Most of us feel sad, or depressed at some point in our lives. Often the loss of a pet, a minor illness or even the thought of getting older, leave us feeling sad, or blue. For most people, these feelings are temporary and resolve themselves over a short time.
However, when feelings of sadness, emptiness and hopelessness begin to take over our lives, invading each day, and interrupting our daily life, it is time to take action before depression becomes serious. Below are some of the symptoms that can signal a major depressive episode. Learn how to control depression by following the guide in this article.
Sadness, Hopelessness and Guilt. What causes depression?
Well, what causes depression you ask? Someone who is suffering from depression usually feels intense sadness, and cannot identify the cause. This sadness can lead to a feeling of hopelessness that things cannot get better, and guilt over neglecting family, work or life in general.
Loss of Interest In Formerly Enjoyable Activities
It is common for a depressed person to lose interest in activities that used to bring pleasure, such as work, family, friends and hobbies. There can also be a lack of interest in life itself, leading the person to neglect housework, relationships and personal hygiene.
Sleep Disturbances
Another common symptom of depression is sleep problems. Many depressed people find that insomnia keeps them awake night after night, and the loss of sleep only makes things worse. Others find that they cannot stay awake, sleeping for hours on end, and refusing to get out of bed. They often draw the shades, and turn off the lights, preferring the darkness.
Appetite Changes
Changes in appetite can accompany a depressive episode. Some sufferers experience an increase in appetite, often bingeing on unhealthy foods, and wallowing in guilt afterward. Others have no appetite at all, refusing to eat, or eating very little.
Suicidal Thoughts
Left untreated, depression sometimes becomes so severe that a person begins to contemplate suicide. They may become obsessed with death and dying, or even create a suicide plan. Sometimes, a depressed person will talk of suicide in everyday conversation, as if to reach out for help.
These red flags are serious, and should never be ignored, or considered idle talk. Many people have attempted suicide, either successfully, or unsuccessfully, because their cries for help either went unnoticed, or ignored. If you, or someone you know, begins to talk about suicide, get help for them as soon as possible. This can be a life-or-death situation.
How to treat depressionn
Depression can be a debilitating disorder, disrupting a person’s life, and can even become dangerous, or life-threatening. Fortunately, Depression offers a high rate of recovery when recognized, and treated, by a medical professional. How to treat depression is about recognizing the early symptoms and take action right away.
The first step in treating depression often involves medication, usually anti-depressants, and/or anti-anxiety medication. Medication can offer some fairly immediate relief until further treatment becomes successful.
Medication is usually combined with some type of therapy, counseling or even hospitalization, if the case is severe. It can also help to seek out a support group for people with depression.
It is clear that depression is a major illness, but when treated properly, it can be overcome successfully, bringing life back to normal again. The key is in recognizing and seeking treatment for any symptoms that indicate a depressive episode.
A Few Effective Pointers for Fighting Your Depression
It is quite easy to fall into a level of depression that is hard to get out of. If you feel overwhelmed, with a heavy sense of emptiness, you may be suffering from this condition. However, there are a few effective pointers available to help fight this depression and get you back on track to living a healthier, more normal lifestyle.
Depression is one of those types of illnesses that can continuously affect an individual’s behavior, attitude, thinking process and even the way they physically appear. Typically, an individual who suffers from depression will appear as though they are suffering from the “blues” nearly all of the time. They will typically want to stay at home, and not participate in any type of physical activity.
If you feel as though you are suffering from the signs and symptoms of depression, there are significant actions you can take to remedy the problem. The following tips will help you get back on track.
Get Some Quality Sleep Every Night
As one of the best gifts of healing your body, sleep is known to revitalize every cell. It truly is a beautiful sleep. However, to be effective every individual, including you, needs to achieve at least six hours minimum every night of quality sleep. However, eight hours is preferable.
During this time, your body will automatically “reboot” to find the power it needs to move you through the next day. The way to get quality sleep is to use meditation and visualization, and have a pre-determined time where you will go to bed every night. In time, you can train your body that through meditation you will automatically fall asleep every night, and get the rest you require.
Eat and Drink Better
Most of us have pretty poor diets, and even worse eating habits. We often consume high sugary foods or treats that contain way too many fats. We will rob our bodies of the essential nutrients they require right to the end, until we no longer have enough minerals and vitamins to function. As a result, our body can quickly become in balance, and wreak havoc on the chemicals and hormones it can no longer produce.
As a child, we all learned that we need to drink at least eight glasses of water every day. However, we are not to consume high levels of alcohol at will. Drinking too much alcohol tends to diminish our mood and only increases the level of depression were already feeling. As a result, our depression gets worse along with the signs and symptoms associated with it.
Get out and Exercise
One of the worst things about having depression is the inability to want to move. However, it is easy to combat depression by getting out and exercising every day. This does not mean preparing yourself for a marathon, but simply taking a walk outdoors, or joining the gym and using the machines.
These effective pointers can help fight off depression. Take the initiative to get better sleep, eat and drink better, and get plenty of exercise. Soon you will be feeling better and less depressed.
Depression is something that millions of people struggle with. There are a few different kinds of depression, but if you’re dealing with the kind that goes on every day, then you need to know a few things. Read along if you’d like a little more information on how to help yourself get through depression.
If you feel like you’re going to harm yourself or other people, this is the time to call emergency services. You don’t want to do something that you’re going to regret later on in life.
Get some therapy
There are mental health facilities that you can go to and all you have to do is make a phone call. Generally they will just get you stabilized, and then you’ll be let go with a plan on how to keep yourself from getting that bad again. Don’t be afraid to get help, people do so as often as you need.
See if you can get a doctor to give you some medication for depression. Sometimes you just can’t beat depression without the help from some medication. A lot of great medication is out there, so there’s bound to be one that works for you.
