severe depression(very sad)?

Question

i have a friend Dora. She gets very sad sometimes. I would like to know how can a person overcome severe depression without taking meds?

Answer 1

I used to suffer from severe depression for two yrs, I stayed indoors. I slept for long hrs such as 23 hrs sometimes. I stayed in bed.; constantly watching TV. I spent long hrs crying for no reason. There was an unexplainable ache. I was lonely, miserable and felt sorry for myself. So I understand what your friend, Dora is going thru. Here are practical ways that i employ to combat and get out off the deep hole of depression and live again; among the living.

1) Make a resolution to combat depression.
2) Diversional therapy- Listen to upbeat and happy music.

3) Maintain contact with friends either by phone or physical.

4) Go to the movie theater with friends.
5) Go shopping ow window browsing either alone or with friends.
6) Read a good book. like a mystery to keep you occupied and interested. You 'll finish it to find out the highlights and answers to questions in your mind. .
7) Lessen the hrs of TV watching. Refrain from soap operas- too depressing.
8) Force yourself to get out of bed.
9) Develop and concentrate on a good hobby such as gardening.and computer surfing.

10) Go to this YA and answer a lot of questions.
This is a very interesting pastimeesp when you do research and discover that there other people with the same problem.
11) Pamper yourself to a haircut or do ; manicure and pedicure.
12) Go jogging alone or with friends and neighbors.
13) Go fishing.
14) Go a bar or nighclub and go dancing. Dancing is a very good exercise as well as tension reliever. Ditto with sex.
15) Take a long soothing warm bath so you 'll have a good night's rest.
16) Hum a song to yourself or go sing karaoke. Go bowling. or some physical activity to work out your depression.
17) Be there for her. Give her lots of emotional support. Encourage her to talk and tell you why she is depressed.

Try the following also:

1) Eat the blues away. Miracle foods such as Brazil nuts and avocados are a good soures of selenium. Selenium is an antioxidant mineral that can cause you to feel depressed when levels in your body is low. Kiwifruit is an antioxidant. Kiwi fruits are rich in vitamin C. Not only will it boost your immune system but also your well-being. Two ripe bananas a day will increase body's level of serotonins that brighten up your moods. Chilis, the substance that make chillies hot; capsicum helps the stomach release of feel good endorphins in the brain as well. Have you ever seen an unhappy Mexican?

2) Drink green tea. Green tea contains high levels of bioflavonoid guercetin. bioflavoids are antioxidants that gfight depression as well as protecion against cancerand heart disease. . Take not of the amt of grren tea that is drunk in the Far East where there is a low rate of mental and physical illnesses.

3) Eat turnips.. We live in a high presure day and age and for many people, the end of the year and christmas and New Year in particular can also be very stressful times. eat plenty of green vegetable rich in nutrition to boost your mood. try using turpnips in your cooking. Most vegetables such as swedes, are rich in vit C and antioxidant that has protection to help people who are prone to bouts of depression.

4) Vitamins and Minerals. As well as incorporating the foods already suggested ; you may want to take vit and minerals supplements to support your immune system.
Iron- helps to produce serotonin the brain chemical antidote to feeling low.
Vitamin C- when you're depressed, there is low levels of vit C. and becaue this vitamin is not normally stored in the body, you may need to mamimize your daily intake.
Zinc- this mineral is essential for the production of serotonins.
Selenium- this essential mineral is found to be in low levels in people suffering from depression.
B Vitamins - these support the nervous system and are needed for the producation of serotonins, especially vit B6.

5) Alternative Answers- Known as the sunshine herb, St. John's Wort is the most commonly used herb remedy for mild to moderate depression. those with fair skin are reccommended not to sunbathe while taking St. John's Wort. Kava and Valerian root both act to soothe and calm and promote natural sleep.

6) Get Moving- Exercise is the most effective antidote to depression. but it requires more efforts. it encourages the release of " feel-good" endorphins into the body - boosting your moods and lifting spirits. Try the strength-training routines such as weight lifting and aerobic exercises. such as reaonably feat walking, jogging, aerobics, cycling, swimmingand tennis. Just half an hr of mod exercises 3X a wk or 20 min five times a wk will show the difference.

7) Steer away from: Alcohol- is a depressant that reduces blood sugar levels. Caffeine- as a mood enhancer makes a bad mood feel worse. Instead drink a lot of fruit juices such as orange juice. or water. This will flush out your kidneys of any toxins from your body.

8) Try Aromatherapy- Sprinkle a few drops of essential oils into your bath or a scent burner to calm all around you. Calrym sage, jasmine, rose, rosewood, sandlewood, ylang-ylang, are all known to relieve depression. Take yourself to a local massage center and go for an aromatherapy massage. Your masseuse will ask what you wish to achieve from this massage and use the appropriate scented oils. .

