WHat is the best way to motivate yourself when you are depressed?

Question

I am constantly depressed, feeling lonely and hated by the world. I know that doesnt help, but I have had a lot of rough patches, and I always look at others and I know others have it worse off, but I get in these huge funks. I want to start my hobbies up, but they cost money (which at the the time I dont have) and then i think about my lack of money at the moment and then I get stressed about financial instability and everything, and my depression worsens. I cant get out of my funks, I have seen doctors and everything and they only know the technical stuff with drugs and everything, not the experience part. If anyone knows what i can do to keep my mind off the things that haunt my emotional state from experience, please let me know, it would be good to feel not "alone"

Answer 1

You can deal with depression by talking to a couple a people who're cheerful and can make you laugh. Watch a couple of funny films, cartoons or read a comic. We all go through financial instabilities or lose our jobs and I know how it feels. If you have the conviction that you can go throught these tough times, you can succeed and I'm sure you will.

It's just a passing phase and all you have to do is cheer yourself up. However, the best way to clear depression is to get closer to God. I'm not one of those religious guys, but if you pray to God for having a good life, you'll get better for sure. Faith heals and God knows what's good for you and has a plan for you, so don't worry.

God bless you!

Answer 2

I know exactly how you feel, I have been depressed for as long as I can remember. About 5 years ago I was diagnosed as having hypothyroidism. Depression is a symptom, so is weight gain, which doesn't help the depression, it's a vicious cycle! Go to your doctor and maybe have some lab work done to see if there may be an underlying problem. For me getting enough sleep and more exercise helps, but sometimes that doesn't seem to work either. I have to push myself to get up, shower, put on makeup and go out, even if it's just to the post office to mail bills or to the grocery store to get things I need. I also write a lists of goals to accomplish and try to accomplish as many as I can through out the coming week. It's amazing the great feeling I get when I see that I've completely redone/ cleaned out a room. My best advice is to keep yourself distracted with something productive and stimulating. If you're busy, you can't think about being sad. I also use multitasking as a tool, I'm just too busy to think! I hope this helps! Good Luck! =)

Answer 3

Let me be very honest with you and express that I have seen a lot of people over the years who are depressed just as you seem to be. Exogenous Depression which is being depressed because you have lost a loved one, or some other reason which is outside your control. etc. can eventually be overcome with time and some help from friends or professional counseling. On the other hand Endogenous Depression, which is being depressed for no really good reason is a physical disease. It has its roots in heredity for most people who suffer from it. There are various presentations but a lot of what you have expressed is clinically linked with endogenous depression. There are known chemical imbalances which cause the person to have difficulty with feelings of well being and joy. These chemicals are neurotransmitters which cause the normal transference of chemo electric nerve conduction that travel along the trillions of nerve connections that make up the human nervous system. If you find yourself with the problems you already mentioned in your description of your problem then you should appreciate it may not be something that you can just explain away in psychotherapy session with an understanding doctor or friend. If you truly need to supplement the neurotransmitters that are diminished in your system you may need to consider medicine also. Clinical Depression only gets worse with time if left untreated. Women have about 4 times more potential to be clinically depressed then men however it is usually much more serious with men. You are not alone. Many people seek to find help in unconvential ways and frequently find themselves involved with medication and alcohol abuse. These abuses can lead to other social problems and bad relationships if the person is unaware that it is being caused by true physical dysfunctions and is not just the "rough patches" you mentioned earlier. Please seek out professional help or it will get worse.

Answer 4

After reading the page below go to the depression page with natural help including foods that the U.S. Dept of Agriculture has found to help with depression.

Read the page below for a hobbie that is free-- learning about yourself. Site below has all sorts of wonderful things about you that you never knew. That will motivate you and make you feel better.

Do you have homeless people where you live. Don't give them money to spend on booze. Bring them some food and ask if they want some. Then you will have made a difference in the world. Today I gave a orange and a Laurabar to a homeless person.

http://www.phifoundation.org/happiness.html

Answer 5

I have lived with depression all my life & i have to saythat when i feel really bad i do some good old hard exercise & it seems to give me a lift for 12 hours or so. If you do it each day it makes a huge improvement in your life. Also stay away from alcohol more than 1 day at a time as it has a huge affect on your anxiety levels the day after & mostly we are unaware except that we have negative thoughts & ideas about things. Hope this helps!

