Did anyone reduce their depression naturally?

[Suziee37]

Tried medication, tried councelling many times and types of treatments. I’m now interested in natural methods. I’ve heard nutrition might play a part. Not gone well today as having a bad day so eaten a lot of junk! Any one experienced in healing themselves from depression

Improving my diet helped. I find long walks are good, too. The exercise feels good, the physical exertion makes it easier to sleep at night and you can set yourself goals.

Also, I find having a hobby that gives you a sense of responsibility can help. For instance, I got involved backstage with a local amdram group, which helped give me some structure, i.e. "things are miserable now, but I can't give up yet, because people are relying on me to get this show done."

I did, it got loads better after I cut out vegetable oils and replaced them with cream and butter. Also taking fish oil regularly. Our brains need animal fats. Our brains are basically made of saturated fat, so if you dont eat enough of that you will have huge mental health issues.
I noticed a gradual improvement of my mental health after this, it took a few weeks to get a bit better, then months to improve even more and now years on its tons better.
Obviously its not 100% gone, but I have had a huge improvement.

Me: exercise and lifestyle change. But my depression was in the mild-moderate range.

I have sort of reframed it by realising it is mainly linked to having adhd and finding things hard. Different approach is now called for.

Counselling definitely helped, but also exercise and starting to eat fish (was vegetarian previously). Having pets was really comforting on the low days too.

Totally with @Sparklesocks and others. It’s an individual thing and I wonder whether it’s also linked to the intensity and type of depression as well. A PP mentioned getting rid of an ex- that’s situational depression, so to speak, the depression’s caused by a situation or an occurrence and once it’s dealt with, you start to feel better. Depression after the death of someone close can be like that, it gradually lifts as you come to terms with your loss. Exercise, avoiding booze, etc. surely help with that as well.

I personally think that I’d it’s long-term, chronic depression, you probably need some therapy and possibly medication ( as well as lifestyle changes), because it’s a chronic condition like any other medical condition. Hope you feel better.💐

Clinical depression veteran here. I use a combo of medication, support network, self awareness of my moods, and lifestyle changes to manage it and keep myself stable.
My favourite exercises for boosting my mood are hiking and powerlifting. Like others upthread, I also avoid eating too many carbs as i find the sugar highs and lows screw up my mood. Have been stable for years now and have a great life; just like managing diabetes or asthma, it requires a holistic approach, but it’s totally worth it.

95% of serotonin is made in the gut. A healthy, balanced, varied diet is so important.

Exercise is the single most important factor, at least in my case.

I also keep on top of my vitamin D levels, say "no" a lot, embraced my need for silence and thrive in a decluttered, organised environment.

DH is a valuable ally and I do lean on his support a fair bit, when needed.

Wow! Thank you everyone I really wasn’t expecting so many replies. I’m reading through all the replies now. Thank you so much xx

Acupuncture has been a big help.

Thai massage on a low day when you don't have enough energy to exercise. It still stretches you out a bit.

Podcasts or audiobooks at bedtime to distract from rumination.

Breaking every task down into tiny chunks. So instead of cleaning entire house, wash one cup whilst kettle boiling. Just keep plodding on with little bits and then think it's better than nothing.

Tracking menstrual cycle with an app.

Great thread. Medication is an extremely useful tool imo and allows lots of folks to lead lives worth living, so I'd never question anyone's choice to take it if it works for them.

However, there can be other factors at play that affect how you navigate the world, especially the difficult bits.

Anyone suffering with anxiety (my core issue) or depression - I'd massively urge them to get a comprehensive thyroid check. Not just the standard NHS TSH test at the GP's office. I have a problem with converting thyroid hormones which they did not check for, so despite the NHS insisting everything was fine for years, it actually was not fine.

When my thyroid hormone is too low my energy peters out and then i get very anxious and distressed. Crushing fatigue that leaves me in despair because simple tasks of daily life feel impossible let alone anything else - doctors will often assume the underlying cause is a mental health problem when energy is so low. But it's not always!

Exercise and cutting back on alcohol. I don’t drink very much now, but I’ve realised when I do, I often wake in the night feeling anxious. Wake up in the morning feeling quite down and so for me there is a definite correlation between drinking alcohol and my mood and I didn’t realise until I significantly cut down. Exercise definitely helps especially outside. A walk quick enough to make it difficult to maintain a conversation is enough to help.

