Feeling down? Try this

By Amy Robertson, 22nd Oct 2011 | Follow this author | RSS Feed | Short URL http://nut.bz/33q5tbac/
Posted in Wikinut>Health>Mind & Spirit>Depression

Depression can be eased with a few simple steps like eating healthily and sleeping properly. Here's some tips

Feeling down? Try this

Sometimes feeling down seems to linger on a little bit too long; the grey days just don't look like they're drawing to a close. It is probably worth talking to your doctor about depression but if you want to try something else first, here is what I find works for me:

- Eat regularly and don't skip meals even if you're not hungry

- Eat healthily. Plenty of fruit, vegetables, proteins. Try slow release carbs such as brown rice, rather than white carbs (White bread, White pasta...)

- If you're hungry in between meals, snack healthily too - nuts, seeds, fruit

- Avoid caffeine or at least keep it to a minimum if you can't do without it (no caffeine after 3pm as it may affect your sleep)

- Keep sugar intake to a minimum as it sends your blood sugar levels soaring then crashing, causing you to feel down. If you can't do without sweets (including sugary drinks, biscuits, chocolate...) try to limit it to one a day

- Exercise regularly as it keeps your endorphins up. Try 30 minutes every other day

- Do 25 sit-ups, press-ups and squats every morning as it wakes you up and is a positive start to th day

- Get to sleep before midnight

- Get eight hours sleep every night

- Try to adopt a healthy sleep pattern, getting up at the same time each morning

- Give yourself time in the morning so you can have a relaxed breakfast rather than stressing you will be late

- Try St John's Wort (but speak to an adviser first as it might disagree with medication you are already taking)

- Start a mood diary so you can monitor if there are specific times of the day or key incidents which make you feel more down

- Trust your friends and try talking to them a bit about how you're feeling. But if there are big issues you haven't dealt with, talk to you doctor about counselling

- Make an effort with what you're wearing as it can improve your mood

- Try to be positive about things you struggle with such as work, seeing certain people...

- It's ok to cry and hide for an hour or so but give yourself a time when you can feel down and a time you need to then get up and carry on with your day

- Be honest with yourself. And if you feel it's getting too much to cope with, go straight to your GP

Try this for two weeks. If it makes no diffence or things get worse, get help. But I find it can be enough to help me