It’s another dark day. You wake up without the desire to get out of bed. With no motivation to begin the day and everything that you have to do. It’s another day dealing with depression.
When we are feeling especially low, it is hard to know what to do. Where to turn to. How to get ourselves out from the dark cloud that seems to hang around us at all times.
Depression is a beast. It makes you question your own self-worth. You question the love and commitment other people have to you. It has a convincing way of making you not only feel alone, but convincing you that others don’t want a thing to do with you.
It’s that dark voice inside your head, that tells you things aren’t going to be ok. That this sadness within you, sometimes unexplained, is never going to go away.
It doesn’t have to be like this.
It can and will get better.
If you are struggling just to make it through each day, here are 4 simple ways you can fight depression daily.
1. Don’t Ignore How You Feel
It may seem easier to suppress how you are feeling. If you ignore it, it will just go away, right? Actually, that can’t be further from the truth, especially when it comes to mental health.
Hiding how you feel, from yourself and others, really does a disservice to you. Suppressing your feelings and trying to pretend everything okay really doesn’t work in the long-run. It’s rough, but feelings of sadness and despair are part of the human experience. The experience of joy, hope, sadness, grief, happiness, all of it. Denying your feelings is denying the fact that you are going through something. Admitting you have a problem is the first step to healing.
2. Let Those Feelings Out
If you are going through a depressive period, chances are, you aren’t talking about. Not wanting to burden others with something you may not even know how to explain. Not wanting to burden yourself with these thoughts and feelings so you don’t feel worse.
It’s also human tendency to bottle things up inside. A simple way to begin fighting depression is to talk about it. If you don’t feel comfortable or ready to talk to your support system, you can begin journaling. Privately, either on pen and paper, or on your phone, let it all out. It doesn’t have to be perfectly formed sentences, no spelling errors or grammatical errors. Don’t worry about those conventional things. Instead, focus on just letting it all go. It doesn’t have to make sense or read well, as long as you are writing about it. It’s for your eyes only.
3. Practice Small Moments Of Self-Care Each Day
Taking care of yourself is hard when it’s the last thing you feel motivated to do. It’s not that you don’t want to. You just don’t have the energy or mental space to do it.
Even if it’s only for 5 minutes out of the day, do something for you or that will help you feel productive. Whether that is a nice relaxing bath, or only washing half the dishes, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you were able to find the strength to do something, even if it is small.
Sometimes, the smallest things in life can make the biggest impact.
4. A Bad Today Doesn’t Always Mean A Bad Tomorrow
When you are caught up in the vicious cycle of depression, it can be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s hard to find the mental attitude that things can get better, when they just don’t feel like it.
You can fight depression off by reminding yourself that tomorrow is a new day. That just because today is a day where you are feeling bad, doesn’t necessarily mean that tomorrow will be the same. You can get yourself into the mindset that tomorrow may just be even slightly better.
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Fighting depression is challenging when you feel as if you don’t have a fight left in you. No matter how hard things may feel right now, keep fighting. If you need support, reach out today to get depression treatment.
