Blog Post

Depression

  • By Daily News Digital Solutions
  • 12 Apr, 2016

5 Steps to battling depression for women

Depression and anxiety is a challenge for everyone. Women are particularly vulnerable to depression, and clinical depression can be triggered by a variety of causes. Depression shouldn’t be a source of shame or fear, and it can be managed and overcome. Everyone, even people with otherwise ordinary lives, may have to deal with various kinds of depression over their lives, and it can be dealt with in a proactive, healthy manner.

Depression in women can stem from a variety of sources. 10%-15% of new mothers experience postpartum depression according to the NIH, for example. The stresses of life often lead to depression. Fortunately, there are answers.

Here are some steps you can take to deal with depression:

·      Family and friends – This may seem like common sense, but the establishment of an informal support network is vital. While no substitute for professional treatment, loved ones can spot warning signs, offer safety and encouragement, and get you to resources that you need during hard times when dealing with a hard depressive episode. Further, one’s personal network can help in assisting with taking care of children and the other responsibilities of running a home that married and single women are subject to.

·      Exercise – Regular exercise (45 minutes daily of vigorous walking or more) increases serotonin levels and increases overall energy levels and health. Getting outside and briskly walking is always a good idea in response to a depressive episode.

·      Diet – Balanced sugar and insulin levels have a great effect on mood, and a healthy diet combined with reasonable exercise can greatly help combat depression. Eating whole foods and cooked nutritious meals, and avoiding processed and fast foods, assists in helping keep up mood – junk food, which is high in processed sugars and carbs, leads to highs then crashes. Goodfoods.com lists 10 mood foods to that can are healthy and can help bring your body chemistry into balance.

·      CBT self-interview – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a proven technique used by therapists the world over where ideas are examined, scrutinized objectively, and accepted or rejected based on fact. Depression often springs from badly formed ideas which lead to misunderstandings of situations – emotions proceed from understanding of situations. There are several online inventories that can help you examine a situation, understand the facts objectively, and then affirm the reality of the situation and gain confidence and a measure of control and relief from depression. Psychology.tools has several inventories and worksheets that can help you get a handle on bad ideas, one example is this Decatastrophizing/Decatatrophising worksheet.

·      Personal self-improvement – Taking a class, implementing a job search strategy, looking over your personal schedule, and otherwise taking steps to gain control are essential for battling depression. These can be done in small, easy steps.

·      Getting a support advocate – while most health plans offer therapy as part of benefits, getting weekly to a therapist often isn’t feasible for some women. Most sets of corporate benefits have emergency assistance programs that offer emergency counseling and referrals to longer term treatment. There are also services like Talkspace, which offer LCSW licensed therapists over mobile devices and services like Skype. Finally, local woman’s advocacy services can refer you to confidential support for depression. This can be as informal as simply an accountability partner or as in depth as a full psychologist. Local government services such as NYC’s Lifenet Counseling Referral can get you to an advocate who can be in your corner and can be your listening board, help you make plans, be understanding, and perhaps provide professional counseling.

·      Your doctor – your general practice physician is there to help, and can direct you to a wide varity of services and options that are covered by health insurance. Likewise, your health plan can assit with a wide variety of services and referrals.

While a serious challenge, depression is not insurmountable. Depression is a complex issue that manifests for women in many different ways, but with education and advocacy, it can be managed and ultimately overcome.

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