Beating Depression Is Possible If You Change Some Habits

Beating depression is possible if we are willing to change some habits. Going to therapy is important here and can help us get out of that hole we find ourselves in. Why?

Because contrary to what you may think, beating depression requires more than just willpower and biting through the cracks. Tools are needed.

Therapists play several important roles in this. First, they confirm whether someone who thinks they are depressed is indeed depressed.

Second, while they cannot prescribe medication, they can refer the patient to someone who can recommend medications. And medication can be very positive, especially in the early stages of therapy.

Third, they can create an action plan or appropriate treatment plan for the patient and help them follow it, making adjustments and providing follow-up treatment even after the depression has subsided.

However, we all know that depression isn’t exactly a state in which we are mostly proactive and enthusiastic about new habits. Or in which it is easy to keep them going until they have an effect. So, willpower is important, but so is intelligence and a plan of action.

Insulation may be necessary, but it is not the solution

People with depression often feel the urge to adopt new habits that actually fuel their depression. One of these is to isolate ourselves from others.

We don’t want to see anyone, we are always sad. And the gym, painting classes, music…everything we used to love and get inspired by now leaves us cold.

Perhaps a break and distance is good in some cases and for a short time. Especially if the depression is the result of a prolonged period of stress.

However, in the long run it is essential to break these kinds of “melancholic” habits to beat depression.

Beating depression is possible if we do the opposite of what it asks us to do. Don’t we want to go out? Then let’s go do something with our friends.

Don’t we want to move? Then let’s get up really early and without thinking about it, grab our bag and go to the gym or get some fresh air.

When we take the first step, we will see that in hindsight it may not be so difficult and even fun. Maybe not on the same level as before, of course, but that just makes it even more rewarding.

The important thing is to get out of the cycle where these habits drag us into. We have already seen that there is no point in continuing like this. We have seen that nothing changes, everything stays the same if we keep going in the same direction.

So, one of the keys to beating depression is to introduce different habits into our lives. We could also pick up some habits that we once loved but gave up.

For example, some of us used to love making music, but now we can’t enjoy it anymore. If you really don’t like it anymore, maybe you shouldn’t pick it up again. However, there are probably a lot of other things that you still enjoy, but that you just can’t muster the energy for.

Going to the gym and socializing with strangers or acquaintances, going out with friends we always cancel, eating healthier (practice what is known as mindful eating), and engaging in moderate exercise will be important steps to saying “goodbye” to depression.

Why? Simply because they will create moments when we feel better.

Beating Depression by Keeping an Emotional Diary

Beautiful. We already know that depression can go away if we return to or seek out activities that make us feel good. But… what else?

We mentioned earlier that one of the hallmarks of depression is that it usually encourages introspection. It tells us, ‘Hey, you’re in a crisis!’ And it puts us in a state where it seems easier to think rather than do.

Well, we can use all this thinking to get to know ourselves better and put our emotions in order. Yes, our internal order is in turmoil, so let’s analyze exactly how it is and look for a new one.

In this sense, writing can be a very positive way to vent and keep track of our mood swings. In addition, it allows us to read back our words to see where we continue to fall and to become more aware of the situation we are in.

Many experts believe that writing is therapeutic, and for good reason. Sometimes we cannot or will not tell anyone what is happening to us. But we have to put this into words somehow.

Keeping an emotional diary is very important, and not just when we are suffering from depression or some other problem. If we do it as a way of life, it can be very healing.

It is normal that it is difficult at first to proofread those pages where we have expressed all our pain. Over time, however, it will help you feel, recover and heal.

Then there will come a time when we can flip through the pages like someone reading a book, thinking back to a situation we’ve been through that is now a thing of the past.

By now we already know that beating depression is possible when we change certain habits. However, the road will be long and arduous. Often enough we will stop moving and we will even take steps backwards.

But if we try again and again, and we are willing to swim against the tide and take the advice of a therapist, the depression will come to an end. All of a sudden. The suffering we call depression dies when we deprive it of its fuel source.