Answer 2

Hi. It will depend on what is the source of the depression. Some depressions are psychological, others biological or both. She needs to find out the reason for her depression, because sometimes you can´t avoid meds to treat them successfully. If this is the case, she will need some therapy and/or special support to learn how to live with this. I can give you my example. I felt into a depression many years ago (1994) and I never knew the reason. I went to the hospital and looked for therapy but none could find out the reason. I gave up and with God´s help I get used to live with it, trying to live an almost normal life. Nine months ago I had a seizure and we found that the reason for my depression was a focal epilepsy. Now that I receive medication I feel better, and I tell you I never used meds that often before. There are some good meds for depression that are not addictive so maybe she can try some of them. Well, what I wanted to say is that she needs to know first what is the reason for her depression, and look for professional help so that they can tell you if she can get out of that just with therapy or if she needs something more. There is a good source to understand more depression in wikipedia, i´ll give you the links. Hope it helps.

Ah! The most important thing for me to survive those years in deep depression without medicine is my faith in God. I hope she already have it! That is the best thing to start with.

Answer 3

You sound like me when I was in school (dropped out would've been a senior soon to graduate this year... no regrets though!). Social anxiety can be horrible I never really knew I had it until I stumbled across an article of it on the internet. I am also smart but I got so many F's in middle school because I would literaly tremble during class presentation so I decided I just wouldn't do it luckily my test scores saved some of my grades.. Anyway I'm coping with it by being comfortable. I answered a question earlier in a similar matter. Make sure you dress nice and comfy nothing worse than being worried about your apperance for 8 hrs or however long school last :) make sure your hair is nice and not overly done make sure you smell nice no strong cologne make sure you took care of your hygiene as well (-_-") so those thing will make you feel comfy and when your comfy then there's no need to stress over apperance. When it comes to talking to new people let the other person lead the convo, if your in an uncomfortable situation it okay to leave or go to the bathroom for a minute. Be polite also it helps and find a good friend nothing better than conversing with someone who make you feel good :) Lastly you have to know that things like presentations awkward moments and all that jazz has happened before millions of times infact it doesn't make you weird or a loser its life you just have to find comfort in yourself and don't be afraid to do something just try it out you can always leave but atleast try!

Answer 4

Left untreated, depression can have devastating results. Depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain, serotonin and nortriptylin(sp error)are two of these chemicals that can throw a person into depression. To correct the imbalance, you normally need to take medication, and the medication must be used as directed for at least 6wks, before you will see much improvement. Isolation, few friends to lean on, illness/disease, death of a loved one or child, can all put a person in a depressed state. Being able to come out of that state, depends alot on the individual, and their lifestyle. Many people with depression benefit from a daily walk, simple it seems, but it does improve your mood and connects you to the outdoors. Being supportive of your friend is a great help, without judging her. Go for a walk with her, allow her in her time to discuss issues that are troubling her, just being there is sometimes all that is needed to bring a person "back to life", knowing you are there and she can depend on you, may be just what she is in need of, but unable to ask you for. Encourage her to go after what she wants in life, and show her that there is light, and living in darkness is not going to help her.

Answer 5

What is reason for the depression? If the reason can be found out, and altered, changed, maybe that will start a new trail to a better feeling about the source of depression. Maybe she could write down why she is feeling bad and maybe talk about it to someone. Just "venting" will help.

Answer 6

what she really needs at the moment is love and attention and the knowledge that you and her other friends are there for her. try and find out what's making her sad.
if this is severe depression (it's affecting her daily life- she's lot interest in things she used to love to do, etc.) go for the meds.

Answer 7

having been in 5 different mental hospitals for depression and taken lots of meds for it i have found 3 things that have helped more than the meds. 1. exercise 2. diet (esp. b vitamins and colloidal gold 3. volunteering

Answer 8

there are ways of treating depression w/o meds, but it's difficult. See if she's open to therapy. she may be bipolar or manic depressive and neither of those are just a case of the blues... there are natural ways to help, like acupuncture, spiritual healing, (if she's into that) YOU CAN HELP by supporting her and loving her no matter what.

Answer 9

i got depressed after a breakup and did not know what to do to get over it but then i realized i was losing weight from depression and it made me happy. i think sometimes you have to find good that comes out of the situation you are in.

Answer 10

Usually a severe ongoing depression is a chemical imbalance in the brain. The medications are to correct that imbalance. It is also important that she have counseling along with the medication.
Please urge your friend to get the help that she desperately needs. I wish you well.

Answer 11

She needs medication. There are alternate ways to relax such as yoga, medication, chamomile tea, lavendar, massages...but all in all, people with depression need medication otherwise sometimes it can worsen. It takes up to 4 weeks to start working so I would suggest her start asap!