Anxiety and depression strike us in a different form, and we all suffer these two feelings at least once in a lifetime. The reality is, in today's time, millions of people around the globe are suffering from depression. It is a feeling that can leave you helpless, can cause persistent sadness, and affect everyday life.
However, like every problem, depression, too, has a solution. It is possible to get rid of your mood swings through proper treatment, therapies, and lifestyle changes. If you are relating depression treatment to antidepressants, then my dear, you are taking the wrong road. This was the exact mistake that I made, but you don't have to do the same.
In this article, I have bought 20 steps that will help you in your journey of recovery. These tips will slowly make you a positive thinker, energetic personality, and a happy human. So, unless you finish this article and not just read it but understand it appropriately, keep everything else on hold.
Here is The Ultimate Self-help Guide To Get Rid Of Depression & Anxiety 2020
Improve your sleep & Depression And Anxiety
More than 35% of the world population is affected by insomnia. According to many types of research, insomnia is linked to poor quality of life and depression. It is a two-way road, depression can trigger insomnia or sleepless nights can build depression. If you want to cure your mood swings anxiety and depression, it is essential that you improve your sleep patterns and make your sleep the top priorities in life.
When trying to get better sleep, one last thing that you would want to do is get dependent on sleeping pills. Instead, you must go for cognitive therapy, and dialectical behavior therapy to help you get better sleep. But before that, don't be afraid of consulting a physiatrist or a therapist and ensure that you don't have any ongoing emotional issues or any medical problems that could be causing sleeplessness.
Once you find the cause of insomnia, you can fight it back quickly. To improve your sleep, you must switch off all your electronics around 9.00 pm, and for at least 30 minutes, you should read your favorite book. These are small yet effective ways to improve sleep.
Diet is not just essential for physical health, but it also affects our mental health. It is such a necessary part of mental health that it gave birth to an entire field of medical science called nutritional psychiatry. In simple words, whatever we eat affects every aspect of our health. To improve your mental health, you should increase the intake of fruits, green vegetables, olive oil, and antioxidants. Refined grains, sugar, red meat, high-fat dairy products, potatoes are known to increase the risk of depression.
You should also increase the intake of vitamins and magnesium to control mood swings. Blueberries, acai berries, seaweed, and pure dark chocolate are some of the super-foods that can help you keep happy.
Well, as per research, work out, and exercises produce "happy" chemicals known as serotonin and endorphins. These chemicals help you fight depression. You should start by walking 40 minutes a day, do stretching and yoga. You can also join salsa, swimming, or any other activity that you enjoy.
Try to increase your movements as much as you can. Don't use the lift, or don't take your car to the mall; such small things will increase your movement and improve your mental health.
At work and at home every day we have to make decisions. But when depression is at its peak, simple questions like what will you eat for lunch can create panic. If you are facing such issues, then the best way is to plan your whole week. This will reduce the pressure of sudden decision making. For example, you can make your weekly meal plans and grocery lists. Once you structure your everyday routine, it will help you keep calm because nothing unexpected will happen in life. This pattern will help you keep your nervous system in good shape. To do this, you need to make your everyday schedule and ensure that you complete your daily routine.
Remember those times when a dip in a swimming pool would make you feel super energetic. Or when creating your piece of art with paint and brush made you feel more confident. When we are depressed, we leave all those things behind that to make us feel happy. So start them again, take out time for everything you enjoyed, and you will soon find much more positivity and happiness around you.
Stress is one of the primary reasons for depression, and thus you must work on reducing your weight. Even if you cannot delete the stress from your life, you can certainly reduce it to a large extent. To do so, you should identify those things that trigger your anxiety. It could be anything a person, place or activity. Once you define, such things avoid them. Another way to reduce stress is to learn relaxation techniques. Yoga and breathing exercises are also useful in reducing stress,
One of the worst things about depression and anxiety is that they make you isolated. You lock yourself in your shell because you feel unwanted. But that's not true, and it is the depression that is preventing you from bonding with others. As humans, we all need love and care. Try to stay connected with the people you love, reach out to your BFF, call your cousin, and have a blast. You can start with small messaging and then calling.
Get your daily intake of sunlight and vitamin D
The worst thing to do during depression is to lock yourself in a dark room. Keep your room lit up. Make sure that you take at least fifteen minutes of sunlight every day. You will be surprised to know that you can also choose light therapy and believe it or not. It works wonders.
Many people who live in colder regions suffer depression as they are deprived of sunlight. For such people, these happy lights, or also known as SAD lights, were introduced. These lamps can help reduce anxiety and stress by providing an adequate amount of sunlight.
Water is a solution to many problems. As per research's dehydration can worsen the symptoms of anxiety. Dehydration also reduces the energy of your brain, and it increases stress. But, Mind it, all those sugary drinks are not a replacement of water.
You only need water to quench your thirst; nothing else can do that. Thus try to keep your brain hydrated and happy by drinking lots of water.
Negative thoughts and feelings are overwhelming, and when we are depressed, they cloud our minds. Negative thinking becomes a persistent pattern during such periods. In such a situation, you can start filtering your thoughts and try to bring more positive thoughts. It can be difficult at the start but not impossible.
