Depression Archives - Real Good Help

Depression

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Do you want to know where you can find support?

Discover sources of support to overcome challenges.

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Do you want to learn how your health is connected to depression?

Explore the connection between health and depression.

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Is it hard for you to consistently engage in activities that make you feel good?

Engage in joyous and fulfilling activities.

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Reach out for support Support your health Do things that make you feel good

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Do a random act of kindness when you feel upset

Problem

When you’re going through a difficult time, you may tend to dwell on negative emotions, like sadness.

Why it is bad

When you dwell on negative emotions, you turn inwards and become more aware of the things you believe are wrong in your life. You can become pessimistic about life and about yourself

Solution

Do a random act of kindness for somebody—whether for a stranger, or somebody you know. Do a Google search for “random acts of kindness ideas” and you’ll find inspiration for what to do. Print out a list and tick one random act of kindness off each day. Some easy-to-do acts of kindness include giving someone a compliment, holding the door open for someone, and calling an elderly relative to see how they’re doing.

Benefit

When you focus on serving others, you turn outwards and shift your focus away from your negative emotions and thoughts. Being kind to others promotes positive feelings because kindness activates the brain's reward system. It also makes you feel valued which enhances self-esteem.

Try reaching out to a friend when you feel down

Problem

When you’re feeling sad, you may get the urge to withdraw from others because you don’t want them to know how bad you’re feeling.

Why it is bad

If you avoid other people whenever you feel down, then over time, you’ll start to feel lonely and isolated and you may become depressed.

Solution

Instead of withdrawing from others when you’re sad and assuming that they will reject you, try moving towards others instead. The next time you feel sad, ask a friend or relative if they have some time for a catch-up phone call. Or even better, find out if they can meet up with you to do a fun activity. You could try out a new coffee shop, or explore an area of town you’ve never been to before.

Benefits

Reaching out to others when you’re going through a difficult time helps you feel supported and less alone. It can also improve a low mood and it can prevent you from developing depression.

Try a healthy diet for low mood

Problem

If you eat a lot of high-sugar foods it can affect your mood.

Why is it bad

Eating high-sugar foods causes a blood-sugar spike and drop which can make you feel tired and irritable. If you suffer from a low mood, which is also energy-draining, then consuming high-sugar foods can make you feel even worse.

Solution

Keep a food diary and write down everything you eat for one week. At the end of the week, review what you’ve eaten. Switch any high-sugar foods for low-sugar alternatives.

For example, choose:

Brown rice—not white rice.
Brown bread—not white bread.
Oatmeal—not sugary cereal.
Water, or tea—not soda.
Fruit—not candy.

It’s worth checking your diet with a nutrition professional for the best results.

Benefits

If you reduce high-sugar foods in your diet, you will see fewer fluctuations in your energy and mood. Eating a wholesome, balanced diet will increase the feel-good hormone serotonin in the brain which can contribute to a better mood.

Challenge your inner critic

Problem

If you don't think very highly of yourself, you may criticize yourself and believe you are at fault when you face upsetting situations.

Why it's bad

If you're constantly criticizing yourself, it can chip away at your self-esteem. You can begin to feel worthless and depressed.

Solution

Treat critical thoughts as hypotheses. Say you were asked to improve something on a work project and you had the thought, “I’m useless. They’re going to fire me.” Try to find concrete evidence for and against this thought.
For example,

Evidence for:
My boss asked me to improve the project.

Evidence against:
My boss made many positive remarks.
My boss has told me how much she values me.
When you’ve considered all the evidence, create a more balanced thought, like, “There are some areas I need to work on, but overall I’m doing well.”

Benefits

When you challenge your inner critic, you begin to develop a more positive self-view because you learn to see your role in situations more objectively. Healthy self-esteem can protect you from developing mental health problems like depression.

Try journaling when you feel overwhelmed

Problem

When you’re under a lot of emotional pressure, you can quickly become overwhelmed.

