How to Not Be Depressed

0sarakastic0 | Nov 25, 2011 |

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I think there’s a big switch from trying to be happy and just figuring out how to not be depressed. You should consult with a doctor and therapist for both of these journeys. However, the later one has everything to do with just solely being in survival mode. Sure, everyone wants to be happy but a lot of people just want to not be stuck in mental anguish all of the time. This is actually the first step in getting to happiness.

Set goals that you can achieve. At first this could be simple like getting dressed every day. You need to gain momentum. Most people know what they need to do in order to improve their lives. It might be getting a job or going back to school. It may be leaving relationships that are unhealthy. Trying to tackle these things when depressed can feel rash. It can also be so overwhelming that you don’t feel like you can do anything. You might feel hopeless or like you never get anywhere just because you can’t tackle the big problems in your life.

Instead try to gain momentum. You can break down your ultimate goal into several smaller ones with steps that you can take slowly. Like if you want to go back to school one day could be filling out applications, or talking to a counselor. Eventually you’ll probably find that you are getting more and more things done every day as you start crossing things off your list. After awhile the list itself may be unnecessary because it will simply be second nature to you.
Belief is also going to play a big role here. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a religious belief; although it can be. Instead, you can believe in your doctors. Trust them that they know what they are doing. This means that you’ll show up for your appointments and do the work. It also helps to alleviate some of the loneliness you may feel during these times because you will no longer feel like you are tackling the situation solely by yourself.

Another thing that you can believe in is yourself. Again a therapist will help you with this. It will help you to see that you do have worth. When dealing with depressions self-esteem often plummets across the board from how you look to who you are. This small spark of belief also helps to ensure that you feel powerful enough and worthy to go and get the help to begin with.

Don’t try and repress your feelings. This often makes it worse and when you’re pretending to be happy you’re still pretending. Allowing yourself to experience a range of emotions is healthy as long as you don’t hurt other people. You will probably find that these negative feelings go away much quicker and there isn’t a tendency to dwell anymore. You will be able to let things go when you deal with them properly instead of pretending like they don’t exist. This also helps to keep them from compounding the problem gets worse.

Watch out for your triggers. You need to set up your life in such a way that there is as much hope as possible. This is a constant journey that you need to take even on days when you feel happy and light. You can spend time ensuring that you have a budget set up that you can stick to. This will probably be easier when you are happier. However when you let these things slide when you’re depressed it creates very real situations that you’ll have to deal with even when you get better. The same thing goes for unhealthy relationships.

Think of it as a journey. When you force yourself to be on a certain timeline then this leads to a lot of stress or even feelings of failure when it doesn’t work as quickly as you want it. You may even be tempted to give up on treatment at some point. Notice your progress slowly over time. This makes it much easier to see that things are really working even if they aren’t moving at the pace that you’d ultimately like.

Give yourself freedom. Usually when dealing with these issues it isn’t the best to make sweeping life changes. It can feel like everything will be better if you just change your job or move. This can lead to radical life choices that are often made in a manic state. It may initially feel great; until the adrenaline wears off. Then you may be in a worse financial situation where getting help then feels even more helpless.

One of the last stages is probably the most fun too. You get to rethink who you are and who you want to be. Again, medical teams are going to make sure that you aren’t dealing with a manic state. However, this is a chance for you to start all over. Deep depressions can take years or months of recovery. You may find that you’re a totally new person when you get out of therapy and you should celebrate this instead of being afraid of it. Don’t just spend your time wishing that you are who you used to be. You can be healthier than you ever where before which opens up all different opportunities in your life. You were probably carrying round a lot of emotional baggage even if things looked “better” from the outside. Instead, give yourself a chance to reinvent yourself. This could be how you look or your job. Make these decisions after you’ve gone through the healing process. This will lead to more beneficial effects in the future instead of just pretending that these things were the problem to start with. Operating from a healthier place leads to wiser and safer decisions.

In order to know how to not be depressed first you have to admit that there’s a problem and get treatment for that. Then you can start rebuilding your life. You will notice your thinking patterns change over time which is where the biggest difference comes in.