Depression And You: Live A Happy Life
Depression affects more than your mood. It interferes with every aspect of life. It can strain your relationships with the people around you, too. Read on to learn how to combat this terrible illness.
Don't stop going to normal social activities. If you're feeling upset and sad, you might feel like you can't do things you often do. Continuing them is important to your mental health. Keep on doing the things you normally would. When you neglect what you should normally be doing, you can sometimes get discouraged and more depressed.
Enjoy some sunlight and fresh air to ease your depression. Studies show that depressed people who get limited amounts of sunshine tend to feel worse.
Meditation is something you might want to consider to help you manage your depression. There are many positive effects of medication that have been studied, the most important being mood elevation and the lowering of blood pressure.
The causes of depression are vast, and you must, if you have any hope of getting better, work to figure out why you personally have the blues. With the help of a doctor or therapist, you can begin to understand these feelings, and find treatment to help you cope with them.
Antidepressants are helpful with balancing out the chemicals in your brain. However, such medication is only a step towards healing, and should be combined with regular exercise and therapy.
Understand the level of depression you are experiencing. Depression can be mild, moderate, severe and clinical. The mild forms of depression affect millions who are not even aware they're depressed. Mild depression is feeling somewhat down, moderate depression actually alters your life. If your depression changes your behavior so much that you have completely lost interest in everything that used to matter to you, you are probably severely clinically depressed and need professional attention right away. You should make sure to be open about your feelings to you therapist or doctor.
If you are depressed, don't take drugs or alcohol. Anyone suffering depression can easily assume that drugs and alcohol are ways to feel better than they do now, but doing such things actually hurts you in the long run. Often, the urge to do drugs or have a drink can become a dependency.
Grow your circle of friends so that you're not continually pushing all your feelings on just your best friend. Speaking to many different friends about your depression will make sure you don't overburden one of them.
If you are suffering from depression, never lose hope that you will find the solution. People that have depression sometimes feel like things won't get well again and they don't stick with the treatment plan. Try to be as patient as you can and stay positive.
Should your doctor prescribe you medication for depression, take it. Don't take less or more than what your physician tells you, and don't stop taking it without talking your doctor, as it can be dangerous. You will find that some medications need to be weaned off of - if you stop them right away it can negatively affect you.
In the old days it was thought that depression was "all in your head".
