Depression is commonly used to describe sadness, mood swings or any lethargy in otherwise upbeat disposition is rather a serious Mental Health Disorder which is characterized by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities causing significant impairment in daily life. You try hard to be happy but the blanket of morose and sad feelings don't let you come out of this gloomy state. The activities or persons, who used to give you joy and happiness at one time, now fail to evoke any reaction in you anymore. You feel as if plunging into the dark abyss called Depression.

Depression is characterized by few very prominent behavioral changes; one is crying persistently without any reason, losing interest in activities that you once enjoyed and becoming extremely violent to the point of being harmful to oneself and your loved ones aswell.

I spoke to a friend of mine who has been suffering from depression for the past four years. According to him, medication and meditation helps keep it under control but sadly depression is somewhat like cancer (yes in fact). If the person isn’t careful with one's physical and mental health, chances of relapse are very high. My friend knew he had to seek medical intervention when he became extremely violent even without any provocation.

Given this very high prevalence of Depression which is often under-reported, it is a need that people also make an attempt to manage this condition through various lifestyle and cognitive changes. Let’s get into some Ways to Overcome Depression or control it to an extent that it does not hamper our everyday life.

1. Accept

Accept that you have a problem which needs medical intervention. The first step is the most difficult but that is the only way to move forward to better living. One can't stay stuck in this endless loop of sadness and despair. According to WHO, 4.5% of Indian's population (2015) suffers from depression. And this is the statistics from those who chose to seek help. Many live in denial and don't accept they need help till it's too late. In 2012, an average of 371 suicides daily were reported which could have been easily prevented with early detection and intervention.

2. Seek Help

Take the next step and seek help from anyone-friends, family, parents, trusted companions, professionals or just go for online counseling anonymously. The point here is SEEK HELP, DO IT, talk to anyone but take the initiative to take control of your mental and emotional health. The mind is like a garden. It can either have roses or weeds, the choice would depend on your courage or fear.

3. Take Medication and/or Therapy

One finds it irksome to depend on medication but trust me it helps a lot, at least to begin with and once you feel that you are going towards emotional stability, you can slowly wean off medication. At this point, one should be careful not to become overly dependent on medications. Coming to Therapy, a combination of medication and therapy can be sought in the beginning and gradually medication tapered and replaced totally by therapy. 
Simply, talking to a professional such as a psychologist can also help. Initially, you might be skeptic if it would be right to talk to a psychologist and share your deep thoughts that cause you turmoil; but understand that a psychologist/counsellor is an unbiased non-judgmental professional whose only aim is to help you to come out of emotional distress and have a better mental health.

4. Join a Support Group

Social stimulation is very essential when depressed. It can be simply talking to friends and family or joining a support group. Talking about support groups, it would be of great help when you will see that you are not alone and how others are making efforts to better their life and mental health. 
There are various organizations working towards reducing the stigma, spread awareness and change the way we look at mental health. Someone as rich and famous as #DeepikaPadukone suffered from depression which shows that money / fame has nothing to do with it. It can strike anyone at anytime and one must accept it and seek help.

5. Own your Mental Health

Proactively meditate, listen to soothing music, and keep a thought journal to understand the emotional triggers and mute them down or let go of them the moment they appear. Do things you love, travel, read books and books. Enrich your mind with positive self boosting thoughts. Take a break, embrace failure, it's ok to be down but staying down is not ok. And you would have to do this every single day. Someone can help you only to a certain point; you have to walk the rest of path on your own and take responsibility of your own life.
 
Hence, I would urge that if you are also finding it difficult to cope with depression or haven’t sought help yet, break the pattern and seek help. It could be talking to a friend or family, seeking an appointment with a psychologist/counsellor or simply booking an online session for depression. If confusion still lingers, then why not simply Book a Plan on Rich Psych. Choose any option but at least give it a try!!