Depression: Coping Skills

Adapted from Focus on the Family

Feeling depressed during the holidays isn’t uncommon. The winter season comes with fewer hours of sunlight and a tendency to create stress — even if you love all things Christmas!

Depression is, in part, a physiological state: A person’s brain and body slow down, and it’s hard to do some of the routine things of life. Add in extra things like holiday prep, and major disruptions like we’ve walked through in the past few years, and depression can threaten to cause complete inertia.

When depression tries to keep you down, one tip to remember is that motion is lotion. In other words, moving your mind, body, and soul can bring relief. Probably not instantaneously, but each positive step you take can bring hope.

Five coping skills to help you stay in motion

Keep a routine

Routine brings familiarity and calmness. Get dressed. Call a friend. Read or listen to the Bible. If big tasks feel defeating, focus on smaller steps. Completing a few, positive tasks every day can have a cumulative effect.

Take care of your body

Moving helps blood flow to your brain. Stretch, climb the stairs, or walk around the block. Frequency is more important than how hard or long you exercise.

Get sunshine into your routine. If you can’t get outside, spend time at the windowsill, or talk to your doctor about light therapy.

Choose healthy food. Serotonin, one of the chemicals in your body that makes you feel good, is produced in the brain and the intestine.

Regulate what you, watch, read, and listen to

Sensationalized news and the comparison traps of social media can overwhelm a struggling brain. This is even more true if you also battle what ifs of the future.

Take in only one source of trusted news, or talk to a friend who can share necessary information. And turn off all electronics an hour before bed. You’re not burying your head in the sand. Instead, you’re managing input and keeping your brain grounded in the present.

Look up

It’s not “unchristian” to feel depressed, broken-hearted, or despairing. Even our Savior was called “a man of sorrows.”

And consider David. Psalm 42:11 records his depression: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?” But the verse finishes with a hopeful, upward-gazing phrase: “Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

In the same way, we can trust God with our pain — even during the hardest times.

Reach out

The “good news of great joy” when Light entered the world’s darkness didn’t end with the first Christmas. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. And for more insight, read:

Note: There’s a difference between holiday blues and seasonal affective disorder (SAD). If the after-holiday “blahs” pass and you’re still feeling anxious or depressed, see your doctor. Adapted from Focus on the Family.

Focus on the Family

Take the First Step

If you’re contemplating whether Meier Clinics can provide the mental health support you need, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We understand that determining whether our programs and services are the right fit for you or someone close to you can be challenging. You can start the process by filling out a simple form, and one of our empathetic and caring staff members will reach out to you. Let us help you determine if we can provide the assistance you need.

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Nancy Crowley

PsyD, LMHC

Treatment Issues: Anxiety, Adolescence Issues, Attachment/Adjustment Issues, Blended Family Transitions, Boundaries, Betrayal Recovery, Depression, Divorce, Grief and Loss, Life Transitions, Pre-Marital, Parenting, Relationships, Sexual Issues, Spiritual Identity Issues.

Education & Training: Nancy has earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and her Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology from Northwest University (NU). She is currently in her fourth year of a five-year program, working on her Doctor of Psychology in Counseling Psychology (Psy. D.) degree at the College of Behavioral Sciences at NU. Her anticipated completion date is summer of 2018. In addition, she has earned her Associates of Arts in Theology from The Pacific School of Theology and her Associates of Arts in Graphic Design from Arapahoe Community College.

Background and Experience: Nancy has had additional training in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for Traumatized Child (PCIT-TC), Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) training, Undoing Institutionalized Racism (UIR) workshop, and Gottman Method Couples Therapy. She is a lifelong learner and continues to seek areas of professional training that will enhance the therapeutic experience for her clients.

Special Interests & Services: Nancy’s approach to therapy is relational and client-centered. Her priority is to create a safe and trusting therapeutic setting where her clients can begin healing. Nancy’s understanding of healing through relationship is fundamental in her work with her clients. Her authentic, caring and unconditional positive regard for her clients help to facilitate the healing journey. Because Nancy believes in the importance of early attachment and bonding within all families, she includes work around family-of-origin and how that might affect current adult relationships. Nancy also customized her techniques and interventions to best suit the needs of each individual client.

Additional Info: Nancy is an Adjunct Professor at NU, teaching General Psychology and Abnormal Psychology. In addition, she has traveled to El Salvador as part of cultural immersion experience provided through the program at NU. Nancy enjoys traveling and has been to Europe several times with family and friends. She will continue to visit other countries, learning about the cultures and customs of different people groups as she travels. One of Nancy’s life philosophies is that true riches in life are experienced through meaningful connections within intimate relationships and that we all have a capacity to share ourselves in an authentic way.