Get outside!

I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to get lots of fresh air and sunshine, along with exercise. There is something magic in it all.

Now as our weather is getting cooler, I just love to sit out on our back deck and spend a few hours just reading, in the refreshing air. I have noticed that it really makes a difference in how I feel...and that appears to be...happier.

Exercise therapy

We know the value of exercise when it comes to trying to loose weight and improving our health. But exercise can play a major role in helping our depression, also, so that is why I am writing another post about it.

I know that sometimes my depression and anxiety causes me to feel that I do not want to do anything at all, nor do I have the energy to do anything. But I have to really struggle past that and KNOW, really KNOW and understand that doing some form of exercise 3 or more times a week is the best thing for me to feel better. Really...it is no fun to have that black cloud of depression hovering over me all the time. I need some relief and to feel somewhat normal again as much as I can.

So, I push and talk myself into going to the gym and walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes, as many times a week as I can manage it. And it does make me feel better, honest.

Click on the link below to read a good article about depression and exercise:

http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/exdepression

I dread this time of year

As we approach fall each year, I start to get nervous and glum. Something begins to work inside of me filling the spaces with the dreaded anticipation of what looms before me in the coming months.

I have more pronounced depression this time of year because I suffer with SAD...Seasonal Affective Disorder.... due to the fact that the daylight hours are all whacky. Through the last several years, I have been collecting my arsenal of ways to handle the increased depression when it comes.

This blog is all about how and what I do, not only in the fall and winter when my depression is at its worst but throughout the whole year. Hey...it works for me and I hope you can find help with these ways also.

Exercise ???

Depression takes on many forms and everyone is affected differently. Generally, depression leaves us with not much desire to do anything or go anywhere. So.....that means that we don’t feel like doing any exercise, either. That’s how I feel, anyway.

We all know how important it is to exercise and the many great benefits we gain from it. Exercise alone can lift us up out of our down days.....you’d be surprised how much it can be like a magic pill.

I have really been struggling with getting going at some form of exercise. Each day my body has been feeling tighter and stiffer and more achy. I have been really concerned and have tried to get motivated to do something, so that I don’t get worse. I want to lose weight and feel better...to have better health.

So, a couple of days ago....I did something very important for myself....something that would really be an incentive and motivate me to get that exercise. I made a commitment. I went to a gym (Gold’s Gym) near our home and got a membership. You sign a contract for a certain length of time at a certain set amount of money each month. Now I know that I MUST get my moneys worth out of that gym by going all the time....and that is my plan!

New determinations

Call it resolutions or whatever....but the last two weeks I have really felt like trying harder to exercise more and eat better. I have felt renewed and revitalized since January began. I guess that because December was such a very low time for me that this new year has sparked a desire to pull myself up out of the dark miserable feelings that I was experiencing and do the healthier things that I know will make a difference, such as walking every morning in the fresh air and sunshine. And while I walk I try to do the deep breathing exercises. Our weather has been very nice...in the 50-60 degrees, so that makes it nice for wanting to be outdoors.

Different Types of Depression and Disorders

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

Bi-Polar

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

.......and more


There are so many different types of depression and other mind disorders that have been diagnosed and treated. I have family members and friends that have gone to specialists about their depression and have been told that they have a certain type. Most of them are on medications for it.

I have never gone to a doctor about it...I do not take medications, nor do I want to. I have always seemed to find a way to deal with it myself. I have used prayer, concentrated effort, herbal formulas, and my self-discovered relaxation therapies that I share in this blog.

My form of depression appears to be Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Though depression can hit me at any time of the year, it mostly occurs at the beginning of Fall and ends in Spring. During this time of year my exposure to sunlight is diminished, causing my biological clock to run slower. Our biological clock regulates our mood, sleep, and hormones. The biggest cause of SAD is lack of sunlight.

I understand the common signs of this and other forms of depression to be somewhat similar: Sadness, anxiety, irritability, loss of interest in usual activities, withdrawal from social activities, inability to concentrate. Other symptoms might include extreme fatigue and lack of energy, increased need for sleep, craving carbs, and increased appetite and weight gain.

Most people have many windows in their house and so they receive some light from the outdoors. The studio size place where I live does not have windows and so I need a better source of light other than regular ceiling lighting and table lamps.

I have remedied the lack of natural light in several ways. I have purchased several full-spectrum lights. These lights are what they call white light....they mimic closely the light that comes from the sun. Some of these lights are table lamps, and some are floor lamps. I have several of them distributed around my living area, and I use these special lights along with my regular lighting.

Another way which is important in gaining extra natural light is to go outdoors and spend some time out in the sun and fresh air. Take in good deep breaths of fresh air through the nose and let it out slowly through the mouth. This clears the system and brings in fresh oxygen. The longer spent outdoors, the better.

Exercise is also important to help tone down and ease depression and stress. It clears the mind and also brings in more oxygen to the body. Going for a good walk outdoors can kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.