You may be depressed! What do you do now?
Things To Do After You Begin Feeling Better
cont.
1. Educate yourself
about depression so that if you ever get depressed again, you and your
supporters will know exactly what to do.
2. Become an effective advocate for yourself--figure out what you
need and want for yourself, and then work toward it until you get it.
3. Develop and keep a
strong support system of at least five supporters, people you feel
comfortable with, trust and enjoy. If you don't have five supporters, make some
new friends by joining a support
group, attending community events, or taking an interesting course.
4. Write a plan to keep
yourself well. Include lists of:
- things you need to do every day to keep yourself well, like get a half hour
of exercise and eat three healthy meals
- things that may not need to be done every day, but if you miss them they
will cause stress in your life, like buying groceries, paying bills or cleaning
your home
- events or situations that, if they come up, may make you feel worse, like a
disagreement with a family member or loss of your job, and an action plan to
follow if these events occur
- early warning signs that you are starting to get depressed again, like
feeling tired, sleeping too much, overeating, and dropping things, and an
action plan to follow if they come up
- signs that things are getting much worse, you really are depressed, like
you can't get out of bed in the morning and you feel negative about everything,
and an action plan to follow if this happens
Ask your health care providers, family members and friends for help in
developing these plans.
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