No matter what the season is, I hope you are looking after yourself and taking small steps to move forward in life.

Speaking honestly, I am feeling a little blue right now.  Winter has been cold here in South Australia.  I am tired of having to watch every $1 spent because government support does not go very far.   Every news story I watch is either about a fire, a road fatality, someone being assaulted, the ongoing issue of youth crime, politicians behaving like children rather than representing their constituents and many other disheartening stories.  Nightly tv use to be about programs that brought families together and allowed me to escape the reality of life, but now it is filled with storylines on reality TV programs that portray life circumstances I am trying to avoid by watching tv. 

No matter the situation we find ourselves in, there are days we all feel a little blue.  Managing depression daily involves a combination of lifestyle changes, mental health practices, and seeking support from families, friends and even professional help when necessary.

For some of us though, we are left to our own devices, or at least we  feel alone in this big world, to get through the difficult days of our lives.  

The following steps is what I have learnt regarding getting over those periods of feeling blue.

1.       Socialize Regularly:  Without doubt, I find this the most difficult to do when I’m feeling blue.  While it is easy to say stay in touch with friends and family this is not always easy when we want to stay tucked up in bed and remain absent from what I call ‘peopling’. Those times I am feeling blue I rely on trusted social media friends.  I turn to online support services.  I watch a nature documentary.  In essence, I remain connected to the world even though I might want to avoid it altogether. 

2.       Exercise:  Like socializing, this is not easy.  When feeling blue I simply want to fulfil my basic human needs like, eating, sleeping and using the bathroom.  Most research suggests that a 20-minute walk daily can help lift your mood and improve energy levels.  However, who wants to do this when feeling blue.  Sometimes it’s easier to do 3 squats while waiting for the kettle to boil.  It might mean a walk around the house.  Sometimes it might be as simple as playing for 5 minutes with your pet.  Whatever, you do don’t be critical of yourself for not achieving 20 minutes of exercise for the day.  Remember to ask yourself the question, what is 1 step I can take to get some exercise for today?

• Balanced Diet:  I won’t lie to you, when I’m feeling blue all I want to do is curl up with a family sized pack of chicken twisties.  Sure, some suggest eating a well-balanced diet that is free from high-sugar, high-fat, and processed foods is the answer.   But let’s be real.  How many of us jump to foods that are high in sugar, salt, and fat when we are feeling blue?  When I’m feeling blue, I try to ensure that I eat at least two proper meals a day.  For me, it is breakfast and dinner.  To the best of our ability it is important that we eat something healthy during these 2 meals.  If you find yourself failing at this, which I often do, remember tomorrow is a new day to take that 1 step forward. 

• Adequate Sleep:  This is something that I use to really struggle with.  My sleep would be all over the place.  After working with a mental health support worker, I’ve created my own sleep pattern.  For me, it’s trying my best to get to bed by midnight and then ensuring that I try and get 8 hours sleep that night.  Whatever, you do, discover what works for you and ensure you are getting at least 6 hours of sleep each night/

• Daily Routine: While it is important to get adequate sleep it is also important to have a daily routine.  This may be as simple as getting up, watching tv, going online, speaking to someone over the phone or via social media, eating correctly and then getting to bed at your chosen time.  Be careful not to live out a daily routine that is based on expectations.  Sure, fulfil your required daily tasks if you must.  However, if you want to take a mental health day for yourself, and engage in activities that you enjoy or find meaningful, such as hobbies or creative pursuits please do so

• Avoid Unhealth Strategies: Research has proven that it is important that we avoid unhealth coping strategies like drugs and alcohol as they can increase one’s depression.  This is not always easy and there is no doubt that unhealthy strategies work faster than the healthy one.  So please, when you are not feeling depressed ensure, you incorporate health strategies into your lifestyle.  Noone can find themselves avoiding unhealthy coping mechanisms if they haven’t practised healthy coping strategies when they are doing ok. 

• Be Kind to Yourself:  Remember to keep taking one step forward, even if you find yourself taking 9 steps backwards.  It is important to accept that some days will be harder than others. Give yourself grace and recognize that it's okay to have setbacks.

• Set yourself up mentally:  This involves setting realistic goals for ourselves.  It may include writing down thoughts and feelings within a journal.  It means limiting our times of rumination and perhaps setting ourselves one hour a day to worry about those aspects of life that are worrying us.   It means facing our fears so that situations don’t become worse, and our anxiety and depression is increased.

• Professional Help: This step can often be the most difficult to take as we believe we will be judged by others or believe that any professional we seek help from will see our reason for feeling blue as being irrational.  If you do find a professional that minimises your experience, please seek the services of someone else.  If you cannot find someone within your community to seek support from, please know that one advantage of Covid is the fact that many services are now available online.   Please don’t give up on yourself if you find the process of getting help a difficult task.  I won’t promise you that it will become easier, but I do promise that you are worth as much as anybody else.   

Do you need help moving forward…. contact me at jacobswriting@outllook.com