Are you currently experiencing a lot of down days? Everything is dark, you’re stuck in depression and the future looks hopeless? You don’t know how to get out of the negative loop? You don’t necessarily have to use antidepressants right away. Unfortunately they also only have an about 50% success rate. It is of course an option if you have been feeling very low for an extended period of time. But I’d like to make you aware of the fact that there are some actions you can take to feel better. Regardless if you are taking medication or not, this will support your mental health.

In this article I will share some tips on how to regain power over your thoughts, feelings and your life and what helped me get out that dark place.

1. Exercise – move your body in a way that feels good to you

I know it is extremely hard to find the motivation to do physical exercise when you’re trying to beat depression. But it is so helpful as it increases the serotonin levels in your brain and will help you feel happier afterwards. It is important not to beat yourself up if you don’t find the motivation. Give yourself credit for all that you’re trying. You do your best and some days you will manage and others you may won’t. And that’s okay too.

It doesn’t really matter what kind of exercise you do, choose a type that you’ve enjoyed in the past. Furthermore, it doesn’t need to be anything elaborate. What helped me the most to get out of my mental health crisis was going for long walks in nature, as it seemed like a hurdle that was easier to get over. That way you get fresh air and daylight at the same time (also important for your well-being) and it isn’t too exhausting. For those days on which you can’t find any motivation (which may be most of the days for you currently): tell yourself you’re just going to walk/exercise for 5 or 10 minutes – chances are you’ll end up continuing once you’re at it.  

2. Spend your time wisely – get off the screen and do activities that get you into your body and out of your head

It might sound counterintuitive as you’re probably thinking: ‘getting out of my head won’t help me solve any of my problems’. That is true, but ruminating about your problems won’t either. Ruminating will keep you in the same negative thought loop, beating you up and draining your energy. Shutting off the mind by getting into our body as much as possible offers a temporary release from these often painful thoughts. In fact, it is not just a temporary release. It allows us to experience positive feelings again which on the long run retrains our brain to absorb more positivity. Your brain will be like ‘oh, that’s a feeling I haven’t felt in a long time – let me make some room for this so it’ll be more accessible in the future’. And please be patient – you will need to engage in these activities on a regular basis to train your mind at focusing on the positives.

• Engage in activities that you have enjoyed in the past

When I was dealing with depression, I used to numb myself, watching TV and scrolling through instagram. Anything to avoid having to deal with all of those unpleasant, painful feelings. I know how tempting that is. Also had I forgotten what activities I actually enjoyed. Instead, try to remember what kind of things you used to enjoy in the past and get off the screens. If you don’t remember, ask your parents or someone who has known you for a long time. And then spend more time on these activities, ideally on a regular basis. Furthermore, trying out any type of new activity is a good idea, too.

• Stay away from electronic devices

I would also suggest keeping your electronic devices in another room. Studies suggest that the mere presence of our mobile phones takes up a lots of mental capacity and therefore decrease our productivity. More specifically, we use up self-control any moment because we suppress the urge to pick up our phone to check for notifications. That means we’ll have an easier time getting into flow and concentrating on the task at hand (which is already hard with depression) without our phones anywhere nearby. Moreover, constant stimulation and an overflow of notifications can trigger even more stress. You might even want to consider to de-activate apps that you usually use to distract yourself. I had my instagram deactivated for several months because I couldn’t deal with watching everyone living their best lives while I was feeling miserable.

3. Surround yourself with positivity – retrain your brain

If you are going through depression, chances are that your brain is highly focused on the negativity that surrounds you. In fact, that is the fact for all humans, unfortunately our brains are wired in a way that they are way more focused on threats and danger in order to help us survive. But the good news is, we can retrain our brains to spotlight the positives surrounding us and this is a crucial tool to get better. Here are a few tools which will help you achieve this:

• Practice gratitude

It is so important to remind ourselves of all the things we do have rather than focusing on what we don’t have. When we are not in a good place this can be very challenging, but we can always be grateful for basic things (that are privileges for people in other parts of the world so they should never be taken for granted) such as having shelter, running water, heating, clothes to wear, family/friends or small things like a friendly server at the restaurant or a stranger smiling at you on the street. Ideally, write down at least three things that you’re grateful for every day, either in the morning or evening. You will see, over time it will become easier to come up with things you are grateful for in your life. Read here how gratitude practice is performed.

The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts

Marc Aurelius

• Cut out the negativity in your surroundings

Personally I have stopped reading the news as all the covid talk increased my anxiety and depression tremendously and news channels are basically only sharing bad news. We have to understand that we control what we feed our thoughts with. If we feed it negativity, we will become more negative over time. But similarly, if we feed it positivity, our mind will become more positive. It’s that simple. So try and cut out anything negative or fear-inducing as much as possible. Besides not watching the news I recommend you make sure to surround yourself with positive, loving people, and consume happy and uplifting media. One of my recommendations is: https://www.instagram.com/the_happy_broadcast/.

Final Thoughts

Remember – you don’t need to start everything at the same time. Pick the tip that speaks to you the most and start with that. Of course, using medication to treat depression is valid and okay if that’s what feels right for you. In my view however it is not going to be a magical cure. You will need to make some lifestyle choices as well if you want to heal sustainably.