Things You Can Do to Get Ahead of Your Seasonal Depression

In theory, fall as a harvest season is the period of growth and birth. However, it really doesn’t appear so in urban environments, and people seem more likely to fall into seasonal depression.

After all, the weather is colder and wetter, which keeps you indoors for the most time. Sure, there’s Halloween, but is this really enough to compensate for all the activities you can no longer do outdoors? This is also the season of the flu (even before the COVID-19 pandemic), which further complicates things.

Moreover, a dormant lifestyle, junk food, not getting enough vitamin D, not getting enough sleep, and not hydrating properly can already make you feel depleted. Coincidentally, all of this is more likely in the fall.

In other words, while it might be the season of birth in the countryside, the situation is much grimmer in urban environments. Still, not everything is so dark and moody. With the right game plan, you can easily get ahead of this problem and come up with several solutions.

Spend Time Outside

This kind of lifestyle is particularly appealing, seeing as how it’s easy to skip a walk outside when it’s raining already. This could practically force you to skip some of your best cardio-based habits like walking, cycling, running, etc. Keep in mind that while this is more difficult, it is definitely worth keeping up with. After all, physical activity is one of the key components for improving your mood in the long run.

Sun exposure is also a huge issue, which is why you need to find some motivation to spend more time outdoors. One of the ways to do so is to prepare a special area in your own backyard. Installing a fire pit is a great start. Then, you should proceed to make seating around the fire pit in order to make the area even more inviting. Additional decoration efforts will only improve the effect.

Sure, it’s inconvenient, but it’s incredibly important for both your physical health and your vitamin D levels. So, give it your best to spend some time outdoors. If going gets tough, it might also be a good idea to start taking vitamin D supplements.

Improve Your Diet

Previously, we’ve talked about how you are likely to neglect the importance of spending time outdoors in the summer. The same goes for ordering food instead of going to the farmers’ marketto get healthy ingredients. This is a shame, seeing as how there’s always an abundance of incredible crops and fresh veggies to choose from in the fall.

First of all, you need to focus on preparing your meal from whole foods. Fortunately, fall is the season of apples, pomegranates, cranberries, chestnuts, sweet potatoes, and cauliflowers. Blueberries are full of phytochemicals and antioxidants, which are great for your overall health. Pears are great for your heart, while pumpkin is one of the best sources of vitamin A there is.

Overall, the problem with this lies in finding enough motivation to improve your diet. Fortunately, this is not a difficult task.

Find a Therapist

There’s a reason why you’re reading how to get ahead of your seasonal depression – it’s probably because it has happened before, and you expect it to happen again. While mood swings are completely normal, having an active (inevitable) trigger is definitely something you should focus on. The most effective way to do so is to find a therapist you trust.

Remember that there are some people who love fall and all the little joys it brings. In other words, other than just being a matter of personality, it’s also something closely tied to your point of view. This is something that a therapist can help you understand much better. By understanding these triggers, it will be a lot easier to avert them.

Focus on Self-care

The better you take care of yourself, the better you’ll feel. Sure, for some, fall implies that you should carry heavier clothes, but, at the same time, this gives you brand new fashion opportunities to explore. Sweaters, coats, and long sleeves, in general, are not in use during the summer. Now, it’s time to change this for good.

Keep in mind that self-care is not just in the way you dress. Keep in mind that spending more time indoors means sitting more and becoming stiffer. So, go to a massage parlor for a treatment. Furthermore, if you do listen to our advice from the first section and decide to spend more time outdoors, you’ll be exposed to wind, which could cause some damage to your skin. As a solution, you need to moisturize and use better protection.

All in all, the more you tend to your mind and body, the better you’ll feel. Fall can’t do a thing against such extensive preparation efforts.

Regulate Your Sleep Patterns

There are a lot of issues causing problems with your sleep pattern during fall. While some people find that they sleep more during the fall, this is usually not the case with others. On the one hand, longer nights means that our body is more exposed to melatonin. As a result, we get exposed to the so-called winter tiredness. Therefore, it’s essential that you learn how to handle this issue.

First of all, you need to set a strict sleeping schedule and stick to it. Start by figuring out how much sleep time you need. If you’re physically active, you need at least 8-9 hours of sleep every day. If you’re leading a dormant lifestyle, even 7 hours of sleep can be enough. Yes, there is such a thing as too much sleep, and it usually results in getting more tired than if you just cut your rest a couple of hours short.

