We have interviewed 61 people who have struggled with depression. These stories are full of tips on how to overcome depression.
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I’ve interviewed 61 people struggling with depression, and here are the top 5 most mentioned tips that helped these people overcome it:
In our many years of publishing helpful mental health content, we always received questions from our readers about specific situations. While we have a lot of helpful tips to share on how to be happier, we simply can’t offer advice for every situation.
That’s why I’ve set out to interview folks with every type of mental health struggle. My job as an interviewer is to categorize these interviews and present them in a way that is most helpful to our readers.
“I can’t begin to explain the depth of hatred I had for myself. I was working 80, sometimes 100 hours a week with overtime and I still couldn’t make it. Why? I had no friends. Why? I had zero prospects of a relationship and felt zero love from anyone. Why? I hated myself.”
Struggled with:
ADHD
Anxiety
Depression
“Considering the duration of my struggle, anxiety, and depression have been constants in my life. Over the years, I had tried numerous medications and visited countless therapists, but nothing seemed to offer lasting relief. It wasn’t until I discovered these resources, particularly the “DARE” book, that I finally started to see a glimmer of hope and progress toward overcoming my challenges.”
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Childhood
Depression
Panic attacks
Helped by:
Self-Care
Self-improvement
Therapy
“At 19 years old I had lost all of my independence, I was unable to work, and I couldn’t even make a meal for myself 90% of the time. At this time I was also diagnosed with OCD. I turned 20 completely alone, I couldn’t even leave my room to have happy birthday sung to me.”
Helped by:
Medication
Music
Self-improvement
Therapy
“I found myself pounding on the wall of my shower, crying my heart out, convinced that my wife and kids would be better off if I killed myself. I had put them through enough stress over the years with my risky business ventures. My life insurance policy would take care of them better than I could.”
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Grief
Suicidal
Helped by:
Self-Care
“I skidded on my face and tore ligaments in my knee and shoulder. Other injuries include several broken bones in my pelvis and my skull had a fracture from my hairline to the top of my head. It took several stitches to close up a head wound. I sustained a contrecoup head injury.”
Struggled with:
Bipolar Disorder
Depression
Suicidal
Traumatic Brain Injury
“One day, my heart began racing during practice and I had to step out. Though the team doctors attributed it to post-COVID symptoms, deep down, I knew it was depression and anxiety taking hold. But I hid behind their diagnosis, afraid to reveal my true struggles.”
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Stress
Helped by:
“During the darkest moments of my struggle, I felt invisible and worthless, as though there was no reason to even get out of bed. The sense of defeat weighed heavily on me, making each day an uphill battle. The severity of my mental health struggles had a profound impact on my happiness, overshadowing what should have been an exciting period of personal and professional growth.”
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Helped by:
Medication
Self-Care
Therapy
“I isolated myself even when I was present. I became really good at hiding what was going on in my head. I pretended to be happy, mostly because I didn’t want anyone to know I wasn’t. And I knew it wasn’t anything that anyone else was doing, I just felt so unfulfilled.”
“Contrary to all I read about Postpartum Depression or Postnatal Depression, I never felt that I was not bonding or connected to Archie. In fact, I found the opposite to be true. I felt so in love and so connected to my son that the ill feelings came from my belief that I was simply not good enough to be his mum.”
Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Postpartum depression
Helped by:
Self-improvement
“I was referred to a psychiatrist and he told me that I was experiencing clinical depression and advised me to do a lot of walking to avoid medicines. But my condition did not improve, and therefore I was put on fluoxetine during my 7th month of pregnancy and admitted to the hospital for a month.”
Struggled with:
Depression
Loneliness
Helped by:
Self-Care
Self-improvement
Spirituality