Why it is bad

When you’re in a state of emotional overwhelm, it’s hard to process strong feelings because you’re not thinking rationally and calmly.

Solution

You can manage strong emotions by journaling about how you feel. Get a notebook and simply start writing down whatever comes to your mind without censoring anything. Afterward, reflect on what you wrote down. Try these prompts:

What emotion am I feeling?
Why do I feel this way?
When did this feeling start?
Is there another way to view this situation?
What can I do to cope right now?

Benefits

Journaling can help you manage strong emotions by allowing you to express them freely. This releases emotional pressure and calms you down. In this state, you can think more clearly and process strong emotions more effectively. It’s easier to find ways to cope.

Find a Daily Purpose

Problem

Depression has a nasty habit of making it feel like nothing matters. Finding a purpose combats this, but a life purpose is so big, you may not be able to find one when each day is a chore.

Why it is bad

Being purposeless leaves you with no light at the end of the tunnel. And with no reason to fight, it is all too easy to slip deeper into the depths of despair and hopelessness.

Solution

When finding a life purpose is too overwhelming, find a purpose just for the day. You can go through life on a day-by-day basis, without having grand plans for the future.
Each morning, write down your purpose for the day, something that makes you feel alive or significant. Maybe it’s finishing your art project or volunteering at the animal shelter for an hour.

Benefits

Having a purpose helps create feelings of hope, even when everything else feels dark. Depression tries hard to take this hope away, so having a daily purpose can help you find contentment even in the midst of depression.

STOP searching for your passion and do this instead

Do a hobby when you feel upset

Problem

Sometimes upsetting emotions can be so strong that they drain your energy and motivation.

Why it is bad

If you don't manage upsetting emotions, you can become stuck in a cycle of low energy and low motivation. Getting "unstuck" becomes harder as emotions that are not dealt with become stronger.

Solution

It may feel counterintuitive, but try doing a hobby that you enjoy. If you don't have a hobby, try out a few activities that interest you until you find the one you love. Google a list of hobbies and select a couple. Rank them according to which ones interest you most. Then, set up a goal to try out one new hobby per week until you find the one that fits.

Benefits

Hobbies can help you break the cycle of low energy and motivation as a result of strong, negative emotions. That’s because, when you do hobbies that you enjoy, your brain releases dopamine which lifts motivation, boosts your mood, and gives you renewed energy.

10 Best Hobbies for People with Anxiety - To help You Calm Down Instantly!

Eliminate stress, anxiety, and boredom with these 5 hobby ideas

Set goals when you feel unmotivated

Problem

If you've been struggling with a low mood, you may find that you lack motivation.

Why it is bad

When you lack motivation, you avoid doing things that would make you feel better and you can start to feel hopeless.

Solution

Set small goals that are specific, realistic, attainable, and stated positively. Let's say you had the goal "to stop waking up late." This is stated in the negative, so it needs to be changed to, "to start waking up earlier." To make the goal specific, you could add the time you'd like to wake up. The time you choose should be realistic so that your goal is attainable. That means that if you wake up at 10 right now, then setting a goal to wake up at 6 is unrealistic. A realistic goal would be to start waking up half an hour earlier, at 9h30.

Benefit

Setting small goals and achieving them can help rebuild motivation. That's because when goals are achieved, it instills hope and builds the belief that you can do what you set out to do.

Try to be active when you’re feeling sad

Problem

When you feel sad, you may feel the urge to stay indoors and isolate yourself from the rest of the world.

Why it is bad

The more time you spend sitting at home doing nothing, the worse your mood can become. You’re more likely to become preoccupied with negative thoughts that keep you feeling low.

Solution

Instead of responding to sadness by isolating at home, get out and do something active. Go for a walk around your neighbourhood. Spend some time working in the garden. Try out a group fitness class. If these ideas feel like too much, start small. Challenge yourself to do an activity for just 10 minutes.

Benefits

If you choose to do something active when you’re feeling sad, you’ll take your mind off of negative thoughts and boost your mood at the same time. Being active releases feel-good hormones that enhance well-being and reduce sadness.