When we are in freezing temperatures, and our bodies start shivering we get tensed up. If you are suffering depression and your body is cold, or you suffer low BP, your central nervous system will also get tensed up, and you will feel overwhelmed. Thus, you need to keep your body warm, and to do so, you should take plenty of warm liquids like coffee soups etc.
You can join community clubs and get engaged in social activities. It will help you stay around and keep in touch with like-minded people. This will reduce your feelings of loneliness and increase confidence. You should also attend social gatherings, parties, and marriages to keep happy.
Have you ever seen that smile on your face that comes when you help that older women cross the road or when you feed birds? These small little things do not just bring a smile; they also help in reducing our anxiety. Yes, As per many types of research, it has been found out that helping others can make people happy. You can join some social groups or NGOs as a volunteer and help people or animals as you like. This will boost your confidence, increase your happiness, and release anxiety.
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If no therapy or medication is working for you, then you can try some spiritual framework. Sometimes a belief in the power that is greater than us and protecting us can give us mental relief. This keeps us hopeful and allows us to believe that positive change can occur. Prayer is a functional medicine that can change many things. So, some doses of spirituality won't harm. Going towards spiritual sides helps us clean our thoughts. It also helps us to get peace of mind because we start believing that there are superior powers and angels to take care of us.
One of the worst phases of emotional break-down is that we start disliking ourselves. This disliking can also turn into hatred. You must begin to love yourself. Start giving priority to your things, your likes, dislikes, hobbies, and do all those things that you would and to do for yourself and not for your family, partner, or society. This change will make you feel better, and your happy hormones will also start releasing. There is one famous phrase charity begins from home; similarly, if you want others to love you first love yourself.
If you are not comfortable talking to people at the start, then you can start writing or journaling about your feelings and your experiences. Diary has always been man's best friend, and you can tell her all your secrets without the fear of being judged. You can write about your worries, the things you like, you don't like and a lot more. Slowly you will start finding peace in doing so. Who knows if you are a good writer, your diary can turn into an autobiography or a help group that can help many others.
Often during depression and anxiety, people are overwhelmed with negative thoughts. These thoughts can incline you to do the things that might be harmful to you or others in extreme cases. The best way to fight these thoughts is to do the exact opposite of what your depressed mind is saying. So, if it asks you to stay alone, go out and mingle with friends. These small initiatives will enhance your will power and reduce anxiety levels. You will also feel much more positive and robust.
If you are feeling lonely, stressed, and depressed, they can break the cycle. Pets remind you that you are not alone; you have a buddy who is always dying for your company and is dependent on you. When you know that you have someone to take care of and they are dependent on you entirely, you will do things for them. Whether you want or not, you will get up to take your dog on a walk, make him a portion of food and play with him. This will also increase your happy hormones. You will be busy and more comfortable with a pet.
Don't generalize things from one experience
Time keeps changing, and sometimes it is good, sometimes bad. We all face negative experiences. Sometimes we lose our jobs for no mistake of ours. Sometimes our partners cheat on us although we love them more than anything. Sometimes we suffer an injury that takes a lot of time to recover. All these things can leave us shattered. But that doesn't mean that we start generalizing things. One thing went terribly. The other stuff will go the same way that's not true. So, instead of cribbing on your negative experience, plan your future and look forward to better incidents that may change your life.
FAQs & Depression ANd Anxiety?
Taking a trip to places that are close to nature is another ideal way to fight your depression. You can go to an exotic beachside resort or a jungle safari. You can also go for mountain climbing, campaigning, hiking, rock climbing, and skiing. To do all these activities, you will have to get out of the hustle-bustle of daily life and spend some time in nature. Nature is a great healer, and once you are amid green plants, soothing sound, and cool breeze, you will forget all your depression and stress.
👉🏻What is clinical depression?
Clinical depression is a condition that affects the ability to think negatively, and it affects our ability to feel pleasure. In contrast to normal sadness that disappears after some time, clinical depression is persistent and can last for years if not treated.
👉🏻What are the symptoms of depression?
Here are a few of the significant symptoms of depression: Sudden gain or loss of weight due to changed diet. Lack of energy. Increased fatigue. Constant irritability from small things. Change in sleeping style and patterns. Lack of interest in pleasure activities. Difficulty in making decisions. Feeling worthless and hopeless.
👉🏻Is it true that menopause can cause depression?
Production of Estrogens and progesterone decreases and slowly stops during menopause, and egg productions also stop that cause lack of periods. As per the experts during the transition to menopause, women are at higher risks of depression. It is because of the sudden change in estrogens and progesterone productions. '
Quick LinksThese were some easy self-help steps to fight depression and anxiety. These steps are not magic juice that will suddenly change everything. They are small initiatives that will bring massive changes within you but slowly and gradually. In case you feel that you are doing everything right, and despite following these steps, your emotional issues and mood swings are getting worse, you must seek professional help. Getting additional help from a professional doesn't categorize you to a weaker section. Reaching out to someone for help is the much stronger step.
Also, if you are already seeking professional help, these self-help steps will speed up your recovery, and they will ensure that you never go back to the same old depressing state.
One of the essential things to keep in mind is that depression can be treated, and you are not alone in this. When you suffer, your friends and family also suffer. There are millions like you who are seeking help for the same reasons, and therefore don't be ashamed and don't feel alone.