Other than this, you might also want to try using a humidifier to improve the overall quality of your sleep.

Fill Your Schedule

The busier you are, the more organized you’ll be. As we’ve mentioned, a lot of things that you’ve previously enjoyed may now be much more difficult. This means that you’ll cancel some tasks without replacing them with something new. This is a grievous error that you need to rectify as soon as possible.

Find new hobbies, change your exercise and physical activity routines and, overall, make an effort to fill in your schedule. There are so many things you can do during the fall. Perhaps, you could use these gaps in schedule to pursue opportunities and interests you continually postponed during the summer.

There’s a quote that if you work hard enough, you can replace your depression with exhaustion. This funny quote shouldn’t be taken at its face value, seeing as how depression is a serious illness with dire repercussions. Still, keeping yourself busy can help.

In Conclusion

There’s no magical cure for depression, but it’s important that you set realistic expectations. It’s ok to feel gloomy, sad, or even a bit anxious. These are the moods that will naturally appear and be caused by a variety of factors. Still, if you have the tendency to feel this way more often during the colder part of the year, it might be a good idea to do something about it. The above-listed tips are a great starting point.

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About The Author

Stacey is a freelance writer living in Minnesota with her cat, and she’s passionate about yoga, languages, home improvement, and drinking strong coffee. Find her on Twitter @StaceyShann0n

Dancing With the Devil – Inside Demi Lovato’s Life

Demi Lovato, pop singer and actress superstar, has been open about her mental health and addiction struggles. She recently put out a documentary on her life, Dancing With the Devil. The first two episodes aired on YouTube on March 23th. And two more episodes will air on March 30th and April 6th. In this documentary, Demi, her friends, family, and crew discuss her most recent, near-fatal overdose in 2018.

The documentary covers everything from family issues to eating disorders to being in the spotlight from such an early age and hits the hard, raw points of addiction.

From someone who is coming up on five years of sobriety, this documentary was extremely hard to digest. I was in tears within the first five minutes because I wasn’t expecting such detail about Demi’s overdose. Although there is a disclaimer before the documentary, the cast goes on to explicitly describe the situations.

That, in itself, is enough to hit someone hard – let alone someone who has a history of drug abuse.

Drug addiction is one of the most dangerous epidemics. The number of people who battle addiction and alcoholism is through the roof, and much more than we think. We have seen the demise of so many Hollywood stars – and some don’t end the way that Demi’s did.

Addiction and alcoholism have taken icons over the years. Prince, Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger, Amy Winehouse, Mac Miller, to name a few.

In her documentary, Demi talks about being sexually assaulted by her drug dealer, emancipating from her addict and alcoholic father, the on and off eating disorder she battled for a good part of her life, how she was able to hide her addiction from those close to her, her mental illness struggles… All of the conversations we should be having but aren’t.

The stigma around mental illness and addiction is still in place, which is partly why it has taken so many good people.

In this documentary doctors and family talk about the health problems that happened due to Demi’s overdose – specifically how she had three strokes and a heart attack, along with a tube that was sewed into her neck that filtered her blood. When she first woke up, she was legally blind and still has blind spots. It really is a miracle that she is alive today, and the doctors said that if she didn’t get care for another 5-10 minutes, she would have died.

Demi really was given a second chance at life, which is something not a lot of people are able to say.

If you haven’t watched Demi’s documentary, it is available for free to view on YouTube. We are able to see that even though she is loved by fans and is a role model for young women, she still has her faults, flaws, and downfalls.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction, please call the SAMHSA hotline at 1-800-662-4357 or look for a program meeting near you.

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About the Author

Emmie Pombo is a latte and tattoo-loving Tennessean who specializes in mental health and beauty writing. She holds a degree in Journalism and a certification in Makeup Artistry and Airbrushing. Follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

A Woman’s Daily Battle With Anxiety: Coping with the Highs And Lows.

Women and Anxiety

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with anxiety and depression. So in honor of women’s month, and a woman who suffers from anxiety here are my thoughts and the things that I do to help when my anxiety is really high.

Over the last year, with the pandemic and still having to live life I know that my anxiety has been higher than it ever has been. I know that for me I have a hard time not going to worse case when I find something out. I also have a really hard time with change, and as we all know 2020 and 2021 (so far) has been a whole host of changes and relearning to navigate. Here are some of the things that I have been doing now to keep my anxiety down.

