Dealing with depression is never an easy task but being forced into social isolation has made managing it that much harder. The things I usually use to distract myself like spending time with friends, taking walks around the park, or leisurely strolling around Target aren’t options anymore, and God only knows when they will be. The uncertainty of everything coupled with being cooped up in my house and having to take all of my classes online now is proving to not agree with my depression. I’m finding it harder to get out of bed in the morning, harder to shower consistently, and harder to eat meals that don’t consist of ice cream in some form.
But I’m refusing to let this get me down. I’m doing my best to be my own source of motivation and here are a couple tips I’m using to deal with my depression during these trying times.
- Do Your Best to Take Care of Yourself
It may seem like a no-brainer, but when depression is weighing you down, personal hygiene can start to take a backseat to pretty much everything else. But the longer you take to brush your teeth or wash your face or even brush your hair, the worse you start to feel. I find that I feel more motivated to get things done – even if the only thing I’m getting done is making my bed or catching up on all the TV shows I’m behind on – when I start my day off with taking my meds, brushing my teeth and drinking a glass of water, even if I’m doing all of that when I get out of bed at 2 p.m.
- Organize and Plan Ahead
The sudden shift to having online classes has been super confusing and knowing when things are due has become so much harder. But letting it all pile up and leaving future me to have more to do only contributes to the depression. Creating a calendar of all future due dates gives me a better idea of what’s ahead and what needs to get done soon, that way I’m not left with a daunting pile of to-do’s that leaves me feeling unmotivated.
- Focus on your Hobbies
Even with all of the online work I have to get done, I still find myself with a crazy amount of free time, which has left me feeling aimless and lead to a lot of depression naps which – spoiler alert – only make me feel worse. Instead of spending most of my free time napping, I’ve started picking up old hobbies that I’ve had to put down because of school and work. I started reading and journaling again, and God only knows how many hours I’ve put into the new Animal Crossing game. Taking time to focus on hobbies and activities that make you feel good is important, global pandemic or not.
- Spend Some Virtual Time with Friends
Just because you can’t be with your friends in person doesn’t mean you can’t still spend time together. There are plenty of websites and apps out there that will allow you and your friends to get together and watch movies or TV together (Netflix Party), play video games together (Discord), or, if you’re feeling nostalgic, play some classic online games together – Webkinz now offers free memberships, and Club Penguin is back up and running on a free server called Club Penguin Online!
- Remember You’re Not Alone
Even though we may not be fighting all the same demons, we are all fighting the same battle when it comes to being forced into social distancing and isolation. This is a global problem we’re dealing with, and even with no discernible end in sight, it’s times like these when we all Amust come together for the greater good. I know it sounds cheesy and cliché, but it’s the truth. Like High School Musical said, we’re all in this together, fighting the same lonesome fight and even when times get lonely, when the motivation seems to drain from my body, I find some comfort in knowing that I’m not alone in this fight.