How to Deal with
Depression and Anxiety (III)

Ease Your Depression with Simple Lifestyle Changes …

As we learned in the two previous articles of How to Deal with Depression (Part I) and (Part II) with simple new changes in your lifestyle you can greatly accelerate your recovery from anxiety and depression.

These changes will not only improve the speed of your recovery but they will also prevent future relapses of anxiety and depression.

Once they have become part of your life, it will be very difficult for anxiety and depression to take a hold on you.

The following are habits that you can incorporate in your life to greatly accelerate your recovery:

1. Relaxation

2. Meditation

3. Finding purpose

4. Expressing your feelings

5. Being selective with the type of activities you do

6. Dropping Expectations about people or situations

7. Cultivating good sleeping habits

We already learned about most of them in the two previous articles, and now we are ready to learn about the last two habits; “Dropping Expectations about people or situations” and “Cultivating Good Sleeping Habits” …

6. Do not build high expectations about situations and do not anticipate events.

I know this sounds very difficult to do but believe me this will save you so much aggravation!

Sometimes, it is very difficult to let go of our desire to keep the control over every situation, but the truth is that we don’t have control over every situation. Even the things we think we have all planed out can go “wrong”. So when you are not attached to a specific outcome you will save yourself so much suffering.

TRUST !!!!… That should become your favorite word from now on, because trusting the unfolding of life is what gives you true peace of mind!

Remember, some things that seem to go wrong can actually represent a blessing in disguise. Like this “spot on” story about a Chinese farmer who trusted every event without judging it as good or bad...

“Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?”

There was an old Chinese farmer who had an old horse for tilling his fields. One day the horse escaped into the hills. All the farmer's neighbors sympathized with the old man over his bad fortune, to which the farmer replied; "Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?"

A week later the horse returned with a herd of wild horses from the hills and this time the neighbors congratulated the farmer on his good fortune. His reply was; "Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?"

Then, when the farmer's son tried to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this to be really bad fortune. Not the farmer, whose only reaction was; "Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?"

Some weeks later the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer's son with his broken leg they let him off. Now, was that good luck? Bad luck? Who knows? …

(More inspirational stories )


7. Cultivate Good Sleep Habits

And finally, we will review few good habits to make you sleep like a log!

Anxiety and depression have been linked to exhaustion, stress and tension. By cultivating good sleeping habits you can rest better at night and restore your body effectively while you sleep.

Here are some tips on how to get a good night's sleep. These are especially important during an anxiety and depression episode, but again, this applies to everyone.

• Don't eat a large, heavy meal before going to bed. Also, avoid stimulants (coffee, tea, chocolate, sugary foods etc.) in the evening hours.

• Avoid any physical exercise before going to sleep. If you want to exercise do it at least 3 hours before your bed time.

• Try going to bed always at the same time every day.

• Avoid anything exciting or stressful before your bed time. Especially, avoid confrontations. I know it’s easier to say it than do it but just don’t start a “touchy” conversation right before going to sleep.

• Take a warm bath before bed time.

• Give your body time to wind down. If you get home late at night, allow sometime for your body to wind down. If you go to sleep too soon, your body might still be full of adrenaline and you will find it difficult to fall asleep.

Please, Be Patient …

When learning how to deal with depression, it is very important to be gentle to yourself throughout every step of the process. Because it is a process, you need to be patient. Don't get upset if your mood is not greatly improved right away. Feeling better takes time.

Commit with the new changes to your lifestyle and you will see the rewards! These new habits will not only help you to recover from your anxiety and depression but will greatly improve your quality of life and your happiness!

If you want to review the other two parts of this article please click on the following links:

• How to Deal with Depression (part I)

• How to Deal with Depression (part II)

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