 Have you been feeling down lately? Coming out of depression can seem challenging at first, as the process of emotional and psychological healing requires mindfulness, perseverance, and strong will, qualities that a hurting mind often struggle to keep. However, understanding that you have these feelings and knowing that you need to do something about them to get better is a great first step. So let's get into the five key things you should do to get out of depression. Number one, engage in conversations. Do you spend a lot of time alone? While depressed, you may find safety and comfort in being alone and withdrawing from others. However, avoiding others may only worsen your mood, as a wise man once said. Life is about enlightenment, not just enjoyment, meaning that seeking learnings from new or slightly braver experiences can allow you to grow immensely. While it may feel difficult and almost impossible at first, you can start small. Like having a short chat with a neighbor. Then you might feel more confident to approach and introduce yourself to new people, or even learn about social issues so that you can open a space for further conversations in your community. Whatever way you choose to engage with people, notice how your mind changes and the way in which your understanding of the world and life expands. When you're caught up in the realities that your mind convinces you of, the one way to get out of it is to break through into the outside world. Number two, spend time in the outdoors. When's the last time you went outside? Doing tedious and repetitive tasks all day can make you wander off into unhelpful and mentally damaging thought processes. A wonderful way to relieve stress and improve your mental and physical well-being is to take a step outside. According to Mind, a UK charity organization, spending even a small amount of time outdoors every day can significantly increase your self-esteem and confidence, improve your mood, and reduce feelings of stress and tension. In fact, the correlation between increased times spent in nature and improved mental well-being has been proven to work so well that there's a formal mental health treatment known as ecotherapy. Those suffering from mental health issues work on healing their mind through doing beneficial activities outside in nature. So taking in the beauty of the outdoors can give you the chance to cleanse your mind and rejuvenate yourself for better days ahead. Since there has been such a huge decline in mental health around the world, we feel compelled to create more content than ever before. Thank you so much for being a part of our journey. If you enjoy this video and find it helpful, please click the like button and subscribe to Psych2Go to show us your support. Number three, challenge your negative thoughts. Do you get overwhelmed with negative thoughts? Negative thought patterns can come in many forms. Some include all-or-nothing thinking, which is usually accompanied by generalizing from a single negative experience, mental filtering, where you focus on the negatives and ignore the positives, labeling yourself, where you classify yourself based on perceived shortcomings, and more. According to Help Guide, an independent nonprofit, you can challenge these unhelpful thoughts by asking yourself the following questions. What's the evidence that this thought is true or not true? What would I tell a friend who had this thought? Is there another way of looking at the situation or an alternate explanation? How might I look at this situation if I didn't have depression? The second question, what would I tell a friend who had this thought? Is especially helpful, since you may find it easier to provide support and care for others, more than you're able to do so for yourself. This allows you to remove yourself from your mind and view your thoughts from a third perspective, which also is a form of practicing mindfulness. As you reflect on your stream of thinking, notice how quickly your negative thoughts crumble when you take the power away from them. Number four, know that a bad day today doesn't mean a bad tomorrow. When you're especially having a hard time dealing with your negative thoughts, remember that today isn't indicative of what could be tomorrow. Give yourself some grace and take everything one step at a time. As lifestyle writer and editor Kimberly Holland shares in her article on Healthline, if you are unsuccessful at getting out of bed or accomplishing your goals today, remember that you haven't lost tomorrow's opportunity to try again. Instead of seeing tomorrow as just another dreadful and dreary day, view it as a fresh start for you to heal and improve your mindset. Number five, reward your efforts along the way. Have you been feeling defeated by the lack of improvement? As with anything, it's about progress, not perfection. The little things lead to greater feats in your mental health journey. So take the time to appreciate the hard work you're putting in to grow, feel, and be better overall. The fact that you're taking the time off of your day to engage with your mind and attend to its many needs is already a great accomplishment that deserves a pat on the back. We beg you, please shower yourself with the tender loving care that you deserve. When you reward yourself, you're reminding yourself of how well you did, allowing you to fuel the fire in order to keep going. I just wanted to pop in and take a moment to celebrate any and all of you struggling with depression. I want to take a second to celebrate any effort that you put in to keeping it moving, to pushing on whether it was getting out of bed, giving yourself some nutritious food, getting outside for some air, having some water, brushing your teeth, doing your dishes, your laundry, whatever. It is, it's no small feat. What you're going through is real, it's valid, and it's difficult. There are people in the world who truly appreciate how hard you fight every single day. Don't give up. Keep fighting. You're doing a good job. Did you find this helpful? Let us know in the comments below. Also, be sure to like, subscribe, and share this video with those who might benefit from it. And don't forget to hit the notification bell icon to get notified whenever Psych2Go posts a new video. As always, the references and studies used in this video are added in the description below. Thanks so much for watching and see you in the next one. If you are suffering from serious symptoms of depression, anxiety, or any other mental health issue, here are some safe and reputable sources you can reach out to for help.