10 Tips to Help You Overcome Depression

In autumn, everything seems cold and boring. In such a period, many people are depressed. Depression is a common but serious mood disorder. To overcome depression symptoms and bad mood, read the following simple tips.

10 easy ways to overcome depression

1. Control your thoughts

Forget the word “depression” and its derivatives! If you still are pessimistic, think of this as a temporary decline – it’s just a bad day or a couple of days, but not in any way a “depression”. This word is negative that it is very difficult to resist. It is much easier to cope with a bad mood rather than depression.

2. Keep to a healthy diet

Overeating, poor nutrition, starvation, heavy drinking – these are signs of a deviant behavior, an attempt to suppress our feelings and emotions. But no matter how hard you try to suppress your feelings, sooner or later they will still appear. No need to “eat for comfort” trying to get rid of emotions – any way you can’t “eat them”! Think of it this way: every time you eat without feeling hungry, you are subconsciously trying to suppress emotions that will still arise and provoke new “midnight raid on the fridge”. A vicious circle. Do not try to run away from your feelings, deal with them. Tell yourself: “I am ready to face my fears. I will not complicate this situation. I will eat only when I’m hungry”. You will be surprised how quickly your diet will normalize if you control your appetite this way. An optimal option – three meals a day. Remember that hunger is a natural physical reaction of the body, it’s a desire of the body, not our mind. This does not mean that you should keep to a strict diet. Eat everything you want, but in reasonable quantities and only when you feel hungry.

3. Do exercises

Sport and proper nutrition is not a “first aid” for depression. Lifestyle will help to save not only physical but also mental health. In addition, exercises discipline and shape endurance. It is not necessary to participate in a marathon – just go for a walk for half an hour every day.

4. Change lifestyle

To overcome depression, get rid of habits that cause different signs of depression. Every day, try to change your mindset, think of what is happening in a positive light. If you blame other people for your failures, find the strength to face the truth. Always repeat to yourself: “I’m guilty of what has happened. I should not have responded that way. I can change everything”. The next time you find yourself in a similar situation, try to behave differently, to break a current behavioral circuit. If you feel that others treat you badly, remember that you can not read their minds and they can think anything they want. Humor and self-irony also help cope with difficulties of life and resist depression.

5. Face the truth

Review your expectations and priorities in life. You will probably have to give up some illusions and set more realistic goals. People prone to various types of depression often assure themselves that their happiness is impossible without certain things – love, wealth, money, fame, etc. If it is impossible to get what you want, it is very easy to start feeling sorry for yourself. You’d better just accept the situation. Some situations in life simply cannot be changed. You’d better set a realistic goal. For example, you can change your job or break a painful relationship.

6. Be friendly with people

Try to be friendly with others. Attention and genuine interest will help you to build new positive relationships. Ask friends and family not to pay attention to your depressive behavior and ignore your complaints. Find the thing that you can do together with your friends – do sports, dancing, hiking, etc.

7. Stop complaining

When you complain, cry, tell friends about your feelings, they will certainly show understanding and sympathy. Unfortunately, understanding and sympathy encourage the depressive behavior. Sometimes, if you’re depressed, friends or family members are willing to completely release you from homework, ask to stay in bed day and night, take care of you. As a consequence, you become dependent on others, you are looking for their sympathy at any cost. Other signs of a depressive state are overeating, chaotic waste of money, alcohol and drug abuse, random sex without emotions. All this allows to relax and feel better for a short time. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and get rid of these habits.

8. Solve problems in your personal life

Strained relations with relatives and complicated love affairs do not cause positive emotions. Of course, it is impossible to solve all problems in personal life at once, you should do it gradually. Set reachable goals. Visit a psychotherapist, family counselor, or contact friends. Ask yourself: “What negative or stressful situations exist in my life? How can I solve them? How to fix conflict relationships?” Sometimes depressed people are simply unable to find the correct solution to the problem because they reject all solutions that seem to be unpleasant or ineffective. Do not let pessimism influence your decisions. Be open to all decisions, no matter how complex or unusual they may seem to you.

9. Be Optimistic

A habit of seeing everything in a dark light may also cause depression. Studies have shown that depressed people tend to underestimate their achievements, talents, and merits. People satisfied with their lives also face failures, experience frustration, pain, fear, sadness, anxiety, and guilt, but they do not make a tragedy out of this. They keep a good heart because they take pain and suffering as an integral part of life. Therefore, they have more friends who help them to overcome any difficulties. People who make this brave choice are worthy to be admired.

10. Find a Hobby

Lack of interests and hobbies is probably one of the most common causes of depression. When all your life is limited to work, it is easy to become depressed when something goes wrong in the professional sphere. It’s high time to find a new hobby. Interests and hobbies are important for psychical and mental health, they help to achieve harmony, feed our self-esteem and just improve mood. Doing favorite things gives satisfaction and distracts from negative thoughts and emotions that often lead to depression. Try active exercises, team games, travel, working with your hands (for example, gardening, handwork).

In the case when none of these tips helps you to overcome your problem, you can buy medications that treat depression: Prozac, Zoloft, Lithium, and others. You can even buy antidepressants online. Be healthy!