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Do you feel anxious?

Anxiety

That sense of dread as you’re going about your day to day activities. That feeling that makes your heart pound and your palms sweat. If you’ve felt this way before, then you’ve probably experienced anxiety. Anxiety makes it hard to focus on anything other than your fears. And the thing about fears: The more you worry about them, the bigger they appear and the worse you feel.

The good news is that there is a solution, right for you. You can free yourself from the endless thought-spiraling and live a present-focused life. Our strategies for anxiety will help you to overcome your fears and discover a sense of inner calm so that you can take any of life’s challenges in your stride. Learn how to positively re-engage with life and find fulfillment in your work and relationships again.

Do you have bad habits?

Change your habits

Do you have a bad habit you’d like to stop but nothing you’ve tried has worked? Or perhaps there’s a new habit you’d like to pick up but whenever you’ve tried, it just doesn’t stick. That’s completely normal. New habits are hard to adopt and old ones are hard to kick.

But there are strategies that you can try that can hugely multiply your chances of success. With our strategies, you will learn how to dust yourself off and pick yourself back up again when you encounter setbacks that may have discouraged you in the past. You’ll learn what to do to make it easier for you to say YES to new habits and NO to old ones. Most of all, you’ll start to live a life you’re proud of because you’ll be living fully on your own terms.

Do your struggle with negative emotions?

Manage Negative Emotions

Do you react in ways you later regret when you experience strong, negative emotions? Perhaps you find it hard to control your anger and you lash out at others. Maybe when you feel sad and lonely you turn to alcohol or drugs to numb the pain. Or maybe you’re someone who keeps their emotions inside and later explodes.

It’s important for your mental well-being that you learn how to manage negative emotions so that they don’t become expressed in unhealthy and harmful ways. Our strategies will help you cope better with negative emotions. You’ll become more aware of your emotions and you’ll learn how to minimize the hold they have over you. We’ll show you how to channel your negative emotions into healthy and positive pursuits to promote optimal mental health.

Do you have trouble sleeping?

Sleep better

Do you wake up tired, groggy, and feeling like you barely slept? Do you feel the need to take a nap hours after waking up? Do you have trouble concentrating throughout the day, and does every little thing seem to annoy you? If this sounds familiar, then getting too little sleep, or the quality of your sleep could be to blame.

No matter what’s causing your sleep troubles, our strategies for better sleep have you covered. Our practical tips will help you fall asleep quickly and naturally. They’ll also help you improve the quality of your sleep so that you wake up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. You’ll feel ready to embrace the day cheerfully, with the energy and focus that you need to accomplish your goals.

Based on your answers we recommend you work on

Anxiety Change Your Habits Manage Negative Emotions Sleep Better

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What do you need help with?

Depression

We will be asking you some questions to determine effective strategies to help you.

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Do you want to know where you can find support?

Do you want to learn how your health is connected to depression?

Is it hard for you to consistently engage in activities that make you feel good?

NO

YES

Based on your answers we recommend you work on

Please choose one to continue with

Here are some ___ strategies.

Please swipe yes to the ones you want to save.

1 / 1

Do a random act of kindness when you feel upset

Try reaching out to a friend when you feel down

Try a healthy diet for low mood

Challenge your inner critic

Try journaling when you feel overwhelmed

Find a Daily Purpose

Do a hobby when you feel upset

Set goals when you feel unmotivated

Try to be active when you’re feeling sad

NO

YES

Please complete the exercises for your saved strategies

Would you like to set a reminder to practice the saved strategies?

Sometimes there might be a different issues that can help you with your goal.

Would you like to look at other areas that could help you with this?

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Do you feel anxious?

Do you have bad habits?

Do your struggle with negative emotions?

Do you have trouble sleeping?

NO

YES

Based on your answers we recommend you work on

Please choose one to continue with

Would you like to complete a questionaire to determine if New category Text

or Continue with

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