During the Great Depression, no one was too proud to take a second job and menial jobs were not looked down on. My husband’s grandfather often told us about his job shoveling coal during the Depression Era. He went on to become an Admiral and author but was still proud of the time he spent shoveling coal.
Get rid of clutter and clear up space for a more simple way of life by selling anything you don’t need or want anymore online, with a good old-fashioned yard sale or by placing an ad in a penny saver.
Can you clean homes, mow lawns, repair computers, sew, bake, tutor, teach music lessons, or babysit? Use the skills you have to make money.
Do you have a skill like writing, editing, or coding? There are so many ways to make money online these days. Do some digging around and find a way to work from home that fits your lifestyle and talents.
Once again, please understand that depression is a neurochemical imbalance that requires patience, diligence, and possibly medical intervention to overcome. It’s a tough illness to deal with at times, and many people do so in their own way. But perhaps happiness can be found in some other places, as well. The warm-hearted answer from the same young man mentioned prior deserves some page space! Here are, once again, some of his suggestions:
A former competitive runner offers these tips on Quora:
“Vitamin therapy in which large doses of vitamin B is ingested regularly under the supervision of a doctor.”“Fairly vigorous exercise has been shown to release the same neurotransmitters as antidepressant medications.”“Reducing sugar intake and eating less processed foods including gluten.”“Meditation and deep breathing exercises.”
Finally, this Quora user shared another piece of valuable advice:
“Claims of depression cures are often used to see products that may be useless or only work for those who believe (because) a television personality or celebrity doctor says so.”
Remember earlier how we advised you to check with your physician before you treat your symptoms? The same advice goes for listening to influencers or on-air personalities. Your family doctor knows your medical needs best and will serve as your best resource.
Travel can be a bit difficult due to time constraints. One way around this limitation is to rethink what it is to “travel.” We needn’t take a flight to somewhere, book an expensive hotel, or arrange transport. Simply getting away from it all is good enough.
“The other way to get rid of (depression) is to travel alone. Plan a trip to any hill station ( a town in the low mountains of the Indian subcontinent) … When you come back from the trip you will find your mind healthy.”
You probably don’t live in India as this young man does, but you get the idea. There’s a beautiful and peaceful place not too far from you. Will you go? Researchers find that travel, in and of itself, does not impact depression, specifically. However, an assistant professor of psychology at New York University’s Department of Psychology says that exploring new environments studied how new activities help to stimulate the brain. She concluded the following:
“Our results suggest that people feel happier when they have more variety in their daily routines—when they go to novel places and have a wider array of experiences.”
And an abstract published in Nature notes that “daily variability in physical location was associated with increased positive affect in humans.” These sound promising. So if traveling to a new place helps uplift you, then you could at least give it a try.
Once again, a Quora user has great insight into overcoming depressed feelings:
“Workout (is) the best way to release anger. The more angry you are, (the greater) will be your workout. And once you are done with you workout your anger will be gone and you will be more relaxed. If you talk about depression, it will motivate (you) to (go) workout.”
Like dance, aerobic exercise benefits the brain in several ways. First, exercise stimulates the heart, which in turn releases more blood. Blood flow is an important element of cognitive health because it delivers oxygen to your brain cells. Second, exercise releases endorphins which are potent anti-stress hormones. Third, exercise (especially of the aerobic variety) enhances neurogenesis – or the growth of new brain cells. Dr. Michel Craig Miller, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, agrees! In a 2021 article, he says:
“For some people, it [exercise] works as well as antidepressants, although exercise alone isn’t enough for someone with severe depression.”
That’s right. Shake a leg. Boogie. Do the twist. You get the idea. Here’s what one young man had to say about how dancing helped him:
“If ever in the life you danced like a drunk, you will come to know that dance is the best mental exercise.” And this young man may be onto something.
An article published in Psych Central confirms that dance can be an excellent tool for managing those familiar, uncomfortable symptoms. The paper notes that dancing might help boost both of the following chemical reactions in your body:
“Aerobic exercise elevates levels of both dopamine (the neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward) and euphoria-inducing endorphins.”
The author notes that as you master those new moves, you will also feel optimistic about the strides you make. The feeling of pride in mastery of technique also helps to stimulate dopamine. Thus, you will feel encouraged to continue.
Meditation is a technique of quieting the mind and tuning in to our breath and body that is widely practiced across the world. And the reason for it’s popularity is that it actually works.