What should depressed people do

Add a mindfulness element, especially if your depression is rooted in unresolved trauma or fed by obsessive, negative thoughts. Focus on how your body feels as you move—such as the sensation of your feet hitting the ground, or the feeling of the wind on your skin, or the rhythm of your breathing. Pair up with an exercise partner. Not only does working out with others enable you to spend time socializing, it can also help to keep you motivated. Try joining a running club, taking a water aerobics or dance class, seeking out tennis partners, or enrolling in a soccer or volleyball league.

Take a dog for a walk. What you eat has a direct impact on the way you feel. Reduce your intake of foods that can adversely affect your brain and mood, such as caffeine, alcohol , trans fats, and foods with high levels of chemical preservatives or hormones such as certain meats. Going too long between meals can make you feel irritable and tired, so aim to eat something at least every three to four hours.

Minimize sugar and refined carbs. Aim to cut out as much of these foods as possible. Boost your B vitamins. Deficiencies in B vitamins such as folic acid and B can trigger depression. To get more, take a B-complex vitamin supplement or eat more citrus fruit, leafy greens, beans, chicken, and eggs. Boost your mood with foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids play an essential role in stabilizing mood. The best sources are fatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, tuna, and some cold-water fish oil supplements.

Sunlight can help boost serotonin levels and improve your mood. Whenever possible, get outside during daylight hours and expose yourself to the sun for at least 15 minutes a day.

Remove sunglasses but never stare directly at the sun and use sunscreen as needed. For some people, the reduced daylight hours of winter lead to a form of depression known as seasonal affective disorder SAD. SAD can make you feel like a completely different person to who you are in the summer: hopeless, sad, tense, or stressed, with no interest in friends or activities you normally love.

No matter how hopeless you feel, though, there are plenty of things you can do to keep your mood stable throughout the year. That your situation is hopeless?

Depression puts a negative spin on everything, including the way you see yourself and your expectations for the future. But even so, they can be tough to give up. Rather, the trick is to identify the type of negative thoughts that are fueling your depression, and replace them with a more balanced way of thinking.

All-or-nothing thinking. The mental filter — Ignoring positive events and focusing on the negative. Noticing the one thing that went wrong, rather than all the things that went right. Diminishing the positive. Jumping to conclusions. Making negative interpretations without actual evidence. Emotional reasoning.

Everyone must be laughing at me! Once you identify the destructive thoughts patterns that contribute to your depression, you can start to challenge them with questions such as:.

As you cross-examine your negative thoughts, you may be surprised at how quickly they crumble. Authors: Melinda Smith, M. Social support and protection from depression: Systematic review of current findings in Western countries. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 4 , — Cuijpers, P. Treatment outcomes for depression: Challenges and opportunities. The Lancet Psychiatry, 7 11 , — What Causes Depression? Although many people with depression feel sadness, it feels much more severe than emotions that come and go in response to life events.

The symptoms of depression can last for months or years and can make it difficult or impossible to carry on with daily life. Doctors will usually look for symptoms that have lasted at least 2 weeks as possible signs of depression. Many people mistakenly believe that being depressed is a choice, or that they need to have a positive attitude. Depression is a real mental illness. Those who have depression cannot simply decide to stop feeling depressed.

Unlike typical sadness or worry, depression feels all-consuming and hopeless. Depression can be caused by a number of factors. Though a single cause cannot always be found, experts recognize the following as possible causes :. Relationship problems are a common cause of depression in women. Scientists suggest this is due to :. One study of twin brothers and sisters published in The American Journal of Psychiatry found that personality and relationships with others were more likely to play a role in the onset of depression.

In particular, the study stated that marital problems, the relationship with parents, and lack of social support were more likely to cause depression in women than in men. Neuroticism , or being in a negative emotional state, was also a primary cause of depression in the women studied. The women studied were more likely to have panic and anxiety disorders in addition to their depression. Other studies have indicated that women may be more likely to gain weight and have excessive sleepiness than men.

Losing a job and not being able to provide for the family is a common trigger for depression in men. When you're going through a hard time, it helps to know you're not alone. Be patient with yourself. Depression takes time to heal. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size.

Here are five things you can do to feel better. They may seem simple, but they can help a lot. Take a to minute brisk walk every day. Or you can dance, stretch, or do yoga. People who are depressed may not feel much like being active. But get yourself to do it anyway. If you need a push, ask a friend to do it with you. Getting any activity started helps boost your mood. Keep it going. Eat healthy foods. Some people with depression don't feel much like eating. Some may overeat.