If you find that the medications aren’t working right away, remember that it will take a little bit of time for it to work. The chemicals in your brain have to be rewired in a way by these medications, and that generally takes about two weeks or more to happen. Don’t stop taking your medication when you feel better either.
Going to therapy may be something you’ll do well with. It’s something that’s becoming more and more accepted as a great way to deal with depression. It doesn’t mean that you’re crazy or anything of that nature when you go to talk with a therapist.
Even people that are famous are actively going to therapy, just to make sure they keep their minds in good working order. It’s a great way to get your stress out, and it can also help you to learn what you can do the next time you feel your depression creeping up on you.
Talk to a friend
Get a friend that you can talk to the next time you feel depressed. Find someone that won’t judge you and will just listen. Sometimes all you need is someone there to listen to what’s going on and won’t say anything. It’s hard to find people to talk to from time to time because they just want to tell you to get over it and they don’t realize that it’s not something you can just get over. Educate a loved one about how depression is a chemical condition, and then see if they’d be willing to help you by listening in the future.
An Effective Way to Control Depression
Many individuals that suffer from depression every day, find that it is quite debilitating. They often are left with the sensation of feeling completely empty inside, with a sense of overwhelming helplessness. Often times, people have been suffering from depression since early age, and were simply unaware that there were treatments that could transform their lives for the better.
Medications are not always effective for individuals when treating their depression. Scientists have known for a long time that antidepressants for some individuals can cause the exact opposite effect, which makes them tend to feel more depressed, instead of less.
As a result, these people are weaned off the medication, and simply fall back into their depressed state without any type of help at all. However, there are effective methods that can be used to help minimize the overwhelming sensation of depression. These include:
Controlling Thoughts
It is possible to control your thoughts. With the ability to alter the way you are thinking, you can make a dramatic improvement for the positive on battling your depression. Take into consideration every type of thinking you involve yourself in throughout the day. Probably most of your thoughts are negative, and simply need to be let go.
Remember that garbage in always equals garbage out. Anytime you have a negative thought, simply throw it away, just like today’s garbage. There may be times when you realize that that garbage is attempting to make its way back into your mind. However, you simply need to abandon that thought, and replace it with a positive one.
Creating Positive Things in Your Life
Every individual wants to have a positive life. However, when you suffer from depression, it is often more challenging to create that environment than not.
However, by hanging around individuals at work, at home, or in a social environment that think and act more positively, it can rub off on you. Stay to individuals that are happy, and it will make you happy too.
Be Your Own Advocate
It is important to stand up for yourself, what you believe in, and how you live your life. If you behave as your own advocate, then no one’s actions or words can bring you down. When you understand exactly how you want to live your life, and are making strides to achieve that, it is important to be your own advocate. Never let any individual walk all over you, without taking some type of proactive step to avoid it.
Go Outdoors
Sunshine is the easiest way to improve your mood. Being outside on a good day filled with sunshine can enhance your positivity. Darkened rooms, with pulled drapes, are often the enemy of happiness. Alternatively, a bright sunny day is an ideal solution for controlling your depression and minimizing its symptoms.
By following these four effective tips you can take control of your depression and live a healthier, more positive life. Take control of your thoughts, create positive things in your life, stand up for yourself, and spend time outdoors. You will soon be the recipient of these effective positive changes.
How to Get Rid of Depression – Four Easy Lifestyle Changes That Lift Depression
If you’ve been feeling tired for no reason, and don’t enjoy things like you usually do, you could be depressed. You might have trouble sleeping at night or get irritated over little things. Left untreated, depression tends to get worse and worse. By learning how to get rid of depression you can overcome these problems.
If you aren’t ready or don’t want to take medications that can leave you suffering from side effects and are hard on your body, try changing your lifestyle first. These four easy lifestyle changes can make your depression go away.
Get More Exercise
The first lifestyle change you can make that has a huge impact on your mental state is getting more exercise. Exercise raises your endorphin levels, which in turn makes you feel good. Daily exercise can actually help to reprogram your brain, and keep your depression at bay. Exercising for 30 minutes each day is best, but studies show that even walking three days a week raises your endorphin levels and leaves you feeling better.
Once you work exercise into your routine, the next thing you can do to ease your depression is to get enough sleep. When you’re depressed it can be hard to sleep, but not getting the sleep you need tires you out, drains you and leaves you more depressed. It becomes a vicious cycle that is hard to break.
Setting a Routine
Try setting a routine for yourself. Go to bed at the same time each night and don’t let yourself sleep during the day. Don’t eat, watch TV or work on the computer for two hours before bedtime. This trains your body to sleep at the same time each night.
Healthy Eating
Healthy eating does wonders to ease depression. A diet full of junk food and soda drains vitality from your body, leaving you feeling flat and empty. Eating sugary foods to make yourself feel better has the opposite effect. You may feel better in the moment, but after you consume the sweets you feel tired.
Eating a healthy diet gives you strength and energy, and in turn makes you feel less depressed. Try eating foods high in Omega-3 fatty acids and folic acid like salmon, spinach and tuna. Clinical research shows that Omega-3s can alleviate depression.
Start and Stick With a Routine
Finally, start a routine and stick with it. Structure gives you purpose and prevents you from spending your days aimlessly floating around. Make a schedule for your day and don’t deviate from it. Be sure to make time for exercise and one to two activities that bring you pleasure, like gardening or having coffee with friends. Think of your schedule as a blueprint for the life you want to be living. A good routine won’t leave you time to be depressed.
When you make these changes to your lifestyle, you alleviate your depression and become a healthier person. Depression doesn’t have to rule your life. Battle it head-on and take control of your life again. Once you start incorporating these techniques into your life, each day will seem a little brighter. Soon you’ll feel like yourself again.