[NF] NF's and fixing depression

[Qatie:)]

ive been depressed for a few weeks now, and i want to get rid of it
blah blah blah emotional stuff and then i complaign about life and that whole speil
im sure you guys have heard that before, so ill just not be redundant
if you guys have any suggestions to get rid of depression it would be greatly appreciated

 

[_eric_]

I really wish I could offer some advice but I don't know what to say... I have clinical depression, that's pretty different and not something I've ever been able to fix...*hugs anyways*

 

[lingerer]

Hi Qatie,

Talking to someone you trust is a good start. It helps to not have things just stuck in your own head. If there are people you know who you think are wise, or patient, or accepting, kind people who would be good listeners, that might be one possibility. Otherwise I personally think talking to a counselor or psychologist of some sort is a great way to go, no matter how small or large the problem seems. Aside from being trained to be decent listeners, the real benefit can be how they help you see things (about your thoughts/feelings/life/relationships) that you couldn't see before and how they can encourage shifts in perspective. Sometimes we get in thinking ruts and all it takes is a couple of well-placed questions coming from a different mind to give our own brains new juice.

There are various other things that people recommend - exercise, physical activity has good antidepressive effects. Some people recommend looking at how well you're eating and if there are ways your nutrition could be supplemented - fish oil tablets for example. Making sure you set yourself up so that you can get enough decent sleep - that you're not missing out on sleep because of being overstimulated by caffeine or tv or something. Getting sun and fresh air is also helpful.

There is also the option of medication. Of course you need to have a good talk to a professional first to get to that.

My personal view is that those 'lifestyle' changes really cannot be underestimated and if you're not so depressed that you can't work on them at all, they're good things to work on as soon as you can. But the mind-vice part of depression is really important to deal with, and that's where talking to someone helps. Other things that can help with that are keeping a journal (where you can be completely honest about your thoughts and feelings), meditation and reading material related to what you're going through. I really like reading advice from people who have gone through similar things - it makes you realise that you're not alone and that you have the ability to get to a better place like they did. I also like reading things that have a spiritual bent, because for me that's yet another way of helping to put things into perspective. I would attribute some of my inclination towards depression to the fact that spirituality is very important to my nature but I've not quite fully acceped this. I'm sort of a spiritual person in hiding.

Anyway, just a few thoughts.

If you don't want to be redundant that's fair enough, but I'd like to say that you should feel free to write about what's going on that's troubling you if you want to. A lot of things have been said and heard before but that only means that there's a lot of experienced people around to give you a hand Knowing what in particular is bothering you might make people feel better equipped to offer you relevant advice as well.

For a completely personal response - what helps me is having accepting, compassionate people supporting me and listening to me, making sure I eat enough, having some time and space to take walks and be exposed to things I consider beautiful, and learning and practising how to be kinder and more patient with myself. The things that don't help are telling myself I need to meet certain expectations and that I'm a suboptimal human. I don't know if this is the same for others but for me love is the answer. From other people and from myself.

 

[ScruffyMoo]

I find that sitting and stewing in my depression never gets me anywhere - being proactive and trying to do something about it gives you back control and is a step in the right direction. Speaking of steps, Lingerer makes a good point about going walking (do you like what I did there?).Just getting off my arse, getting dressed and walking out of the door to face the world feels like an achievement to feel proud.of when I am depressed.Try to find beauty and interest in the environment around you. This can help direct your focus outward, away from your internal dialogue - thinking about being depressed is depressing .

Hope you feel better soon.

 

[PrincessButtercup]

I have battled major depression for years. Here's what I've learned.

Studies have shown that exercise is more effective than antidepressant medications. It takes a few weeks to really start to work but I can testify to its effectiveness.

Meditation has also been proven to be effective. I have tried it and it works.

I know that I am sensitive to sugar. Cutting it helps me a lot as well.

Finally, years ago a counselor asked me if I wasn't doing the right things because I was depressed or if I was depressed because I wasn't doing the right things. I never forgot that (obviously!)

 

[kyuuei]

I battled with a short bout of depression as a teenager. I'm not saying I'm a doctor, or what I did was right, but this is what I did to help.

- I was never alone. If I was by myself, or not talking to people, interacting.. anything really. My 'alone' time was the worst. I just sat there, and thought about --nothing really. I did nothing, said nothing, thought nothing. I was a blank slate or just.. sad, raw apathy. So, I filled my day. I talked to people--not even about myself or my depression, I didn't really make anything about me. But focusing on other people, helping them, talking to them, I ended up discovering things about myself in the process. I didn't want anyone to know I was depressed, so I didn't really act like it on the outside, but I found that being alone wasn't really a good thing for me.

- When I was alone, I did productive things. Depression tended to make me not really..care. About myself. Or anything, really. Showers? Meh... Later. Laundry? .. eh.. My favorite food?.. ..Hmm... meh. I made sure, everyday like clockwork, that I didn't over sleep, that I got up, and got dressed in fresh clothes everyday, and that I conducted personal hygiene and ate three meals a day. Really, this was the part I struggled with the most. I didn't WANT to.. I didn't care about it. I was doing things I didn't care about at all. Who cares if my clothes smell? I only wore them once before. Those things had to become my priorities though.. petty, stupid priorities to others maybe, but at the time they were my biggest obstacle. Oversleeping was probably the most difficult. The next: brushing my hair.

Getting active probably helped a ton, looking back on it. My decision to join the army made me have to work out--I started to actually try during physical education classes, and forced myself to sign up for it the next year even though I didn't need it. I had to do something I was forced to go to otherwise I would never have had the motivation for it. I could hardly dress myself, motivating myself to work out wasn't going to happen. PE really did the trick. Something about getting stronger physically, and showing signs of improvement, and doing things you didn't know you could do before (at the time I couldn't even think of running 2 miles.. when I did it finally, I could hardly believe it. I actually yelled out in joy--a moment I remember to this day because it struck me how long it had been since I had been overwhelm with any sort of emotion.) just really puts the ball in the right court.

I don't really know and I cannot pinpoint the moment I shook depression off of my shoulders. Looking back on it, I'd say when I turned 18, graduated high school, and started to really get moving as an adult.. but it didn't go away one day, the way you wake up one day and notice that you're thinner from your diet efforts over the past few weeks. It was a very slow, methodical process of just baby stepping things one day at a time.

 

[Qatie:)]

Thankyou very much all of you