Ten Tips for Overcoming Depression
by Karl Perera
I know you came here looking for depression tips and help that you can use to feel happier. So
I've put together my best tips for you...
Some of these tips are physical and about your health. Some are mental and concern your mind and your thinking.
All this advice you can put in pratice today..
So here we go, my top ten tips for beating depression (they are all equally important):
- Fresh Air. Open the windows in your house and breath in fresh air. Go for a walk and enjoy the benefits
that a fresh supply of oxygen has on your brain. Just getting outdoors will relax you and melt away your
stress. Your negative thinking will disappear and you'll feel happier.
- Exercise. This follows on from the previous tip. Exercise will help you to forget your worries and will
help you feel more positive. Your energy will increase and you'll feel ready to face the world with a new
happier attitude. Exercise also helps to make you look better and will boost your confidence. Just try
exercising and being negative - you can't!
- Light. You may feel unhappy in the winter or on dark days. Don't you feel happy when the sun shines? Try to
make your home as light as possible. If necessary change the colours so that light reflects off the walls. Go
outside when the sun is out. Sunlight has health benefits (don't overdo it of course). More light will make you
feel happier and healthier too.
- Imagine. Let your imagination help you to break out of your negative thoughts. Using your imagination to
visualize (see your dreams becoming real) is very powerful. Actually, just using your mind to imagine for a
moment what might happen if things improved or if you had what you want or need can help you incredibly. Your
depression will start to melt away as you begin to imagine what is possible, instead of what is impossible. If
you can dream about something you CAN achieve it.
- Set some goals. Depression gets worse as you feel hopeless. Having a sense of hope comes from having clear
aims. Are you drifting without direction in your life? If so you'll feel unhappy and dissatisfied. Clear goals
will help you to feel more positive.
So how should you make goals? Your dreams for a happier future will seem more reachable if you break them into
smaller achievable steps. Make each goal easy because when you suffer from depression you need hope that you
can complete the steps and goals you set. What do you want or need to change? What challenges or problems do
you need to overcome? Note them down. What is making you so unhappy and depressed? What goals will help you?
Setting achievable goals will change your thinking so you become less negative and unhappy. As you achieve each
goal your negativity becomes positivity.
- Take action. Doing nothing or procrastinating feeds depression. It increases your hopelessness and
unhappiness so take action as soon as you can. When you know what you need to do, don't wait, get started and
you'll feel happier imediately. Action works against depression and lifts you into a more positive frame of
mind. Beware of indecision. Inaction because of indecision only leads back to unhappiness and depression. Fear
is often behind indecision and inaction so focus on facing any fears which stop you from acting positively.
Take action - any action - today! One action you may decide to take and that is often the hardest is to seek
help. Many times the problem and symptoms depression produces are overwhelming and you may need
professional help. There are many options. Please read this information about getting depression treatment. You will also find some useful information about
different types of depression, addiction and some medications used for treatment.
- Express your emotions. Talk to a friend and explain how you feel. It may do you a lot of good to talk about
your pain. A friend will give you a different perspective. A friend can share their experience and support you.
Maybe your friend has also suffered from depression and can help with some advice.
- Write about your progress. Writing about the pain that depression is causing you is helpful but not if you
focus on that too much. The best way to use writing to heal yourself is to create a journal and write about
your progress. You should write down how you behave and feel as you face challenges each day. In particular,
note down how, despite your unhappiness and negativity, you are not giving up rather you are slowly taking
steps to escape the darkness. Rate your performance in difficult situations and the improvement in how you feel
about yourself.
- Read a book that will make you feel happy. Books are so motivating and there are so many out there that can
strengthen you. I advise you to take a look at some of the wonderful books about
depression on this site.
- Listen to inspiring music. This is an instant mood changer. When I feel stressed or angry for some reason I
slip on my headphones and listen to soothing music. In an instant my negative thoughts become positive and my
unhappiness leaves me. There is so much great music out there. I particularly like Enya or Origen for example
but anything inspirational be it classical, new age or rock can work. Try it. Depression is closely linked to
stress, so inspirational music can relax you and help you to calm yourself.
My eleventh tip (an extra for you) is a great one too:
Conquer depression and anxiety quickly and naturally - My No.1 Recommendations
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