Things You Should and Should Not Do When You Have Depression

As someone who has survived depression, I thought I'd write this post to help other people silently suffering from this affliction. Today I'm going to talk about things you should and should not do when you have depression.

Let's start with things you should NOT do.

1. Do NOT think you're a burden - When you're in your own head all the time you constantly wonder what other people think of you. Truth is people are so bothered about themselves that they have no time to think about you. In fact, they can't even form an opinion of you without your help. People mirror your opinion of what you think of yourself so be careful what you think about yourself. If you think you're stupid and clumsy, guess what others will think? That's right. They'll think you're stupid and clumsy as well.
2. Do NOT isolate yourself - Doing this encourages negative thoughts, which is the last thing you need right now. And you will be thinking a lot of negative thoughts in such a state of mind because you feel gloomy. Speak to someone who you know will listen to what you have to say without judgement.
3. Do NOT think that you don't have it as bad as other people and avoid comparing emotions. Someone will always be better off or worse off than you. You never know what's going on behind the scenes. Don't judge people by their highlight reels. And definitely ignore people who say that others have it way worse than you, be grateful, etc.
4. Do NOT let others project their insecurities on you - By allowing this you are allowing attacks on your already plunging self-image and self-esteem. You can prevent this by being protective of your own energies and focus.

Now let's talk about things you SHOULD do:

1. Seek professional help - This will help build better self confidence in yourself, build a positive outlook on life and help you understand the root cause of your depression. 
2. Give in to your need for connection - get in touch with old friends. Call or message - either works. Then depending on your availability you can even decide to meet. 
3. Create a ritual that grounds you - for instance, getting together with friends to just talk on a Friday night every week or every month. Never underestimate the power of a ritual.
4. Think at least one positive thought a day - Check out the 1000 awesome things blog. Each post gives you a dose of positivity. 
5. Plant a seed of hope in your mind - I know it's tough to look at the bright side at the moment but you can look towards others to remind you of the beautiful things in the world. Gratitude podcasts such as Happiness Spells, which you'll even find on twitter, are of major help. You can write each point of gratitude mentioned in the podcast in a gratitude journal until you feel you can come up with your own points. Another thing you can do is fill a clean empty jar with chits on which you write what you're grateful for each day of the year and pull one out every time you're feeling down. I saw this idea on Pinterest and seeing it's popularity I'm sure it works.