Answer 6

don't worry sweetheart there is people like you in the world also like you are not alone.
I have been to doctors etc and all they gave you is antidepressants.i go from being height as a kite for days just being hyper and not being able to sit for 5 Min's and then i would just go really low and cant even get out of bed. People who don't suffer depression do not understand . I try and keep myself busy buy knitting or crochet as it is not to expensive to buy wool. i live on my own and only have my dog and cat. would you consider getting your self an animal. not being funny here but even a hamster is someone to come home to if you live alone.i can go for weeks and stay in the house and don't ever want to see anyone i know it's not a normal thing to do but that's what happens me i hope you don't do the same but i find being on yahoo answer gives me something to do and learn about other too. good luck kiarakitty

Answer 7

Honey you're not alone; you're just in a rut. Finances come and go. You can get another job or think of things you can do to make extra cash. However, I think you would be wise to invest some of your "depression time" in volunteering. Go to the local hospital and ask if they need someone to rock the babies; or read to the kids who are sick, or visit anyone and hold their hand. Giving of yourself to others is the way out of that rut!!! Pretty soon you will be feeling impowered by what you will be getting back; love and respect. You can't buy that, dear. I know it's tough, but I'm telling you if you will just get out and try, you will touch others and someone will be there for you when you really need something. You will make friends. You will increase your feeling of self-worth. YOU have something to give!!! Please go for it. Godloveya.

Answer 8

You need a good dose of helping others. Believe me it works. Voleenteer in a hospital nursing home hospice daycare homeless shelter or humane society even one day a week. You will see the difference and feel it. You have to makeyourself motivated once you do it you will like it. Give it a try. And Good Luck

Answer 9

I found myself in that situation a few years back.
like you - I went to a doctor- there wasnt anything in particular I was depressed about so they gave me a perscription to prozac.

It worked for me...but prior to that- the things that worked for me was to go to the gym and work out. I found my thinking was much clearer and I could come up with better game plans to get what I wanted. I was also able to work better as my focus and concentration would lapse otherwise. Also if you do drink- cut back as much as possible as it is a depressant.

Answer 10

You have a delicate situation you're dealing with and I completely empathize. When I'm not feeling 100% the best remedy sometimes is to beat a pillow, go for a run, scream and shout inside my house. Anything to get my heart rate up. One thing you might consider is this excerpt from an article I recently read. It keeps me in check. I've copied and pasted and provided the link below. Good luck.

Richard A. Friedman, M.D., writing in The New York Times a few weeks back, told a revealing story about a patient of his. The 48-year-old professional single man had been seeing a therapist for depression. He had been in therapy twice a week for six years, with no results.

"I had a miserable childhood," the man complained. "My father was an alcoholic who shouted all the time. My mother was a non-presence, and my brother checked out on drugs."

It turns out the man was unemployed and supported himself on money his parents - the very people he was complaining about - sent him.

When Friedman asked him what he had hoped to accomplish with therapy, the man said, "I just want to feel better and get rid of this depression."

"So how do you feel about your therapist?" Friedman asked.

"Oh, she's terrific," he replied. "Warm, understanding, and always available. But I don't feel like I'm getting better."

Friedman's analysis: The man wasn't clinically depressed. He was narcissistic.

"After six years of insight-oriented therapy," Friedman wrote, "this patient had little sense of his own role in his unhappiness or what to do to turn his life around."

Friedman decided the patient needed to be challenged. "He had five years' worth of empathy; it was time to grow up, call it a day, and get back to work."

Friedman's first prescription for the patient was not more therapy or drugs but to go out and find a job: "Find the best job you can," Friedman said, "and then work hard to free yourself from being dependent on your parents."

This tough love worked, of course. Six months later, the patient was working, financially independent, and no longer perpetually depressed. "I didn't like you at first," he told Friedman, "because you weren't nice, but I think you helped me."

I've read that some forms of depression aren't a distinct pathology but an extreme form of sadness that is exacerbated, not alleviated, by empathetic forms of therapy. Apparently, empathy can make people with this type of depression feel that they have little or no control over their circumstances, which can make their feelings of sadness much worse.

I think that's true. When I feel blue, I want sympathy ... but what I need, I know, is to get back to work.