Depression affects nearly two thirds of people at some point in their lives. It can be an incredibly damaging affliction to suffer through and can lead in a downward spiral towards other mental illness issues, such as anxiety and, in some cases, bi-polar disorder. This article will present a number of ways you can combat depression quickly and easily. We hope to provide some relief that will allow you to function again as your normal, happy self.
1. Take stock of your situation
One of the scariest things about depression is that makes problems truly seem bigger than they actually are. It distorts your reality into making you believe that you are actually far worse off than you actually are. And worse than all that is the idea that there is no hope or no escape that depression fosters. And so the first step in curing depression is to look at your situation objectively for what it is and not what your mind has made it to be.
To do this, grab a piece of paper and jot down the actual concrete reasons you have for suffering depression. What are they? What are you depressed about? It’s a hard question to answer sometimes but if you drill down deep enough, you will find a reason or a series of reasons for why you are depressed. Once you have the reason or reasons written down, you should have a clear idea of what exactly you are unhappy with.
2. Plan
The next step in getting rid of your depression is to put a plan together to combat that reason that is making you depressed. For this example, I’m going to imagine that your reason is that you are struggling financially. So, if you are struggling financially and that is causing arguments with family, or simply leaving you in this state of depression, what action could you take to fix it? Do you need to start looking for a job? And if you already have a job, could you take a second job? Could you apply for a higher paying job? Could you ask your boss for a raise? What are you spending your money on now that you could cut down or eliminate completely that might give you a way to pay your bills or start on your way to financial freedom?
These are all questions you will need to ask yourself if you are struggling financially. However, if you have other reasons, the same basic rule applies by asking the question:
“What can I do to improve the problem that is making me depressed?”
You will find that once you have written down some answers to these questions you should have a “frame work” or road map with which to combat the things that are getting you down.
3. Organize yourself.
So you know, for example, that you need to start looking for a second job. The next task is to organize that into smaller daily actions. For example, you might spend an hour each night looking for local jobs in the paper or on the internet that fit your skills. And you might also organise to cut down on any expensive, unnecessary items that you use, for example: cigarettes, high-speed internet access or cable TV. Once you have organized yourself and you know exactly what it is that you have to do, you should already be feeling a sense of progress and achievement having put all of that in place. But that is nothing compared to the next step.
4. ACT!
All the insight, planning and organizing in the world means nothing if you don’t do what you commit to yourself you will. Unquestionably, this is the most important step. Simply put, if you have committed to searching for a job for an hour, make sure you do it. This step may sound obviously, but it’s where many people, attempting to cure their depression by taking action fail. They simply do not do what they set out to do, make sure you aren’t one of them. I promise, once you start taking actions on your plans, you will continue to feel better and better with each consecutive day that passes.
5. Review
It’s important, once you’ve started taking action to review how you feel and the results you are achieving. Job searching for an hour a day may not seem like much, but over a week, that’s a full work day of action that you have taken against your depressive situation. It’s important to acknowledge that you ARE moving forward, no matter how slowly it may seem. Keep a daily journal activity and write down how you are feeling for the day. Whether it’s in a book, in a blog or on a social networking site, it’s a great way to track how you’re doing and even, get others to motivate and inspire you.
6. Celebrate!
After all of this effort, mental strength and will-power it’s vital that you take time to acknowledge that you have done something truly incredible and inspiring. Take time, once every week to do things that are just for you, that make you feel good. Because, not only will it revitalize you and give you the motivation to keep going, you deserve it! Let others know what you have accomplished and you will become an inspiration and a guiding light for others to follow!
Depression is something that many, many people suffer from a simply choose to live with, calling themselves a “depressed person” or some other crushing label. I’m here to tell you that you are not your depression, you aren’t defined by it. You are a person with unique gifts and talents who has strength that you don’t even realize you possess yet. Hopefully, through these tips you will be able to get a plan of action working that will have you smiling and living life to the fullest extent you can.
I will leave you with a quote that I love very much, I hope you can draw strength and inspiration from it.
“People can create mountains, by collecting specks of dust.”
Go on, start your journey to being happy.