Many people are affected by depression. Depression isn’t just temporary sadness. It affects every area of one’s life. The relationships, job, and physical health are affected. If not careful, depression can be so bad that it even feels like a chore to get out of bed or worse.
Some people suffering from this don’t require a psychiatrist for medicine to treat their symptoms. These people only have to make some adjustments to overcome their symptoms. And even those who need a prescription to treat their symptoms need to make some adjustments to get the best results in overcoming them.
Eight Ways to Relieve Depression Without Medication
The following list includes eight powerful tips to help deal with depression:
1. Go outside to get some sunshine
Getting some exposure to natural sunlight goes a long way to stay healthy. Sun exposure assists in regulating the person’s internal clock and getting a good night’s sleep.
2. Exercise
It’s always imperative to consult your physician first before starting an exercise regime. Secondly, walking is always a great exercise. It’s inexpensive and low impact. You should walk at least 30 minutes a day and at least three times per week.
3. Get sufficient amounts of Omega 3 fatty acid
This supplement assists in the neuron connectivity of the body. Also, it comes from fatty fish, such as certain types of eggs and salmon.
4. Obtain enough sleep
Making changes to the environment and routine will assist in getting more sleep. Other key factors include the following: Avoid drinking alcohol, avoid drinking caffeine drinks in the late afternoon or later, go to bed every night at the same time, eliminate noise and clutter in the bedroom and surrounding areas, and perform pre-bed relaxing activities, such as reading or a warm bath.
5. Have fun
keeping in contact with friends and making new friendships. Regularly go places to mingle and have fun together. No deep conversation is needed, just enjoying other people is sufficient to remove feelings of isolation.
6. Adjust your physiology
Scientific evidence shows that physiology affects one’s mood. The depressed person may act out in certain ways, such as making the shoulders slump forward, breathing shallowly, having a soft and monotone pitch in talking, having little movement, not being very animated, and looking down a lot.
The passionate and more upbeat person will act the opposite of the depressed person. He/she will stand up or sit straight with the shoulders back, take deep breaths, smile more often throughout the day, have variety in pitch, and more. Thus, changing one’s physiology into the acts of someone more passionate and energetic will help one deal with depression.
7. Continual tracking of one’s thoughts
Doing self-evaluation of one’s thoughts when he/she feels like crying, laying in the bed all/most of the day, and having no motivation will assist the person to adjust his/her own thought process. Observing whether or not thoughts about the past or future, instead of the present is key. Also taking note of the things going on in the surroundings and being grateful goes a long way in overcoming depression.
In observing the thought process, ask whether or not assumptions and judgments are being made. Assumptions make a huge mess for people. Thinking that a person doing something means he/she doesn’t care isn’t necessarily the case many times. It could be a terrible thing to assume this when in actuality no one but the person knows what is going through his/her head. People process situations differently as they filter all their sensory input through their beliefs, past experiences, and perceptions. So, thinking an act of person shows he/she doesn’t care could harm relationships with someone who truly does care.
When it comes to making judgments, it’s best to accept something without the attachment of a story. It’s dangerous to assign “shouldn’ts” and “should’s” to people and events in one’s life. In standing in one small spot in time and space, a different perspective can develop than the present perception from a different standpoint throughout the years. So, it’s vital to just observe, and don’t judge.
8. Do something different
A breeding ground for loneliness and depression is maintaining a stale routine with no adventure. Thus, pushing oneself beyond the comfort zone for a little adventure will eliminate depressed symptoms. Just going to a nearby park or store is a wonderful first step in changing the old, worn-out routine. Other small, but effective steps just to get out of the ordinary include joining an online forum on a self-interested topic along with reaching out to someone in the forum, going to the library, and more.
Final Thoughts on Dealing With Depression
Suffering from depression can wreak havoc in one’s life. This is the case even if medicine is needed or not. This is also especially true when life throws some hard and unexpected blows.
All-in-all, it’s imperative to take the bull by the horns and proactively apply the steps above to overcome these symptoms. In doing so, life and the quality thereof will get back on track and improved tremendously.
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