(gentle music)
- [Narrator] Hey, Psych2goer's,
welcome back to another video, let's begin.
Do you feel like you're stuck in a rut?
perhaps you are depressed and are wondering
if you're actually getting better or not.
Depression can sometimes feel
like a bottomless pit
where you're always sinking and rarely rising.
Your journey to healing may be full of challenges
but every little step you take
in battling your depression is already a step
towards getting better
and will eventually amount to larger changes.
One day you might even surprise yourself when you look back
and see how far you've come.
If you're feeling unsure about yourself lately,
here are six signs that you are healing from depression.
Before we begin, we would like to mention
that this video is created for educational purposes only
and is not intended to substitute a professional diagnosis.
The practices and habits mentioned
in the video may help lessen the symptoms of depression
and they differ from person to person.
If you suspect you may have depression
or any mental health condition,
we highly advise you to seek help
from a qualified mental health professional.
Okay, number one, you are aware of your triggers.
Do you know what triggers your depression?
Though depression may sometimes come up out of nowhere,
there are times when something
or someone in particular can ramp up your depression.
A trigger could be anything from being around family,
toxic friends, unhealthy environments
or stresses in your day-to-day life
that sparks negative emotions.
By knowing what your triggers are,
you become more able to avoid
being in a situation that ends up worsening your depression.
Number two, you treat yourself with compassion.
Have you heard of the golden rule?
While you may be taught to always treat others
the way you would wanna be treated,
sometimes people with depression
end up only being kind to others and not to themselves.
So, you might find that you put yourself down
for the same things that you would treat your friends
with compassion for if they were going
through the same thing.
Although you might find it difficult
to be kinder towards yourself,
it is a step in the right direction to getting better.
Number three, you challenge your irrational thoughts.
Do you accept every negative thought
you have about yourself?
People with depression usually have low self esteem
and have irrational thoughts regarding themselves
and how other people see them.
So challenging these thoughts about yourself
as one way to fight back.
This countering of your negative irrational thoughts
with your actual experiences or with more logical
and sound reasoning, like how those thoughts
have turned out to be wrong in the past
is a huge step forward.
While it may be difficult to start, practicing it little
by little can help you strengthen this habit
and help improve your mental well-being in the long run.
Number four, you are putting yourself first.
When you're caught in an emergency on a plane,
the flight attendant will tell you
to put your oxygen mask on first before helping others.
This goes with your mental health as well.
You can only help others if you're stable and well.
While others might say and consider that you're selfish
for putting your needs above someone else's,
you will only end up exhausting yourself
and burning out from helping everyone else
if you don't help yourself first.
So while it's great to look out for others,
taking care of your own basic needs is essential
for your mental and physical wellbeing.
Number five, you're letting go of perfectionism.
Do you criticize yourself a lot?
People with depression are usually really hard
on themselves, so it's not a surprise
that most of them are also perfectionists.
However, when you keep wanting things to turn out perfect,
you may end up becoming too self-critical
and end up feeling defeated, unmotivated
and generally worse about yourself.
By letting go of perfectionism and learning
to become satisfied with your process and progress,
you can take the pressure
and stress away from straining your mental wellbeing.
And number six, you're taking care of yourself.
Are you exhausted every day?
Depression can drain your energy.
It's why you might find yourself feeling tired all the time
and wanting to stay in bed all day.
But when you follow what your depression wants you to do,
you may end up just feeling worse.
So even if you feel tired or exhausted,
doing some small daily activities may help you feel better.
Taking care of yourself by eating,
taking showers, socializing
and getting a good night's rest,
even when it's hard, may pull you
out of your depressive state bit by bit.
What are your thoughts on this video?
Share with us in the comments below.
It can be difficult to try and work against your depression.
So try to be kind to yourself,
always remember that you're a beautiful person
who deserves love and compassion.
If you found this video helpful, be sure to like
and share this video with those who might benefit from it.
And don't forget to subscribe
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The references and studies used
in this video are added in the description below.
Thanks for watching and we'll see you in our next one.