According to statistics from the World Health Organization, women have a 25% chance of getting severe depression at least once in their lifetime, and 15% for men. In the United States last year, 13% of adults took antidepressant drugs (this is more than 10 million people), and one in four middle-aged women took long-term antidepressant drugs. Now that social pressure is so great, depression is becoming more and more common, and someone around you will get depression at any time.
Why should we pay attention to depression? The economic losses and “disability” caused by depression are comparable to all cancers combined. If severe depression persists or is not properly treated, it will be accompanied by a decline in the cognitive function of the brain and, most seriously, suicide. Depression makes us feel down, lack of motivation, full of negative thinking and random thoughts, and poor attention and memory. It also affects our ability to work, study, socialize and live life.
If we count moderate to mild depression, the chance that a person will experience at least once in a lifetime will increase to 30-40%. No wonder there are more and more psychiatric clinics. If you go to a health insurance psychiatric clinic, there is a high probability that the doctor will prescribe “antipsychotic drugs.” Many people often misunderstand the effects of drugs. I often tell patients: Depression medication does not make you feel better and become happy soon, but the first step is to stop you from thinking about it all the time and reduce your obsessive thoughts. Anyway, there are a lot of bad things that I have been thinking about and I feel even worse. Don’t think about it all the time, the brain is easy to forget gradually, and the negative emotions are easy to reduce.
Medicine is one of the “methods” to treat depression, but it is not the only effective method, nor does it mean that depression will naturally improve if you visit a doctor and get medicine. Severe and persistent depression is a brain disease that will affect the patient’s life comprehensively. We will need to adjust our lifestyle to accelerate the speed of recovery. Here, I will sort out some easy ways to get out of depression.
1. Sleep must be adequate
When I see a doctor, I often encounter patients who come back and say: “Doctor, I slept well this week, and my mood is much better!” I often see cases of rapid improvement after sleeping well. There are too many studies on the negative effects of insomnia on the body and mind, and you must not be overwhelmed by the fear of “depending on” sleeping pills and tranquilizers. The side effects of long-term insomnia are definitely greater than taking a mild sedative. If you can fall asleep, but the quality of sleep is not good, you still need to pay attention.
2. Do more exercise, or do more exercise
Without a second sentence, if you are determined to fight depression, you must do more exercise. It is best to do 30 minutes of exercise every day. You can alternately do jogging, cycling, rhythm dancing, health exercises, etc., to relax the body, help sleep, and let the brain release natural antidepressant ingredients. Exercise can also help you gradually reduce your medication as you recover.
3. Reorganize the pace of life
Many depression patients are so busy that they have no time or space for themselves, so they cannot exercise or relax themselves. This is most common among housewives and office workers who have to work overtime. At this time, try to abandon less important things, or ask other family members to help with housework. Of course, most of the patients who come to visit the psychiatric clinic are limited by the objective environment and cannot do it (or have lost their determination and motivation), so they have to use drugs to help.
4. Don’t be afraid of depression medications
Depression drugs have the effect of repairing brain nerves. The more severe the depression symptoms (such as being unwilling to move all day, loss of interest, low mood), the better the response to depression medications, but the side effects of nausea and nausea often occur in the first three days of taking depression medications, and some people are afraid to take the medication. However, more than 67% of the cases of drastic improvement after one month of taking the medicine are more than 67%. Compared with the side effects in the first three days, this is worth trying.
Severe depression can also be a brain disease. The damage to the brain caused by long-term stress can sometimes be recovered quickly by drugs. I often tell patients that taking medicine can help you take the first step. You have a better mood and some physical strength so that you can plan further exercise and adjust your living habits.
5. Find the right medicine and don’t stop the medicine too quickly
Generally, the course of medication for depression is about 3-6 months. If you are close to recovery after taking it for three months, you can slowly reduce the medicine in the next three months. Most people do not need to take antidepressant drugs for a long time and do not have to worry about drug squeal. The recurrence rate of taking the medicine for only one month is several times that of reducing the medicine after taking the medicine for three months, so don’t stop the medicine too quickly.
6. “Lighter” medicines or healthy foods are sometimes effective
If you get “moderate to mild” depression, then you don’t want to take depression medications, or you are very uncomfortable after taking depression medications. Sometimes you only take “light” anti-anxiety drugs to overcome chest tightness, palpitations, irritability, anxiety, and other symptoms, combined with some calcium tablets, B group, fish oil, plus exercise and sleep, can sometimes speed up the speed of recovery. Some scholars also believe that eating a more “Mediterranean diet” will help.
7. Learn relaxation training
“Yoga” is the most convenient way of self-relaxation for learning. The book “Caring for the Body, Repairing the Mind” is a very practical introduction to many methods of self-relaxation. Some hospitals and clinics also cooperate with the “Physiological Feedback Device” to learn “abdominal breathing” courses. Learning these skills will be useful for a lifetime.
8. Get up in the morning to bask in the sun
Sleeping at a fixed time, waking up, and then basking in the sun can adjust the biological clock, promote the secretion of vitamin D, and avoid falling asleep too late to affect night sleep. Taking a walk in the morning to bask in the sun, and taking a bath and eating after running in the evening is the ideal anti-worry rhythm.
9. Stretch exercise anytime, anywhere
If you are tired from work and reading, you can do stretching exercises in the pantry or stairwell. Elementary school students will play a ball in ten minutes after class, but adults forget such a simple truth.
10. Don’t watch TV all the time
With the remote control in hand, from the news station, movie station to drama station, this is the worst leisure mode. If you just watch TV aimlessly or keep staring at the TV one after another when you get home, I suggest you turn the TV off. Call a friend, go out for a chat or have a late-night snack, or go for a walk with your partner, and you will find that you get more than watching TV.
Currently, many scientific studies support that more serious and long-lasting depression may be caused by long-term stress and physique ” brain inflammation .” Therefore, chronic depression is difficult to cure all at once. It often requires medication to reduce stress. , Exercise more, get enough sleep, and gradually relieve after a period of time.
