How do you tackle your depression?
With the growing recognition of how common depression and anxiety are in today’s society, there has perhaps never been such a demand for ways to treat and manage depression. Of course the very fact that depression is more common means that doctors, healthcare professionals, counsellors and other helping organisations are more able to help through a greater range of treatments.
Of course we all feel sad or unhappy with our lives on occasion. We may even have heard friends say, “I am very depressed today”. Yet depression in a medical sense is something more than this. We are talking about more than feeling sad. The feelings overwhelm us and interfere with our lives. Often we feel lethargic or a passenger in our own lives, with little control. Some people describe the “100 mph head” where your head buzzes with thoughts as you try to work through all of the scenarios that might unfold in the environment you face. Often these symptoms will prevent sleep, promote lethargy, change or appetite, they may change how we feel about people, or being in crowds.
Everyone experiences depression in a different way, but there is help available and everyday people improve their emotional health and emerge from depression. There are many different ways to manage depression so there will be a method that best suit you.
In starting to tackle your depression you should be aware that there are no instant fixes, you cannot take a pill and it is fixed. Often you will be given medication, but its principle function is to help stabilise your mood, so that you can start to feel better. Usually the next step is to understand and start to tackle the causes of your depression. The causes of depression are large and varied, and talking therapies can help you to find events in your life that you are unhappy about or unhelpful thoughts that might be tackled in a different way. Sometime simply having the space to talk through your feelings with someone who really listens can make a huge difference to how you feel.
Often when people are depressed they feel worthless and neglect looking after themselves, perhaps they lose interest in hobbies or stop seeing friends and often simply making a point of keeping up with your normal activities can help you to feel better.
Many who suffer from depression, find that getting out for a walk or finding somewhere that they can marshal their thoughts with space to really challenge those unhelpful thoughts can make a difference and in addition exercise itself has proven effective in reducing mild to moderate depression.
Perhaps the most important thing to do if you are feeling depressed is to talk to someone. A good friend, your GP or a counsellor are all good starting points. There is a lot of help available and all you have to do is ask to start to change your life today.