How to protect against depression: 10 healthy habits
Health / / December 19, 2019
1. Often do something that brings you happiness
What do you enjoy watching most? How long have you been spending time on something that you really like? Occupation favorite thing - the most popular form of cognitive therapy, which reduces the risk of depression and helps to deal with it. The more positive things you experience, the more a person feels happy.
What to do. Each of us has their own preferences. For example, try to visit more often on the street, making jogging or walking with your pet. Or spend more time in the community. The proximity to nature and connecting with others - antidepressants with proven efficacyTegan Cruwys, S. Alexander Haslam, Genevieve A. Dingle, Jolanda Jetten, Matthew J. Hornsey, E. M. Desdemona Chong, Tian P. S. Oei.Feeling Connected Again: Interventions That Increase Social Identification Reduce Depression Symptoms in Community and Clinical Settings. .
2. Keep in touch with loved ones
It can be difficult to find time to call friends or family, and you start to lose touch with loved ones. But awareness of the benefits of communicating with relatives make you rethink their behavior. Communication with the people you really love is a powerful antidote to depression.
What to do. It is very important to maintain a close relationship and not the illusion of friendly tiesAlan R. Teo, HwaJung Choi, Marcia Valenstein.Social Relationships and Depression: Ten-Year Follow-Up from a Nationally Representative Study. . Invest more time in the tested people who know for a long time. And less waste it on those who are not credible.
3. Do not focus on the problems
Negative thoughts can get stuck in your head, forcing us to concentrate on the problemsJ. Joormann, S. M. Levens, I. H. Gotlib.Sticky Thoughts: Depression and Rumination Are Associated with Difficulties Manipulating Emotional Material in Working Memory. . As a result, affected our mood and mental well-being. But it is important to see ourselves not only negative, but the whole of reality as a whole.
What to do. When the negative thought begins to consume you, do everything to block it. Can be used for this meditation and yoga. Such practices help control the body and mind - it is exactly what you need.
4. Focus on internal order
Well, if you put in front of him goals. Especially if their achievement requires some effort. Moreover, studies showYu Ling, Yushu He, Yong Wei, Weihong Cen, Qi Zhou, Mingtian Zhong.Intrinsic and Extrinsic Goals as Moderators of Stress and Depressive Symptoms in Chinese Undergraduate Students: A Multi-wave Longitudinal Study. We become happier, if the focus on the internal order. Ie those that meet our own psychological needs, not dictated by the demands of others.
Examples of internal goals can be self-acceptance and fitness classes for fun. External same objectives aimed at getting awards from others and achieving recognition. To those include fame and financial success.
What to do. When choosing a goal, ask yourself why you want to achieve them. Is determined by the external or internal, they, and give preference to the latter.
5. Try to be realistic
Our mood depends on the perception of reality. People are often divided into optimists and pessimists, but where is the realists? Be the last means to see the situation from the outside, and to evaluate it as a cold-blooded observer. You might even consider himself as such, whereas in fact only notice the badR. M. Msetfi, R. A. Murphy, J. Simpson, D. E. Kornbrot.Depressive Realism and Outcome Density Bias in Contingency Judgments: The Effect of the Context and Intertrial Interval. .
What to do. When you feel frustrated for any reason, think of it as a realist. Perhaps you will see that things are not as bad as it might seem at first.
6. Eat right
In a sad or depressed mood, people usually lean on harmful high-calorie foods. It is important to exclude it from the diet, because foods high in fat and Sahara may increase the propensity to depression for more than 50%A. Sánchez-Villegas, E. Toledo, J. de Irala, M. Ruiz-Canela, J. Pla-Vidal, M. A. Martínez-González.Fast-food and Commercial Baked Goods Consumption and the Risk of Depression. .
What to do. Choose ingredients, rich in vitamins B, such as sunflower seeds, green pepper, brown rice and spinach. Eat as nuts, salmon and other products with fatty acids omega-3. Do not forget about eggs, dairy products, vegetables, fruits and cereals. All of the above increases the resistance to depressionAlmudena Sánchez-Villegas, Lisa Verberne, Jokin de Irala, Miguel Ruíz-Canela, Estefanía Toledo, Lluis Serra-Majem, Miguel Angel Martínez-González.Dietary Fat Intake and the Risk of Depression: The SUN Project. .
7. move more
Usually, after exercise we feel better, right? This is because physical activity has a positive effect on brain chemistry. Exercise increases resistance to anxiety, depression and other conditions that develop under stressG. Mammen, G. Faulkner.Physical Activity and the Prevention of Depression: A Systematic Review of Prospective Studies. . Physical activity also helps to relax and sleep better at night, that protects against insomnia - one of the causes of depressionD. Riemann, U. Voderholzer.Primary Insomnia: A Risk Factor to Develop Depression?.
What to do. Start with 30-minute breaks for physical activity. They will maintain the level of happiness hormone, endorphin, and remove the symptoms of depression. You do not need to prepare themselves for a marathon. Enough to walk in the fresh air. When you do not know where to start, just go outside.
8. relax more often
It is no secret that the emotional discharge - is an effective remedy for stress. In a relaxed state Anthony F. Jorm, Amy J. Morgan, Sarah E. Hetrick.Relaxation for Depression. it is easier to focus and bring thoughts in order that it may be difficult for people to depression or anxiety.
What to do. There are many ways to take a break from worries. Choose the most suitable. If you love to walk in nature, go to the next campaign. If you prefer ponds, spend a day at the beach. Among other things, help to relax meditation and yoga.
9. Follow Sleep
We all feel better after a good night's sleep. It helps the brain to recover and prepare for the day ahead. On the quality of sleep depends on our mood and the results of intellectual workP. L. Franzen, D. J. Buysse.Sleep Disturbances and Depression: Risk Relationships for Subsequent Depression and Therapeutic Implications. .
What to do. Make a schedule and try to follow it. The man has to sleep about 6-8 hours a day. Therefore, go earlier than usual, when you know that in the morning, too, have to get up early. If you find it difficult to wake up in the morning, learn to be an early riser.
10. Help yourself by taking care of others
Above was a speech about how you can help yourself. But to improve their well-being can be and with the help of caring for others. People who help others, less likely to suffer from depressionC. E. Jenkinson, A. P. Dickens, K. Jones, J. Thompson-Coon, R. S. Taylor, M. Rogers, C. L. Bambra, I. Lang, S. H. Richards.Is Volunteering a Public Health Intervention? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Health and Survival of Volunteers. .
What to do. Try to take care of people and animals. It is not necessary to make broad gestures or assuming a huge commitment. In the struggle with depression may play a role, even small contributions.