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Things that help you when depressed?

Posted , 7 users are following.

paul10586
paul10586

I've noticed that this forums emphasis is particularly on anti-depressants and sharing your own problems. That's fine as there's many people out there that benefit from sharing their own stories and having people to relate to.

But I just wanted to gain an insight apart from anti-depressants and therapy what isit that you do to help your depression.. This could be anything from religion, hobbies & sports, videos or something specific you have read or watched.

Me personally I love exercising It helps me to feel in the moment and helps to improve my self esteem and confidence. I also love reading and watching videos, ever since I've been diagnosed with depression I tend to read alot about budhism and there philosophies on life which helps,

So what isit that you do?..

 

1 like, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • lynne05476
    lynne05476 paul10586

    Posted

    Hi Paul , I do mindfulness which was really really challenging at first but now after 18 months it's part of what I do each day as quite clearly I didn't know how to relax. I cycle at least once a week more if energy levels allow it for my mental health , gave up alcohol last year . Try and sleep 8hrs which is where mindfulness has really helped if I"m struggling  and I don" t snack on crap stuff anymore.breakfast vital in the morning . I am no saint by any means but it has all helped .
  • norman42567
    norman42567 paul10586

    Posted

    Hi Lynne and Paul,

    Depression HATES ACTIVITY!  I put into bold becuase it's one of the keys to beating depression.  It doesnt so much matter what it is, from making tea to doing excersise, the more the better. Combine with this mindfullness as Lynne said, and it makes it even more powerful.  With CBT courses comes activity schedules where the user plans the next days activities and keeps to it. When you look at it there is a lot to help ourselfes with and knowledge of these things is what I'm always looking for.  Look up a website by Douglas Bloch, I realy believe this guy saved my life, I cant put the link as it will be deleted by this site admin.  He does push selling his books some but there's so much information freely avaialble there.

    I'm presently unemployed, a UK expat living in Malaysia, I woke up with clinical depression from a serious operation las December and didnt know what hit me!  Took me a month of talking to Doctors in Singapore before I myself realised it was depression!  Its a long story but I'm now tapering of Mirtz and fighting to regain my life and normallity.

    Routine is important:

    I get up same time each day, go for a walk, then take breakfast in the garden and practice mindfullness by focussing on the flowers, trees and any wildlife, it takes a lot of practice and I'm not good at it yet but when I manage it I do begin to feel better with much less memories and flash backs (do you get these?). Then I excersise for 1 hour, then shower and rest up by going online until lunchies. Diet is important so I try to eat lots of veggies, good meats and take vitamins, especiially vitamin B's, also drink loads of water throught the day.  Then I spend time with my family, talking, also playing with my 5 year old.  Then back online or will keep up to date with the type of work I do by practicing putting together documents.  Later in the afternoon I will do another hours excersise, then help out round the house. That takes us to evening when we have dinner then relax and watch TV, then go to bed same time.  We also go out shopping or just for a drive at times.  Thats it basically. I find I'm improving and will add activities as I do. 

    I find as I'm tapering off Mirtz that I feel more anxious and scared, I read many places this can be Mirtz withdrawel, but I'm worried it may be the underlying depression, do you have any comments on this?

    Warmest regards

    Norman

     

    • lynne05476
      lynne05476 norman42567

      Posted

      To u both , at last people who seem to have taken on board joy in simple things routine and communicating with not only themselves but those closest to them as well , tough but life is all about challenged and we have remarkable inner strength to tap into   Appt at psychiatrist @ 9 as newly diagnosed bipolar 2 . Best wishes to u both 
    • lynne05476
      lynne05476 norman42567

      Posted

      Hi Norman , without knowing what you have been through I can tell whatever it was has changed you forever and you appear to be gaining strength, motivation ,rehabilitating your life into what has to be a different way . I think the key elements to this are having a strong support in place which sounds like yr family , routine that keeps you structured but also gives you measurable goals to either achieve in the short term / long term that increases yr confidence self esteem to enable you to keep progressing forwards. I have been on/ off anti depressants since 1996 (post natal depression ) but in my heart of hearts I knew it wasn't the whole story ,anyway going on them or off them was always a side effect nightmare but it can be done and I think you r doing ok . If u can't get tim cantopher"s book depression curse of the strong I'll send u a copy however if urgent depression is as a result of an accident / trauma or chronic / acute illness it may not be the book for you . Best wishes L 
  • isnowdropi
    isnowdropi paul10586

    Posted

    The one thing that has helped my depression other than therapy is religion, which is funny because I'm not a religious person. But I found that having something to believe in can, in a way, make you feel more connected. Whether that's to a god or to other people, it helped me feel less isolated. I also found reading Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now book very helpful to put a stop to my ruminating and over-thinking mind.
  • lynne05476
    lynne05476 paul10586

    Posted

    Attended appt with psychologist yes'day and introduced me to a new accredited approach to psychotherapy referencing a book called The How of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky,2007.Piatkus.I pick up my copy today !!!

     

  • MrsB1983
    MrsB1983 paul10586

    Posted

    Hi Paul,

    I have tried many things over the years but the one thing that has stuck with me is excersize. Wether it is dancing around in the kitchen or creating my own workouts. It really is true that excersize does give you the feel good factor.

    I do still have days where absoloutly nothing can make me move and im so far gone all i do is sleep however those days are rare.

    Other things that really get my mind going are reading or creating something (sewing)

     

  • frances_42935
    frances_42935 paul10586

    Posted

    I had my original reply deleted by admins - probably because I referenced an online mediation course.   Admins please note - you allow references to books which people then go and buy.  This meditation course allows a ten day FREE trial before you even think about trying and has ten sessions in that timeframe.  I make that a better bet than buying a book which you may or may not find helpful.

    Emis Moderator comment

    Hi Frances, as per the site T&Cs we do not allow direct links to selling sites so I have removed the link from here. Your original post referred to "mindfulness" which the first reply in this discussion mentions as well without linking to a specific site. We allow references to books (and other courses/products etc) but do not allow links to sites selling them such as a direct link to amazon. If any user is interested in the subject they can google the information or if they want any specific information they can send a private message to you to ask for the link.

  • MattBearPig
    MattBearPig paul10586

    Posted

    Hi Paul,

    I, like most of the posters on this thread, advocate excercise. In addition to making your body work, mentally it can be a good way to work out some demons.

    I also do the usual reading - alternating between novels and comic books helps me a lot, switching between using the visual and imaginative parts of the brain - and movies/video games help me seperate from reality for small periods of time.

    In addition to this, the main thing I enjoy doing is going out for drives. I pull up a map online, and just draw a random round trip, between one and three hours out of town. Putting a few podcasts or audiobooks on while driving has been very relaxing for me. In addition to this, I'm getting out of my familiar environment, which could always be inadvertantly exacerbating the depression. I've discovered quite a few semi-local nature trails, historical locations, and very calming, long stretches of road. Obviously, a vehicle (or bike) is needed for somehting like this, but it is something that seems to have helped me cope immensely.

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