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Depression - coping and recovering

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Tacklingdepressionasearlyaspossiblemaymeanthatyoucanaddressproblemsquicklyand
avoidsymptomsbecomingworse.Therearevarioussignstowatchoutfor.Knowinghowto
managethesesignsandwheretogetsupportcanhelpyoucopewithandrecoverfromdepression.
Enjoying activities
Whenyouaredepressed,youmayfindthatyoudontenjoyactivitiesthatyouonceenjoyedas
muchanymore.Youmightalsofindthatyouthinkyouwontenjoysomethingbut,whenyoudoit,
youactuallyenjoyitmorethanyouexpected.
Ifyoudonttryactivities,youreducethenumberofthingsthatmayhelpyoucopewithyour
depression.Toincreasetheamountofactivitiesyouenjoy:

Listactivitiesyouusedtoenjoyincludeasmanyactivitiesaspossible.
Planoneoftheseactivitieseachdayandtrytoincreasetheamountoftimeavailablefor
activitiesyouenjoy.
Afteranactivity,thinkaboutorevenwritedownwhatyouenjoyedaboutitandtalkto
othersaboutactivitiestheylike.
Rememberthat,whileyouaredepressed,youmaynotenjoyactivitiesasmuchasbefore.
However,ifyoukeepgoing,itwillhelpyougetbetter.Youwillenjoyactivitiesmoreasyou
recover.

Developing healthy sleeping patterns

Changesinsleepingpatternsarecommoninpeoplewhoareexperiencingdepression.Notsleeping
enoughorsleepingtoomuchcanmakeyoufeelworse.Suggestionstohelpyoutoestablish
healthysleepingpatternsinclude:

Getupatthesametimeeverymorning,regardlessofhowtiredyoufeel.
Avoidsleepingduringthedayortakinganapbeforebedtime.
Havenomorethanfourcupsofteaandcoffeeaday,anddonthaveeitherafter4pm.
Getoutofbedandgotoanotherroomifyouareawakeatnight.Trytorelaxfor
examplebyreading,havingwarmmilk,listeningtomusicordoingrelaxationexercises.
Doregularexerciseearlierintheday.

Fight your negative thinking

Worryingorthinkingnegativelyiscommoninpeoplewithdepression.Thisaffectsyourabilityto
focusongettingbetterandmakesyoumorevulnerabletounhealthyemotions.Tipstohelpyou
controlworryandreducenegativethinkinginclude:

Writedownwhatyouareworriedabout.Gothrougheachconcernandexamineallthe
possiblepositiveandnegativeoutcomes.
Thinkabouthowrealisticyournegativethoughtsare.Explorealternativethoughtsand
explanations.
Avoidtalkingaboutnegativethoughtsandfeelings.Trytofindrealisticthoughts,whichwill
atleastbalanceyournegativeones.
Keepbusyandfocusedontasks.
Thinkaboutyourskills,talentsandachievements.Lookatthegoodthingsaroundyou.
Rememberhappytimes.
Writedownyourthoughts.Identifynegativeonesandtrytocorrectthem.
Avoidmakingmajordecisionsaboutyourlifeatthistime.

Dealing with irritability, agitation and fatigue

Peoplewithdepressionoftenexperienceirritability,agitationandfatigue.Thesefeelingscan
becomeworsebecauseofchangesinsleepingpatternsandlifestyle.Tohelpdealwithfeelingsof
irritability,agitationandfatigue:

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Tellyourfriends,familyandcolleagueswhatyouaregoingthroughandthatyoumay
appeartobeirritable.
Whenyouareagitatedorirritable,stopandthinkaboutwhatiscausingyoutofeelthis
wayandhowyoucancalmdown.
Practiseregularrelaxationtoreducetheimpactofirritatingorfrustratingsituations.
Talktopeoplewhoaresupportive.
Beasactiveaspossible,despitefatigue.Scheduleactivitieseachday,suchasexercise,
meetingpeople,outingsorevenhouseholdchores.

Major depression requires immediate professional help

Insomecases,symptomsofdepressionarestrongandpersistent.Changesinlifestyleandattitude
mayhavenoeffect.Ifthisisthecase,seekprofessionalhelpimmediatelybecausethisisaserious
condition.
Immediatemedicalhelpmaybenecessarywhensymptomsinclude:

Significantsleepdisturbance
Lossofappetite
Unexpectedweightloss
Lossofenergy
Feelingsofguiltorworthlessness
Uncharacteristicsuicidalthoughts.

Where to get help

Yourdoctor
Yourlocalcommunityhealthcentre
LifelineTel.131114
KidsHelplineTel.1800551800
SuicideHelplineVictoriaTel.1300651251
FindaGPnearyouwhospecialisesinmentalhealthissuesthroughthebeyondbluewebsite
beyondblueInfoLineTel.1300224636
SANEMentalHealthInformationLineTel.1800187263,MondaytoFriday,9amto5pm
NationalPsychologistReferralServiceTel.1800333497
MentalHealthFoundationTel.(03)94270407,MondaytoFriday,9amto5pm
MentalHealthAdviceLineTel.1300280737

Things to remember

Tackledepressionasearlyaspossibletoaddressproblemsquicklyandavoidsymptoms
becomingworse.
Thereisarangeofstrategiesandsupportsthatcanhelpyoucopewithandrecoverfrom
depression.

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informationprovidedwasaccurateatthetimeofpublicationandisnotintendedtotaketheplace
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Forthelatestupdatesandmoreinformation,visitwww.betterhealth.vic.gov.au
Copyight 1999/2010StateofVictoria.ReproducedfromtheBetterHealthChannel
(www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au)atnocostwithpermissionoftheVictorianMinisterforHealth.
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