10 Things to Help with Depression

You want things to help depression, but maybe because of depression you’re thinking nothing will help (Coping Skills for Battling Depression: Here’s What You Need). No matter how bad depression gets, there is hope. Hope exists, and it is real because there are things to help with depression. The below list contains 10 things that have been proven to help depression.

1. Take responsibility for your own wellness. Take charge of yourself and your depression rather than waiting for something or someone to save you. You’re strong; use books, therapy, support groups, and the other items on this list to rise up out of depression.
2. Get active. Regular movement and mild exercise positively affect the brain and your own sense of well-being. Also, gradually begin to do things you used to enjoy, and you’ll find real enjoyment returning.
3. Sleep well. Adequate sleep is crucial in depression recovery. Create a calming nighttime routine that involves avoiding television and other screens will help induce restorative sleep.
4. Eat and drink well. Nutrition plays a key role in depression. Food can increase or decrease neurotransmitters like dopamine, noradrenaline, and serotonin affect moods and impact energy levels.
5. Breathe. Deep breathing releases endorphins and other mood-enhancing biochemicals in the brain. Slow, deep breaths steady the body and mind and impact energy levels.
6. See the light. The brain needs full-spectrum light in order to regulate moods and improve outlook. Every day, spend about half an hour outside or use full-spectrum bulbs or a lightbox inside.
7. Make self-care routine. Self-care, attending to your physical health, mental health, and personal hygiene, is a vital part of depression care; however, depression makes self-care difficult. Make self-care routine by creating and writing down a daily self-care routine.
8. Be touchy. Skin-to-skin contact is a powerful component of human connection, and it reduces the effects of depression. Get a massage or partner with someone for informal massages.
9. Expand your perspective. Depression narrows your attention and makes you focus on the negative. Shift your perspective and your interpretation of the people and events in your life; open yourself up to the possibility of different ways of thinking and feeling.
10. Visualize your depression free self. The power of visualization is real. Create an image of yourself living without depression, and think about it often throughout each day to provide a steady stream of inspiration and motivation.

Give these 10 things to help with depression a try. They’re all effective components of a plan to overcome depression.

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