please note that each meal should contain carbs, fats, proteins and fiber. Never starve yourself and don’t overeat! Remember eating right 3 times a day is your MAIN TASK right now 💜
In addition I would recommend eliminating sugar from your diet completely. Over time, sugar consumption can lead to a greater accumulation of fat, which may turn into fatty liver disease, a contributor to diabetes, which raises your risk for heart disease. Consuming too much added sugar can raise blood pressure and increase chronic inflammation, both of which are pathological pathways to heart disease.
CONNECTION
Connect to a friend of yours that could be of support. You don’t even need to know that person very well, as long as they truly care about you. Avoid someone who will insensitively try to train you out of depression but rather someone who can create space and truly connect. Make sure to communicate that you require them to see you in the highest light and tell them in advance that you need them to be on your side regardless of you not being on your own side at times.
True meaningful connection, acceptance and support is very healing. Remember that you are in the process of recovery and this means you should surround yourself with only connective, supportive, encouraging and loving people and distance yourself from everyone else who makes you feel less.
REST
The best thing to do to take you out of depression is to sleep. When we sleep the negative momentum subsides. That’s why is important to learn to focus your mind on better feeling thoughts as soon as you wake up! Positive thinking is a panacea, learning to refocus yourself from thoughts that destroy you to uplifting thoughts are the best thing anyone could do for themselves. You don’t need to be a law of attraction enthusiast to definitely know it for yourself already.
Happy life starts with eliminating negative thoughts by simply and gently refocusing your mind on something neutral or even positive. If it’s hard to think positively right now its ok, distract yourself by thinking about something neutral and soothing. By developing a sense of control over your mind you don’t only overcome depression, you build a healthy mental fundament for attracting your best future. Remember, any result is in practice itself - every time you consciously refocus from the negative, you put a brick to your new healthy fundament.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Yeah, yeah, we have all heard that, right? You got to keep moving, even slowly, even just to supermarket and back for now. Since you are now taking better care of your diet walks to supermarket can be a great start. Depending on your level of energy you may then start taking longer walks in nature or try tai chi. As your strength will increase you can do yoga / swimming / some sport classes.
Don’t go to gym right away trying to lift weights. That is for those with enough energy and strength. Start slow - adequately acknowledge your strength level and act out of gentle self-love. Love yourself enough to have a physical activity and love yourself enough not to overload yourself with it. Slow, light and consistent physical activity is better than rare and heavy. Overextending yourself physically may also cause injury. This will not be a good thing for your recovery. This halts any momentum you have built up and will limit you.
MEDICAL CHECKUP
Doctors say that stress is the cause for all diseases. It’s already a well-known proven fact. And yet we don’t usually know when and how disease starts to develop in our bodies. With growing statistics on autoimmune and all sort of other ailments, there is a big chance that a depressed person would have a HORMONAL IMBALANCE (estrogen / testosterone, thyroid hormonal imbalance), vitamin & mineral deficiency, hypoglycemia and adrenal fatigue etc.
You should visit your health practitioner and ask for medical tests in case you experience:
Hair loss
Insomnia, waking up throughout the night, hard to fall back asleep
Hard to wake up, feeling tired after full night sleep, low energy level throughout the day
Ongoing fatigue and loss of energy
Anxiety, panic attacks
Digestive issues. (ANY slightly abnormal stool on a constant basis is a call for research/doctor visit)
Any kinds of pain in the body
While most issues still come from mind and stress, you cannot rely only on your mind to heal hormonal imbalance or vitamin deficiency! Remember that mental and physical health are not separate as we often perceive. We need to equally pay attention to these both areas and take a balanced approach in healing, don’t just rely on your mind. You must help yourself physically!!!
I do not have an authority to prescribe any medication, I am not a doctor and everything I will say next should not be considered not as a recommendation but rather an invitation for your personal research and a doctor visit. If you struggle with anxiety and panic attacks it is important to prioritize the soothing of your nervous system first. Chamomile tea, valerian, calming herbs and CBD oil could largely help you on your healing journey, so save yourself some struggle! Be systematic and consistent. This is a recovery process, not just a momentary “chill pill” solution. Give yourself at least couple of months.
Depression and anxiety can be the symptoms of vitamin B1, B6 and zinc deficiency. It is recommended to take courses of these supplements 2-3 times a year.
⁃ B1 is recommended in a form of benfotiamine
⁃ B6 is recommended in a form of pyridoxal 5-phosphate
⁃ Zinc is recommended in citrate, lactate, glycinate or in the form of picolinate
The amino acids 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is precursor of serotonin and used for anxiety, insomnia, depression, OCD and others. 5-HTP is not registered as drug and can be bought without prescription, but please keep in mind that while this supplement is commonly used among mental health practitioners the studies of 5-HTP is still very controversial.
TAKE YOUR TIME
As much as it seems like you want IT RIGHT NOW you actually don’t. Imagine that life gifts you with all your unimaginable dreams RIGHT NOW, how long will your happiness last? Please don’t lie to yourself… It would be great if you can understand my next point. We don’t want fast ups and downs for you, with fast “ups” chances are you will experience the next “downs” just as fast. Yet with a steady slow improvement process we don’t only sooth the inevitable setbacks but also build the fundament for a new-unshakable-strong-stable-YOU.
The best way to prevent negative thoughts spiraling is REFOCUSING. If your maximum right now is watching a movie, great, watch a comedy. Eventually you need to find an inspiration again. Do you already have a project that inspires you? If not, what inspires you when you browse the internet or what are you nostalgic about or when you were a kid? Is make up / history / numerology / traveling / home decor / animals / styling / finances / politics? What is it? This last step of your recovery should be finding and restoring your passion for life through something that gives you a sense of purpose. Something you would love to wake up every day for. As you start focusing on that direction more and more you will notice a buildup of positive momentum.
Please understand that you are not looking for the one and only single purpose in life, don’t give it too much importance, have fun with it! We have many purposes in life, and your ONLY TRUE PURPOSE IS TO BE HAPPY and do what brings you joy!
THERAPY!
I’m available not only to assist you on suggested steps and be your supportive friend but to dive into your self-discovery journey by unraveling and healing what needs to be healed. Much love 💜
You will have setbacks, no doubt. But your depression gives you an opportunity to learn some lessons faster than without it. Care enough about how you feel so that you consciously navigate your mind to stay in that good energy.
So many people going though crisis in life did not only overcome depression but also sky rocked in their attraction power and life blossoms. Depression could be your fast track to your best life, and there are countless examples to that.
Your choice, are you ready to love yourself properly now?