Take A Walk

When life is feeling too much, when I have completely stopped taking things in and my whole life just feels like it’s falling, I have to walk. So I get the dog and I go for at least 2 miles. Being in the nature, listening to music and feeling the breeze as I breath deeply is something that brings me back to real life. After this I usually feel better and like I can take on something again, like I can actually adult again.

Snuggle up

Sometimes I cannot walk, because of the weather, or its too late at night, so I get curled up with my pup, I turn on some calming music and I lay with her for about fifteen minutes and just try to relax. I also like to just lay there in silents and listen to that. This is something that I need sometimes, just to stop, and take a few minutes to do nothing.

Journaling

Writing is my creative outlet, so for me when things get to be too much, or if I have too much on my mind I write. Sometimes that has nothing todo with what is going on. Like today, because I have been feeling my anxiety so high lately I thought that maybe I would sit down and write to help myself and hopeful anybody who will read this as well. So do something creative this does not have to be writing this could be anything, coloring in an adult coloring book, or painting, maybe you like plants. Anything that will you think will help you.

Shower To Calm

The day has been so much. Exhaustion is hitting hard and you just want to be done, however, you feel like you have to keep going. For me a shower helps relieve anxiety. And it helps me feel like I am human again. I can wash the day off. And I also use some shower melts. They are like aroma therapy smells. On the really hard days these showers are just something that makes me feel like I have taken a break and I can keep moving again.

Connect With Others

I have a few people in my life that I will reach out to just to talk. They are the best listeners for me and know when I need to just say how crapy my day is or that my anxiety is just too high to deal right now. Something about getting it out to someone is very reassuring. Find your person or people. Let them know that you need to hear that everything is going to be alright.

With so many women who suffer from anxiety it is our job to normalize talking about this. It is one of those invisible things that someone who is suffering with seems fine. If you are like me it is so easy for you to suffer in silently. However, if we normalize these feelings, we can feel more comfortable reaching out.

If you feel like you are drowning, do not wait reach out for help!

Keep fighting! You can get help here.

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Please Don’t Be That Person Who Makes Fun of Mental Illness

Driving to school I can’t help but wonder what ignorant statements I’ll hear in the next eight hours.

“Try going down the river, not across the stream.” Or “Next time just take the razor to your throat, do us all a favor.” Maybe if I’m lucky “I don’t understand why people cut themselves. If you were real you would stab yourself.”

My personal favorite is when someone decides it’s okay to ask me in front of people who don’t know so much, “Do you really cut yourself? I heard it’s on your thigh. Is it because it hurts less or is it just easier to hide? Why are you even doing it, your life is perfect.”

I’m barely surviving school as it is, and on top of that all I hear is comments from people who just don’t understand.

These words are said every day by ignorant self-obsessed people who were never taught any better or never listened, and nothing has been done about it.

By the end of the year thousands of kids across the country will have killed themselves, left their families wondering why, but if teachers and administrations won’t listen, we all know the public will.

I was almost a part statistic, and I very much wanted to be. Suicide is scary, but what’s scarier is the idea that a young girl was less afraid of death.

It’s time we stop making jokes, and I think it’s about damn time we wake up. No one wants to be treated differently, we just want to be surrounded by nice human beings. SO BE ONE.

Quit the shit, okay? Let’s start here: your jokes are never funny. They weren’t funny last year, they won’t be this year, and nothing will change next year.

You are hurting people, and don’t pretend you don’t know that.

So text it, tweet it, or make a funny caption out of self-harm, suicide, or mental illness by name, but only the assholes you surround yourself so easily with will think it’s funny.

Would your mom be so proud? How about your grandparents? Would they just marvel looking at their perfect son or daughter while you are making people hate themselves more than they already do because of something they can’t control?

I walk around my high school with the words Anxiety, Depression, and Bipolar painted on my forehead, and I won’t take any more of it.

We need to teach our children about mental health, teach them that jokes are never okay, and please teach them that it’s okay to not be okay.

To that kid we all know: please stop making the cutting jokes, or saying cutting is weak or “just kill yourself.”

You may think the people around you are fine, but statements like that make people a statistic.

Your jokes weren’t funny last year, and this year I’m done with your shit, and so are the rest of us.

