10 easy ways to relieve depression/stress

Because we all need it sometimes....
Here's 10 ways that help me, and could help you with depression/stress.



10 things to help with depression/stress::

1. Try to take a relaxing walk. (Find a place near you that's calm and peaceful. Parks are always nice, and if you can find one where there's a nice place to sit, do so, and sit there and think of how beautiful nature is.)

2. Read a good book. (Books help a person escape reality, and expose them to a different place where anything is possible allowing them to see things differently.)

3. Take a warm bath with some candles and relaxing music. (See if you can find a moment to yourself, where the house is empty, and just sit in the bath and breathe deeply, freeing your mind of everything but the calm sounds around you.)

4. Scream into a pillow. (I know it seems a bit strange, but doing this can help relieve more than just anger. Screaming is a release, and it can help purge the body of negativity, allowing a calm to develop afterward. It may take a few tries to start to feel better, but it does work. But remember to breathe afterward )

5. Draw/write. (It may seem as though you can't even think of drawing when you're depressed, but simply place the pen, or pencil onto a clean sheet of paper and just let it go. Even if you just write or draw scribbles, art has the power to help release tension and relieve stress. Don't be afraid to ruin a good sheet of paper with random babble/scribbles, paper can be recycled and reused, emotions/sanity can't.)

6. Pet a cat/dog. *or any animal for that matter* (Animals are here for us, even when we don't know it. Petting a cat or dog at least 10 minutes a day can't help lower your blood pressure, as well as calm your inner being/spirit. Sometimes the feeling of another being around you, or near you, touching you can help you feel less alone, aiding in helping you heal from the loneliness depression can sometimes cause you to feel. Animals appreciate you unconditionally, and take pride in knowing that. The love us for who we are, not what we are.)

7. Sleep. (Most of the time these days sleep eludes at least 50% of the worlds population at night, so we often feel groggy, unfit, or just plain blah everyday because we're walking around the world on little to no shut-eye. Depression can lead to insomnia, and for those who suffer from depression, we all know about this. However, there is a solution. Take one day to yourself, and during that day, sit back, put in a good movie or some good music, and just lay in bed until you drift off to sleep. Don't worry about messing up a sleep schedule, because if you suffer from insomnia, you don't have one already. Sleeping during the day is often frowned upon, or looked on as being lazy, but truth be told if that is the only time you can sleep, then do so. For those who are in school, weekends work best to do this. Ask anyone who is in your household before hand to leave you be alone, and just ignore everything until you can sleep. It's not sleep that eludes you, it's you who eludes sleep. Depression causes people to think too much, and as such they lose track of things that are important for their health *sleep, food, social contact, ect.* and so involuntarily they screw themselves over. So sleep.... it's good for you.)

8. Talk about it. (You heard me, find a good ear, and talk about it with someone. There's an abundance of good people in this world who are willing to just sit back and listen to anyone who needs to vent. If anything, try taking a trip to the local 'mature living' center, and talk to the people who live there. Older people, or people who are in the last years of their life have seen, and done many things, so their advice is worth more than that from people who are younger. Elderly people understand a lot more than we younger generation think, and even though they may appear brash and 'hard as nails' 99% of them are lonely and would love to talk to someone, even if it's about that person's problems.
Also, going to friends is a good thing too. Friends *the TRUE ones* are always there to help you and give you a hug when you need it. Tell them everything that is on/in your mind, and just let it all out. They'll listen, and possibly give you some of their own dose of advice if they can relate to what you're going through.)

9. Punch something, kick something, rip and tear up the grass, or break a stick. (Now I'm not talking about ruining a perfectly good tree, or creating bald spots in the lawn, but sometimes ripping something shreds can help just as much as screaming at the top of your lungs. Grass can grow back, and tree branches that have fallen are already dead, so there is no harm in doing this, as it's not cruel. Kicking a wall, or punching a pillow can relieve stress as well as make you feel good. We humans tend to ball up our anger in fear that if we let it out, those around us will look down on us, however, years and years of balling up your anger can make you a grumbly ol' bat, so you have to let it out some how.
DO NOT PUNCH PEOPLE! I repeat, DO NOT PUNCH PEOPLE! I know people can be the root cause of your anger/depression, but punching or beating them up won't help. If anything, it'll make things worse. So keep your anger release to inanimate objects.
In winter it's also a good idea to use snow, and throw snowballs as hard as you can at a brick wall.)

10. "In with the good air, out with the bad" *repeat* (This is a silly little exercise, but it WORKS! Sometimes we need to just take a moment to breathe. Find a place to just sit back, close your eyes, and just breathe.  Take in deep, calm breaths, and count. Counting helps concentrate your mind on something other than what you are mad/depressed about, thus enabling relaxation to take place. Take as long as you need until you calm down and feel relaxed, then, try to think logically about things. If you feel you are getting annoyed or depressed again, repeat the breathing exercise again, only this time after you are done, don't think, just go and do something else.
If you find yourself getting annoyed repeatedly, then perhaps you're not ready to find out your problem, so just go about your daily life in hopes your problem's solution will present itself on it's own.)