15.
Doing things for myself, and putting work into myself. There’s nothing wrong with saying I want to do this for me. For me it was guitar, reading, and writing. I’m bad at all of them but I do them for me.
And leaving bad things behind, bad people behind. Thinking critically about negative aspects of my life. Consciously asking myself how they’re affecting me, and how I feel about them.
14.
Started to stop giving fucks about things I used to care and started to work out. The beginning was the hardest though.
13.
Knitting and crocheting. The feeling of creating something nice and warm in this cold world. (Not ironic).
12.
In my teenage years I fell back on music to get me through. Just knowing I wasn’t alone helped a ton with my depression. Now that I’m a lot older my thing is new experiences or just a change of scenery. I’ll take a trip somewhere a few hours away or go to a concert. Or if it’s an option I’ll get a new tattoo
11.
Getting a job. I was quite badly depressed (with ups and downs) all throughout HS, University and that one terrible year of unemployment after my graduation. At some point I pushed myself to just go and get a job because I was afraid to lose my then BF (that’s not why we broke up). I find that even though I’ve had some short depression periods since, it never blew up to the same extent.
Being financially inedpendent helped me be at peace with who I am, as well as allowed me to invest money into the things I like. Having a schedule and something to do every day didn’t allow me to slip into the old patterns of procrsatination and let me have a purpose for the day. I don’t love my job, I actually hate how boring it is, but I’m working on changing that.
Another important part in overcoming the depression and anxiety is awareness. Digging deeper for the cause of it all, linking it to my family and the way I raised, again, helped me to accept myself and understand that not everything is my own fault. It was a huge relief in allowing myself to exist and be happy sometimes.
10.
Plenty of water, regular exercise, a diet that is plant-based and varied, sunshine/light box/vitamin D supplements as needed/, lithium orotate, evening primrose oil, vitamin B p5p, adequate sleep, essential oils for different occasions.
To be honest I stopped talking about my problems so much. Keeping quiet about what I might be feeling at every moment helped me assess when I really was feeling something that I needed help with. I stopped going to therapy when I found myself repeating the same worry, I wasn’t getting anywhere. When I realized I could help myself I felt better because I was in control of my life.
I was labeled as a person with Borderline Personality Disorder which made me work harder to not be that person. It doesn’t feel good to have something “wrong” with you and it gave me more incentive to be someone who helps make everything positive around them. Hopefully I make others feel good in a genuine way every day. While I am far from reproach, as I also have feelings/opinions and am not a doormat, I think that I’m doing pretty well in my objective.
9.
I can’t believe I’m giving the answer I always hated hearing:
Exercise.
It doesn’t change the shittiness but it adds energy to your reserves to deal with the shittiness.
Also mindfulness/dialectical behavioral therapy helped a lot. It helped me change my “I want to die” thoughts to “This sucks” thoughts. Made a huge difference.
8.
Being busy, not spending too much time on Reddit. Eating right helps a ton too. If an unhealthy mind can cause an unhealthy body, then an unhealthy body will cause an unhealthy mind. Produce each day. By that I mean do something productive, even if it’s only doing a load of laundry.
7.
Moving on. Moving to a new town, starting college, essentially cutting myself off of my previous life with anxiety. I know, not very practical, but it helped me to break away from the stigmas that came from acquaintances observing your anxiety.
6.
Long walks through nature and working out in my room while watching hearthstone streams.