3 Ways To Not Be Depressed

Ok if you're here then I am assuming you're depressed. Which is fine, in a way, since so many people are depressed nowadays, especially in the United States.

Fortunately, depression has a treatment. In fact, it has many. We can take the steps and processes needed in order to live a happier, more fulfilled life. To end your dark days (which will never really be gone forever, as they come in bouts and leave in bouts) you only have to change a few things. Things that involve, in the entirety, traits, and habits within yourself. Everything we are discussing today is an internal process. The hard part, however, is that no one likes change.

Before we get into it, you really are gonna have to ask yourself, with a truthful answer, "Do I want to be depressed?" The answer to that question may surprise you. I know many people, myself included, that enjoy the sadness and numbness that comes with depression. The constant existential dread that allows you to turn your brain off so that you can really appreciate the present moment, in all its bleak.

Here are 3 ways to fix your mind state.

1. Understand your perceptions.

A lot of your negative impulse thoughts lead to the anxiety you feel. Typically, these impulse thoughts are rooted in self-defeating perceptions where logic seems to flow but is actually inhibited. For example, you lost your job. Your perception will probably be that you suck, the world hates you, you'll never be good at anything, and you'll be homeless by next month.

These perceptions aren't accurate. Sure, maybe you got fired because you suck, but that doesn't necessarily mean you will always suck, that you are unteachable and incapable of learning. Your loss of employment can (and will) lead to more opportunities and perhaps even a better job. Being fired can be a blessing in disguise.

The idea here is to abandon your perceptions of self-harm. All things are good, the bad serve you the better, and how you choose to view these circumstances are up to you, and will certainly play a role in your depression.

2. Live in the moment

We form many ideas about moments and situations that haven't occurred yet. We dread and anguish the future. These are called preconceived ideas. We form thousands of these ideas and even build them upon each other and upon fictional settings and situations. You may fall asleep at night thinking of another reality where you're in a relationship and say all the right things, or you may be thinking of tomorrow and how you're gonna go through this exact schedule.

Preconceived ideas can help us plan for the future and enact certain procedures in response to a situation we were prepared for, but more often these ideas go against the true situation and distort our reality. Or we recognize the inconsistency between our thoughts and reality and become defensive. It's these preconceived ideas that push us toward a reality rooted in deceit.

(I’m not saying to not have fun daydreaming.) Let's abandon our ideas, and open up our views and mind on the world. Let's focus completely on the present moment, the opportunities it brings, and focus only on that which is conceived, not preconceived. May we commit ourselves to the full flow of life, breathing, and consciousness.

3. Invent yourself

Humans are social creatures and we all have a severe desire to fit in. We impose ourselves onto others we see in an attempt to become like them and vice versa. We want to unify as one. As Erich Fromm put it;

It seems that nothing is more difficult for the average man to bear than the feeling of not being identified with a larger group.

When we are not part of a group, we are bombarded with ideas of anxiety and powerlessness. However, these symptoms can be overridden with some self-invention.

Essentially, one should "discover" or "invent" oneself in order to fully appreciate ourself. To be grounded in self-expression, self-love, and self-fufilment, we are set free from social stigmas and primal capacities. Through our individual selves, we can learn about our own ways, carving a trail for our own life. By doing this, and fostering a special, free love for ourselves, we can only then, finally, open our hearts up to the rest of the world. Loving freely regardless of the other, because simply put, we love ourselves.

Depression comes in many forms, and various types of therapy have been invented and employed all around the world in various cultures for hundreds of years. Above are 3 simple ideas that appear in multiple forms of therapy. Use these tactics to help gather a sense of being. Understand things change with the winds but with these 3 tools you can become less depressed (if you wish to.)