@AbsentmindedWoman

how did you go about getting a private thyroid test? and if you are now on medication for underactive thyroid do you have to pay for it privately also, not via NHS prescription?

I have felt much better after starting intermittent fasting, taking vit D and doing yoga. I'm a completely different person!

I found an episode a day of my dad wrote a porno really helped.

Anti depressants, a daily to do list to keep my house tidy (I realised that I didn't have the drive to tidy, so didn't, and that made my depression worse) and walking. The Mountains for the Mind is a great campaign - www.mountainsforthemind.co.uk/

The problem is, for me, that everything that I KNOW makes me feel better are the exact things I DON'T want to do when I'm feeling bad.

This helps me:

• Getting up early, even when no work, 8am at the latest.
• Having a healthy breakfast and probiotic drink, multivitamin and iron tablet (I'm prone to low iron - don't take these unless you know you are too, but low iron can cause anxiety).
• Going for a swim/gym/walk.
• Chatting with friends or family, either on the phone, online, or going for a coffee.
• Keeping up with hobbies, for example I enjoy playing musical instruments, diamond painting, playing games online with my DP and his friends.
• Going to bed before midnight and reading for an hour instead of sitting on phone/watching TV etc.
• When watching films, or TV, or chatting, put phone down. Sitting with your phone in your hand all the time isn't healthy.

At the moment, my lifestyle is the complete opposite of everything I posted above! But I KNOW what can make me feel better.

Nutrition is a factor as is exposure to light & daily exercise. Despite it being the last thing you'll feel like doing when depressed, force yourself out for a brisk walk as early as possible in the morning. It must be the morning light, take headphones & listen to a podcast, audiobook or anything to make it less of a bore/ordeal.
Get in the habit of starting your day like this and it should improve your general mood.

Hypnotherapy works wonders

[quote Chicchicchicchiclana]@AbsentmindedWoman

how did you go about getting a private thyroid test? and if you are now on medication for underactive thyroid do you have to pay for it privately also, not via NHS prescription?[/quote]
I'm not in the UK anymore but you can get a thorough private check from Blue Horizon or Medichecks for about £70. They regularly have promotional offers too.

I think if your blood work shows there is a problem and you are symptomatic and keen to try, the GP should agree to a trial of thyroid meds with an NHS prescription - in theory. But I know how difficult it is to get thyroid stuff dealt with on the NHS.

No alcohol. Good walk every day. Vitamins. Allowing yourself a 'bad' day when you really need to do.

Not an entire cure, but much better than ADs, counselling ever was.

@frippit

I take antidepressants which definatly help. However over lockdown I started swimming in the sea every morning and it's been brilliant for lifting my mood. Luckily I live near several beaches and I intend to swim or dip every day through winter too. The cold water is invigorating and I feel close to nature somehow, watching seabirds and even a seal. I had a guillemot swimming and diving around me it was amazing. I would say give outdoor dipping/swimming a go, there are groups who dip regularly too like the bluetits in Wales.

Oh, open water swimming is the best. The colder the better (ease in gently though!) I've been able to reduce my antidepressant dose since taking it up.

Also, the 'bluetits'? Genius!

I did. Took supplements, ate very healthily, started exercising, kept a gratitude journal, meditated and did affirmations, did online CBT, joined Superbetter online wellness gaming community. And started doing one thing I'd never done before every day for a year.

All these combined got me off ADs which I'd been on for 10 years. I suffered depression for thirty five years. I gave myself a year to self heal. That was four years ago. I've not been on ADs since. Just once I started to feel a depression creep in and I just went back to the resources I used before and started redoing all the things that helped. It went away very quickly.

The problem is, for me, that everything that I KNOW makes me feel better are the exact things I DON'T want to do when I'm feeling bad.

@LindaEllen - that is so true. For me the breakthrough came when I developed the mantra: You don't have to want to do it, you just have to do it. That got me out of bed, into the shower, dressed and out for a walk most days. If there was something i really couldn't face, I let myself off the hook (like contacting people) but the basics of self care were non-negotiable.