I 100% agree with all the responses I'm seeing. Allowing yourself to care about your needs/wants/hurts is essential, but also taking into consideration that eating healthy and exercising is part of our "needs" is just as important.

It also took 3 yrs of therapy and a combo of meds to help me get my head straight and I still have moments that I obsess on negative, they just don't last as long as they used to. I heavily lean on exercising and focusing on my health (both physical and mental) when these moments tend to creep in.

Most important is to not give up. Reach out and do what you have to for you. Only you knows what it is that you need and there is no shame in needing help to get there.

I wish nothing but and am sending positive vibes to you. It's not easy, but it is worth the effort to care for ourselves

Hmmm, I'll offer something that works for ME, but seems awfully simple... Music. I lean towards old, easy-listening kind of stuff. I'm NOT that old, but when I've had a particularly bad day, I can't get enough Perry Como, Dean Martin, etc. Seems to harken back to an easier time.

YMMV, but if you've got some music that brings back fond memories, it might be just the ticket for those bad days.

Dean

Keeping as much to a routine as possible, eating well and exercise work for me. I've recently started mindfulness meditation and yoga and they are really helpful, mindfulness in particular helps me see the signs that my mood is slipping so I can take action sooner. I also find its important to be kind to yourself, do something just for you, read a book, watch a movie.

I think all the people above gave some great insights and advice on how to fight depression. It is a very debilitating disease and proper medical treatment must be followed.

As far as my way of dealing with depression is concerned I just try to do something I like, e.g. playing music, going out with my dog or see some friends.

It is essential not to be alone and talk and communicate with your friends or family about your feelings. This way the depression will become manageable.

I've struggled with depression on and off over the years. For me, running regularly and eating clean has always had a dramatic effect on my mood. Now I don't believe I ever had long term severely crippling depression. So I'm not saying that this is a cure all for everyone. I tried meds at times, but I didn't like being on meds. So I decided to try sticking with regular exercise, and I mean really vigorous, not just strolls in the park; and a very clean diet. I figured if that didn't help, I would revisit meds. But it did help. It basically lets me feel happy like normal. I do still struggle during the winter (SAD), but so far I can manage.

I can feel a drop in my mood and motivation when I haven't run in about 2-3 days. I haven't run since Friday because I have had a horrible chest cold, and I noticed by Monday feeling blue. Actually one HUGE sign is being on here and this stupid computer too much. Seriously the more down I get the more I sit here, the less I do stuff around the house or head out unless I have too.

I used to think my weight loss hinged on my diet and while it does in the calorie sense, I found that exercise, or in my case running is the key. That keeps me energetic, motivated, positive and focused. Once that goes (like I'm sick or injured) I start over eating and getting discouraged and not doing anything. I become this useless blob.

So now when I'm not sick, I make sure I stay committed to running, the way someone would take a pill everyday. If I miss it, it can be problematic.

i started saving funny pictures and memes to a folder then made a facebook album called bad mood fix.

whenever i feel like absolute **** i look at it.

i also have a playlist on youtube of cute animal videos and strange things found in nature, like fire tornadoes.

lately I have been watching all three youtube videos of Marcel the shell. They really make me smile. Over and over. Cannot stop watching them

When I was depressed (well, one of the times I was depressed) I hiked every single day (sometimes twice a day) up a pretty strenuous hiking trail next to my house. I didn't do it for health (although I did think of it as healthy, and I was making an effort to not do unhealthy things). I did it because it was something mindless, and sometimes it made me feel something (usually when the air was cold enough to burn my lungs).

I don't know what "levels" of depression there are, or where I fell on the spectrum, but I was at a non-functioning level in at least some ways. I would sit in front of my computer screen for literally hours, staring at my homework assignments but unable to work on them. I didn't care what I ate - I think I ate canned beans for almost every single meal I had. Eating was actually a chore for me during that time. I had some (relatively mild) psychological breaks as well - hearing, smelling, and seeing things that weren't there. Things were not good in my life.

I don't know if the level/type of depression makes any difference as to whether exercise is helpful or not. But exercise didn't have any kind of immediate physical effect for me. I was still depressed. I was just a hiker and depressed.

I'm not sure exercise is of any help, short-term, for someone who is clinically depressed.

