When you're depressed it can feel like you are barely existing. By obtaining the correct medical intervention and learning better coping skills, however, you can not only live with depression, but live well. The following are some tips that can help improve your quality of life.
1. Join a Support Group
Having a caring group of people who can be there to listen to you and support you is perhaps the most important thing you can do outside of medical treatment to help you with your depression. There are numerous groups, both online and in your community, dedicated to supporting those with depression and other mental illnesses. One of the best online resources is our own forum here at About.com.2. Reduce Your Stress
When the body is under stress, the adrenal gland increases secretion of cortisol. Short-term, this hormone can help aid in survival. Long-term elevation of cortisol, however, can have detrimental effects. Although the exact mechanism that causes depression is uncertain, clinical studies suggest that chronically elevated cortisol may induce clinical depression by somehow affecting the neurotransmitter serotonin. Learning stress reduction techniques may be helpful in reducing depression.3. Improve Your Sleep Hygiene
Sleep and mood are intimately related. In fact, some studies seem to show that rather than being only a symptom of depression, insomnia may in fact be a cause of depression. Learning how to get a good night's sleep could improve your mood.4. Improve Your Eating Habits
A poor diet can affect both your physical and mental well-being. Eat better to feel better.5. Learn How to Stop Negative Thoughts
Did you know that habitual negative thinking can lead to depression? Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a type of therapy which works to alter common patterns of negative thinking called cognitive distortions in order to eliminate depression. Numerous studies have shown that CBT is an effective treatment for both depression and anxiety. The best results are obtained by using CBT in conjunction with medication.6. Beat Procrastination
The symptoms that we experience when depressed, such as fatigue and hopelessness, make it easy to fall into a habit of putting things off until we feel better. When important deadlines draw near, however, procrastination creates anxiety and guilt that further feeds our depression. It's a vicious cycle, but it can be stopped by learning how to break through the habit of procrastination.7. Get a Handle on Your Household Chores
Depression destroys so much of our motivation and energy that if can become difficult to keep up with day-to-day chores, yet a dirty living environment only serves to make us feel more worthless and discouraged. The following tips can help you get a handle on your house work.8. Learn How to Forgive
Holding on to anger about past events can contribute to depression. Forgiving these wrongs can help you heal and move forward with your life, but the Biblical definition of forgiveness is very hard for most of us to swallow. How can you forget the unforgettable? How can you forgive the unforgivable? To enjoy the benefits of forgiveness, however, we don't need to go that far.Sources:
Perlis, Michael L., et. al. "Insomnia as a Risk Factor for Onset of Depression in the Elderly." Behavioral Sleep Medicine 4.2 (2006): 104-113.
Rupke, Stuart J., David Blecke and Marjorie Renfrow. "Cognitive Therapy for Depression." American Family Physician 73 (2006): 83-6,93.
Tafet, G.E., et. al. "Correlation between cortisol level and serotonin uptake in patients with chronic stress and depression." Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience 1.4 (2001) :388-393(6).
