7 Ways to Beat Anxiety and Depression

7 Ways to Beat Anxiety and Depression
by Leif H. Smith, Psy.D.

Be proactive, not reactive

An important part of feeling good about yourself and your life involves choosing how you want to feel about events ahead of time. This means being proactive about the way you interpret situations. Ask yourself the question, "How do I want to feel about this?" as often as possible as a way of reminding yourself that you have a choice with regards to your feelings and moods.

Don't isolate yourself-connect with others

Withdrawal from social activities, as well as friends and family, is one of the hallmark symptoms of depression. When we are feeling down or depressed about our lives, we tend to withdraw from others and retreat into our negative thoughts and feelings. To fight off depression, make sure that you surround yourself with a solid support network of friends and family with whom you have regular, weekly contact. These friends and family members will serve to keep you motivated and engaged in everyday life.

Practice moderation

Fad diets come and go, but there will never be a medical backlash against a diet that advocates moderation above all else. The same is true for other areas of our lives. Practice moderation in all that you do-including exercise, rest, and work. By avoiding overdoing it in any one area (which can lead to excess stress and anxiety) you can allow yourself be feel more balanced and focused in every other area.

Prioritize

There's an old saying that if everything in your life is a priority, nothing is a priority. Stop trying to be everything to everyone, and focus on two to three important areas per week in which you want to make progress or see better results. By focusing your energy (of which there is a limited quantity anyway) on these areas, you increase the likelihood that you will experience success, and decrease the likelihood that you will experience overwhelm.

Integrate Life Activities

Work should support life, not vice versa. As humans, we all have the same amount of hours in a week (168), so that old excuse of "I don't have time" really doesn't hold any weight. You have to look at how you are allocating use of that time. Chances are you are doing it in a way that causes undue stress and anxiety (which, over time, can lead to depression). Stop forcing yourself to follow arbitrary guidelines for time management. Sometimes you need to take a day off in the middle of the week to regain your inner balance, and on occasion you may feel the urge to work on the weekends.

Be solution focused, not problem focused

If you want to feel better about your life, stop spending your time on your problems, and start spending your time on the solutions. Too often we waste time telling others how hard our lives are, or how bad we have it, when we could be using that same time to work out solutions and ways to get through the problems. Put your energy into finding solutions, and you will be surprised at how much less time you spend worrying about life's daily hassles.

Get perspective

Perspective is the perfect antidote to daily stress. It is helpful to always keep in mind the things that are really important in our lives, such as family, friends, good health, etc. Make sure that you are taking the time to reflect on the good fortune in your life, and the things of value that sustain you. By doing so you will gain instant perspective on how unimportant many of life's daily hassles and events can be in the grand scheme of things.

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