Depression is not a phase but a major mental illness that impacts to the extent of health loss. Although it’s necessary to seek medical help if anxiety and depression caters to interfere in your daily life but experts suggest self help is the most powerful method to overcome depression.
According to the National Network of Depression Centers, One in Five five Americans will be impacted by mental illness in their lifetime, and it is the leading cause of disability in the United States among ages 15-44.
There is one death by suicide every 12 minutes in the United States alone, and 90% of suicide cases can be traced back to mental illness most often depression.
But rather than joining the queue, we must learn why we fall into depression and anxiety and then how we can change it without any medication if possible.
Each one of us faces difficult and tough times in life, but I want you to know that no matter where you are at life, no matter how low you have fallen, no matter how terrifying your situation is, this is not the end.
I have been depressed myself, and I know it may be hard right now, but if you hang in there and stay in with me throughout this blog post, you will find the ability to overcome depression and anxiety naturally and help others going through the same struggles.
Read Depression Isn’t A Choice, It’s A Kind Of Brain Damage
Things to do to Overcome Depression And Anxiety
1. Thoughts Are Everything
Your thoughts are the most crucial factor in curing depression and anxiety naturally. The daily beliefs you hold around your environment define the status of your mind, which ultimately influences your happiness.
If you always tend to have thoughts about the past that you regret rather than being excited about the future possibilities, absolutely, you will have anxiety. If you always focus on what you can’t control rather than thinking about how you can bounce back and react positively to situations, absolutely you will be depressed.
E.g., Let’s assume you are in a relationship and your partner cheated on you. That’s a horrible situation to be in, but rather than focusing on the outcome which is out of your control; you can react to it positively by learning that it was not your fault and that they are the insecure one. You can decide that you are not going to make yourself a victim, but instead, you will start doing even better for yourself and the people around you.
It exactly shows perfectly how a change of thought and attitude about a given situation can change your mood.
Keep in mind that life is always a choice. You cannot entirely change the outcome of certain situations, but you can react to it differently and more positively to situations. Change your thoughts and how you respond to situations, and your life will completely change.
It is not, “why is this happening to me,” but “how can I change it to make it better?”.
2. Accept Yourself
One of the leading causes of the rise of depression and anxiety is due to social media. From 2005-15, cases of depressive illness increased by nearly a fifth even though there are many more medications for mental illness these days than back then.
Social media tells us how perfect man or women should look and many other expectations that we subconsciously fall into. You have to remember that we are all equal in spite of all the differences, and together, we make this world a beautiful place.
Most millennials in this generation, get always stuck in the thought of impressing others. It is the dumbest thing one can spend their life on. It takes away almost all your happiness.
People’s moods and thoughts repeatedly change, and therefore, you will never feel happy and satisfied if you depend your happiness on others. Thus, stop impressing others and start genuinely loving and accepting yourself as who you are.
If you put in the actions to adopt the habit of accepting yourself, you will be able to overcome depression much more quickly.
Read Brené Brown’s Powerful Quotes on Accepting Yourself Whole-Heartedly
3. Know Your Real Worth
We were all taught in our childhood that we were so special. But the concept of “I am so special” has skyrocketed in many millennial’s minds that they think they are the best at everything.
Realization of the fact that you are not the best at everything will eventually destroy your happiness and will lead to depression and anxiety. Even if you are talented, there are always people more capable than you in some other areas.
The truth is everybody possesses different talents and accepting the fact that everyone is equal rather than thinking you are the best will pull you out of depression and anxiety. Let’s run our race but cheer for all others at the same time without trying to prove others you are special.
4. Meaning Of Life And Fulfillment
Many people enter depression due to the incomprehensibility and the unpredictability of life. They feel depressed because they can’t find meaning or reasons in their life.
Creating meaning out of something is the nature of human beings, but when life itself seems meaningless, then it reaches down to the point that whatever we do becomes meaningless, and we fall into depression.
But the irony is, life itself doesn’t have any meaning unless we create one by ourselves and the more significant purpose we give to life, the more fulfilling and less suffering life we will live.
Let me give you an example. I am pretty sure that there are people around you who are too lazy to cook, wake up, or even make their damn bed in the morning?
But then there are also people with a huge purpose in life such as Dalai Lama, Martin Luther King Jr, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela who work towards more than their own life.
They spent their lives helping and fighting for people. A meaning in life that is even bigger than your own life will relieve you from all the small suffering and will lead you to a much happier and fulfilling life.
Life won’t always be easy, but if you take the responsibility to give your life a more significant meaning and act upon it, you will have the ability to endure through any pain (Congratulations, you have just learned the biggest secret of life.)
It’s a choice you can make right now whether you will keep being like the people around you, suffering from small things such as making the bed, being lazy or you want to be responsible for your own life and make it even better with a greater sense of purpose.
Thus work towards creating meaning, and it would surely help you fight anxiety and overcome depression.
Read Here’s The Amount Of Sleep You Need To Avoid Depression
5. Gratitude
While a greater sense of purpose will undoubtedly make your life meaningful and more fulfilling, you should always feel grateful for what you still have.
One of the leading causes of depression and anxiety is focusing too much on what we don’t have and not realizing what we already have.
Let’s talk about your “eye” for a second, will you ever exchange your eye for a million-dollar or heck even a billion-dollar, be true to yourself, the answer will be an absolute no. Listen duh, you already have something more valuable than a billion-dollar.
If you won’t be grateful and happy about having something equivalent to a billion-dollar every day, what made you think that making money and having materialistic things will make you happier.
To overcome depression and anxiety naturally, it is one of the crucial practices you should take daily in life. I don’t mean you should not improve yourself by focusing on the future, but while you strive towards the future goal, be grateful and happy about what you have.
The way I practice gratitude is, after doing meditation in the morning, I spend around 5 minutes daily to be grateful for everything I have in life. This little time can make you significantly realize about all the essential things you have.
Conclusion
Now, stop making stories in your mind like he doesn’t know how much I am suffering and how he says things so easily. I also have been there, and it certainly took me time to adopt these mindsets and habits but eventually, I was able to deal with depression and anxiety without medication.
I have decided in my own life that I can change the way I think and work towards creating meaning and fulfillment in life. If a person like me can do it, why can’t you?
If you are still not getting any better feelings or having suicidal thoughts after reading these tips, I highly suggest you to even take a step further by joining an online therapy since it is much more affordable and timely accessible than real therapy session in addition to many other benefits.
Read Anxiety Symptoms: The Different Ways In Which Anxiety Manifests Itself
Stop undermining the side effects of depression and anxiety because the longer duration you stay silent, the more time it takes to heal and the more severe it gets. Talking with a professional and tracking your progress will help you in improving and overcome depression quicker and better.
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