Overcoming Depression

A mental health disorder characterized by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life. Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. You may have trouble doing normal day-to-day activities, and sometimes you may feel as if life isn't worth living.

What you need to know about depression

· Depression seems to be more common among women than men.

· Symptoms include lack of joy and reduced interest in things that used to bring a person happiness.

· Life events, such as bereavement, produce mood changes that can usually be distinguished from the features of depression.

· The causes of depression are not fully understood but are likely to be a complex combination of genetic, biological, environmental, and psychosocial factors.

Depression Symptoms

· depressed mood

· reduced interest or pleasure in activities previously enjoyed, loss of sexual desire

· unintentional weight loss (without dieting) or low appetite

· insomnia (difficulty sleeping) or hypersomnia (excessive sleeping)

· psychomotor agitation, for example, restlessness, pacing up and down

· delayed psychomotor skills, for example, slowed movement and speech

· fatigue or loss of energy

· feelings of worthlessness or guilt

· impaired ability to think, concentrate or make decisions

· recurrent thoughts of death or suicide, or attempt at suicide

Overcoming Depression

1. Meet yourself where you are and accept yourself.

Depression affects millions of people, including some in your life. You may not realize they face similar challenges, emotions, and obstacles.

The key to self-treatment for depression is to be open, accepting, and loving toward yourself and what you’re going through.

2. Know that today isn’t indicative of tomorrow

Today’s mood, emotions, or thoughts don’t belong to tomorrow. If you were unsuccessful at getting out of bed or accomplishing your goals today, remember that you haven’t lost tomorrow’s opportunity to try again.

Give yourself the grace to accept that while some days will be difficult, some days will also be great. Try to look forward to tomorrow’s fresh start.

3. Assess the parts instead of generalizing the whole/ count your blessing

Depression can tinge recollections with negative emotions. You may find yourself focusing on the one thing that went wrong instead of the many things that went right. Try to stop this overgeneralization. Push yourself to recognize the good. If it helps, write down what was happy about the event or day. Then write down what went wrong.

Seeing the weight, you’re giving to one thing may help you direct your thoughts away from the whole and to the individual pieces that were positive.

4. Do the opposite of what the ‘depression voice’ suggests

The negative, irrational voice in your head may talk you out of self-help. However, if you can learn to recognize it, you can learn to replace it. Use logic as a weapon. Address each thought individually as it occurs.

If you believe an event won’t be fun or worth your time, say to yourself, “You might be right, but it’ll be better than just sitting here another night.” You may soon see the negative isn’t always realistic

5. Set attainable goals

A lengthy to-do list may be so weighty that you’d rather do nothing. Instead of compiling a long list of tasks, consider setting one or two smaller goals. All goals are worthy of recognition, and all successes are worthy of celebration. When you achieve a goal, do your best to recognize it.

You may not feel like celebrating with loud music and Zanku dance, but recognizing your own successes can be a very powerful weapon against depression’s negative weight. The memory of a job well done may be especially powerful against negative talk and overgeneralization.

6. You may find it helpful to create a routine

If depressive symptoms disrupt your daily routine, setting a gentle schedule may help you feel in control. But these plans don’t have to map out an entire day.

When to see a doctor

If you feel depressed, make an appointment to see your doctor or mental health professional as soon as you can. If you're reluctant to seek treatment, talk to a friend or loved one, any health care professional, a faith leader, or someone else you trust.

Take a Depression Test today

https://www.depression.org.nz/is-it-depression-anxiety/self-test/depression-test/