About The Author

Lauren Andre

I began writing as a way to say the things that I felt I had no one to tell, and the majority of these writings I kept to myself. As I’ve grown into my 20s, I felt that in sharing my personal stories and thoughts I could help just one person who feels the way I did. Even if it only reaches one person searching for the answer, I hope that what I write can be a source of comfort when the world feels cold.

You can follow Lauren on Instagram

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This is How Being in a Narcissistic Relationship Caused My Anxiety Disorder

Narcissists cling to those who have big hearts because they can tolerate a great deal of subliminal abuse. But it’s only so long until they finally realize the damage being inflicted on them and build up the courage to walk away. It’s a process we’ve seen play out over and over, but what no one seems to realize is the impact narcissistic abuse can have on your mental health post-relationship. Your mental health deteriorates even after you free yourself from a narcissistic relationship. I know this first hand because the truth is, being in a relationship with a narcissist was cause for my anxiety disorder.

It all started with the verbal abuse sinking deeper and deeper into my system.

The awful things my narcissistic ex-said about me echoed in my mind so often that they slowly became my reality. I felt like I was nothing without him, I thought I was too sensitive, I overreacted too much, I thought everyone hated me and honestly, I started to hate myself. I lost touch with family members, I stopped hanging out with my friends, I had completely and totally isolated myself without even realizing it. And it’s all because his narcissistic abuse convinced me to do so. I was alone and trapped in this world where I had absolutely no control over the things that happened to me… I was terrified and frozen.

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Things You Should Know Before Dating The Girl Who Conceals Her Anxiety

Anxiety Concealed

People with concealed anxiety often feel anxiety the most intensely because we tend to suppress it a lot. We don’t like to talk about it, we don’t want to admit when we’re overwhelmed, and we will never say when we’re not okay. In fact, it’s probably our worst fear for someone to see us struggling.

1. We’d rather deal with it alone.

We don’t want anyone’s sympathy; we don’t want these labels: The one with anxiety. The one who’s vulnerable. The one with an uneasiness to trust. Because this is only a part of us; but the part that we need to fight every time someone tries to get close to us nevertheless.

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The Strongest Girls Are The Girls With Anxiety

Her Anxiety

She’s been battling her anxiety for quite some time and she continues to do so with bravery. She’s not a victim of her mental illness, because she knows in her heart that she’s so much more than the demons that live in her mind.

1. She’s learned to hold her head up high when the chaos in her mind consumes her, so the word weakness is practically not in her vocabulary.

She’s a strong girl because she manages to survive the battlefield that is her life, dealing with a mental illness that takes a lot of courage to tame and survive on a daily basis.

She manages to function because she’s tried every coping mechanism possible and she has found ways that help her calm her anxious heart. She pushes forward with determination.

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This Is How I Realized I Was Stronger Than My Mental Illness

I found myself at the bottom of the lowest, most treacherous valley on the day I realized what I had endured.

I endured an illness of suffering for many long months. The dark would fall and cast shadow living in my mind. Nothing made sense, no reality was defined.

Panic would rush to the surface of my skin, my veins boiling within anxiety and my lungs unable to breathe. The attack on my body never eased and eventually it was all that I could see. The darkness grew thicker and thicker during the day, I found myself sinking more than I ever thought I could. I could hear the screaming, the pain, the agony of my soul consuming every inch of my being.

The demons no longer plagued me in the night, but they found me in the morning as soon as I opened my eyes.

Fear strangled me until I found my throat clenched tight, suffocating under the weight of sorrow. What have I become? For days I would tare at my reflection in the misty mirror, who is this human made of flesh and bone? To what demise have I begun to fall?

Pages: 12

The Mental Battle of Daily Depression.

You find yourself wondering why you’re here.

Why are you alive? Why you exist?

Sometimes you wonder if there’s even an underlining reasoning at all.

You ask yourself a million questions a day just to try to make sense of it all, but find yourself coming up empty.

Empty.

What a belittling, unsettling feeling of upwelling emotion. To be empty.

If life is supposed to be fulfilling, exciting and create a scene of happiness, then why aren’t you sensing just that? Why aren’t you living in each moment, following a fire that’s within your soul? If life is worth living why don;t you feel free to do so? Oh, the questions they pile up in your head. They feel as if they’re ripping through your skull, like your brain is going to burst.

You wish you could explode with peace instead of unrest.

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