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Let me start by saying that apart from divine intervention (which I experienced, long story for another time), I don’t believe there are any quick fixes for depression.
However, there are a LOT of easy, small actions a depressed person can build into their daily life to help fight this condition and build a more hopeful mentality.
Here are some of the things that have helped me:
- get out into the sunshine. Low levels of Vitamin D are suspected to be one contributing factor to depression ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18056830?dopt=Citation )
- exercise ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21377690 , http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17846259 )
- tell someone what you are feeling
- socialising with friends
- prayer
- service to others
- understanding my personality type - I am an INFJ and naturally inclined to solitary brooding. Knowing this, I am empowered to become aware of the trend of my thoughts, and decide whether I need to socialise or change activities to distract myself.
A depressed person may have little or no motivation to do these things, and may need help to get started and to persevere in doing them. A good friend will see the signs of depression, and will make sure that some action is taken to start the journey back to health.
Have you suffered from depression, or know someone who has? What actions helped? What did not help?
7 comments:
I'm INFJ as well, and I just wrote a prayer today asking for the Lord's help in overcoming my feelings of negativity which have entered my mind and heart lately. My best "quick fix" is always a brisk walk in the sunshine followed by cooking a nice meal for my family or cleaning the house in depth.
I had one summer where I became depressed in a scary way... I'm not sure what brought me out of it besides God, but it wasn't in an apparently miraculous way, it was sort of gradual. Now whenever I begin to feel a depressed day come on, I try to hang out with a friend or find another mom to have a play date with. I am an extravert so even if I don't feel a ton better, I am at least distracted and don't wind up going deeper into those depressed feelings. I've also recently discovered (accidentally) that being out in the sunshine for about an hour every day really changes my mood! Oh and doing something I REALLY love (like shopping or swimming) really helps too. :)
Hello A Wee Irish Family! Isn't it amazing how well sunshine and exercise can take we inward-focussed types right out of ourselves?!? I discovered this by accident too, but afterwards found supporting evidence, so I HIGHLY recommend it to new moms to help ward off PPD.
Hi Rachel, thanks for sharing your strategies for making it through those low days.
I'm interested to hear that an extravert can suffer from depression too... I'd love to hear more of your story!
I guess as an extravert the interesting part was that I felt the need to be withdrawn a lot (unusual for me). Anyone can begin to feel inadequate or overwhelmed by their life though, and being an extravert definitely didn't make it easier to tell others what I was going through. A lot of my issues had to do with things in our marriage that my husband didn't feel comfortable with me sharing with others at the time. I think not opening up to people made some of those negative feelings turn inward... soon I began to be anxious around other people and couldn't tolerate big groups at all. I was embarrassed about who I was and sure that everyone could see what I believed to be great deficiencies in myself. Even if I had a good time while I was out, I would come home and feel worse- as if the good time I had was false and the depressed person at home was the only reality- and no one knew. Most days it took me from the time i woke up until the time my husband got home just to shower and get dressed. Like I said, it was a scary place and lasted for several months. As life transitioned in the fall, I actually got pregnant (maybe the hormones pulled me out of depression?) and busy with church, and transitioned out of the depression. Later (on Christmas Eve) we lost that first baby (another story for another day I guess), but that grief although very strong was never like the depression I knew the summer before. That was a little more than three years ago.
PS I thank God every day that I am no longer in that place and know that it is by His grace alone that I don't suffer there anymore... Just like it was His grace alone that helped me survive when I was there.
Wow, Rachel, that took guts to share your story and re-visit that scary time. Thank you, and I honour you for your courage. May God continue to cover you and surround you with his grace and love every day.
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