HOWEVER, I do think it is of long-term help, because like so many people have said here, taking care of yourself (which means eating right and being active) is necessary to health. And if you're not healthy, it will be much more difficult to get better. You want at least some of your body chemistry to be working properly, so that when your system slowly adjusts and your depression begins to subside, it's supported on all sides.

But if I'm any indication, telling a depressed person that exercise is healthy and helpful is... not helpful. It's tough. But my experience is that you have to tough it out, and find ways to do the things that feel right - like talking to someone 1-on-1, and letting yourself stare at the screen full of homework instead of saying 'screw it' and playing games instead.

Just remember what's important, then keep those things in mind so you don't get lost. Someday they'll be easier again. I promise.

sorry. I do agree with you. not all things work for all people. Its different things for different people. you are right.

Oh, I didn't mean to say you were giving bad advice or anything.
All you said was you believe it could work, after all.

I just think there are some people - presumably people who either haven't suffered from depression, or did have depression but sort of lucked their way out of it (which, granted, is kind of how I felt mine ended) - who tout diet and exercise as being a "cure."

I just don't think it's a cure at all. It certainly helps to take care of yourself, because you want your body to be in a good state. But the same is true of any illness.

You want to take care of yourself so your body can fight the flu, or an infection, or heal a broken bone for instance. But that doesn't mean taking care of yourself is the thing that beat the infection. The antibiotics probably beat it, and you helped by keeping your body in decent shape, so as not to worsen the problem.

With depression, it's easy for people to say "oh just get over it" or "oh you just have to take care of yourself" or even "oh you must have done something to make yourself that way." And it's simply not that easy.

Anyway. You're fine. I wasn't addressing concerns with anything you said... just trying to provide my alternate viewpoint, re: why exercise isn't the fix it's made out to be.

Sorry I think I kind of hijacked your thread, responding to comments instead of to you.

I don't think "focused" and "motivated" are necessarily the right things to strive for if you're feeling depressed. For me, that was an impossible goal when I was having a hard enough time deciding if it was worth it to get up and pee.

I think something to try might be to be okay with the way things are, and the monotony that can go along with that, if that's what it comes down to (although perhaps it's different for you).

For me, a good mindset for getting things done has been "sure, it doesn't matter if I do this, but if it really doesn't matter, I might as well do it."

As for food, I now like to think "I know I'm going to go back to feeling exactly the way I feel right now as soon as I stop eating pizza, so what's the point of eating pizza? It's not like I can keep it up all day" (and trust me, you can't eat pizza all day without stopping. I know this from experience).

That's not to say I always took my own advice, or that it was easy. I'm not sure whether it helped my health or not, either. But it did help me complete monotonous and unthinking tasks, like tidying/cleaning, exercising, and eating (which I had different issues with while depressed).

Unfortunately it’s a vicious circle. I’m upset because I can’t lose any weight and I don’t lose weight because I’m upset so I find comfort in food. Some days are good but the off days are pretty bad. I know it’s all in my head and I have full control over my thoughts but I end up sabotaging myself.

I take fish oil every day, I was told to take it to lower my cholesterol and it worked so I've just kept taking it so keep my cholesterol lowered. Even though I guess I could always try to not take it for a week and see what happens that will tell me if I need to take them for life or not. If I do have to take them for life Its okay I've gotten use to taking them.

I'm also on meds for depression.

Change is lifestyle, don't diet because as you are in stage where being happy comes first and if you have thirst for life show it through changes slowly, see a therapist find out what you use to express yourself in healthier methods . I was on medication since my teens and I am starting 30s and something clicked and got off medication, started finding hobbies as my exercise like just dance on Wii , hiking, biking and just whole new me . I was 185 lb and now near 150s , I am 5.2 and had high blood pressure so my reasons lose weight was for my health not Vanity. Think of your health and surrounding yourself with right people who will help and support you . Stay positive and have a plan. Give yourself the gift of health.

One thing to realize is that with a good cognitive behavior therapist and maybe the right meds, you can actually change your negative thoughts. It is a lot of work over a lot of time, but it is possible.

Become aware of all your negative thoughts. Some are so automatic we don't even notice them. A good book is Change your Brain, Change your Life.

Practice positive imaging. Keep a list of Gratitudes and read daily. Hallmark has a book of 1001 things to be grateful for. Watch your favorite standup comedy or sitcoms. Listen to positive music. Slowly these things start to shift your energy and it gets easier.

Be kind to yourself. Intuitive eating is also helping me. Letting go of the diet mentality has been a true blessing.