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Life with long-term depression is often challenging, and following your treatment plan is critical for helping you to manage your symptoms. While doctors tend to treat this type of depression with medication, there are also things that you can do to make it easier to cope. Trying out these coping strategies can help to lift the clouds of depression so that you can get the most out of life.
Focus On Improving Your Sleep Hygiene
The idea of trying to get more sleep may seem strange if you’ve been struggling to get out of bed, but there is a link between depression and a person’s quality of sleep. Approximately 75% of people with depression struggle with either falling or staying asleep. Not getting enough sleep at night can also exacerbate your depression symptoms. If you find that you toss and turn or jolt up wide awake in the middle of the night, then it is worth taking a few nights to experiment with ways to improve your sleep. Planning for screen-free time before you go to sleep can reduce the effects of blue light on your brain patterns. You might also need to darken your room with light-blocking curtains or play white noise to drawn out street sounds that wake you up.
Address Underlying Mental Health Challenges
Depression can develop even when everything is going right in your life, but it is also common for major challenges to impact your wellbeing. For example, you might be an adoptee who is now grieving the loss of knowing certain family members during your childhood. Or, you might be struggling with a recent cancer diagnosis. Going to individual counseling in Alpharetta, GA or your local area gives you the opportunity to share your burdens with a professional. Working on the issues that cause you to feel anxious, sad, and scared can help you to reduce many of your depression symptoms. You’ll also begin to feel more in control over your emotional reactions and discover ways to turn life’s challenges into positive opportunities for personal growth.
Expand Your Social Network Through Volunteering
Long-term depression can have a negative impact on your social life. You might have found that your friends stopped inviting you to events when you turned them down too many times. Or, you might have simply stopped engaging with other people due to profound feelings of sadness or anxiety. Fortunately, you can start rebuilding your social life by finding a volunteer position that puts you in contact with other like-minded people. Volunteering helps you to take your mind off of your problems, and doing something to help others boosts your self-esteem. You’ll also benefit from being around people who choose to practice compassion and kindness in their daily activities.
Use Small Efforts to Build Towards Success
Getting stuck in a negative thought loop is easier when you have long-term depression. If you tend to beat yourself up for the things that you don’t get done each day, then it might be helpful to start changing your mindset. Try telling yourself that doing a little bit is better than nothing. If you only manage to fold a few items of clothing, then celebrate your success. You still managed to get more done than you would’ve if you hadn’t even tried. The same thought process can also help you to start clearing up the clutter that contributes to your feelings of depression. For instance, you might just clear out once shelf in your closet, and then you can do another one the next day. As long as you are making progress, you’re contributing to greater mental wellbeing.
Give Yourself Extra Time to Make Major Decisions
Being in a state of depression can cause you to make rash decisions that you might regret later. If you know that your brain feels foggy or that you are dealing with catastrophic thinking, then it is perfectly okay to delay a decision in most situations. Taking time to talk over a decision with someone that you trust, such as whether or not you should move or change jobs, helps you to gain the clarity you need to make the best choice for supporting your happiness. Even if you only take a few extra days, you’ll find that you have less to feel anxious about when you’ve taken a thorough look at every option.
With depression, you’ll likely find that you need to give these lifestyle changes time to work. Getting better sleep, talking about your problems, and expanding your social network all have cumulative effects that you might not notice right away. Make sure to keep trying and remember that you can overcome your depression symptoms and begin to feel a higher sense of life satisfaction when you surround yourself with support.
