While depression is a horrible psychological issue to suffer from, it’s not something we should continue to endure. At the very least, there are some things everyone can do to improve their situation.

These are some evidence-based, practical tips that I have used in the past and continue to use to this day to keep my depression in check:

1. Exercise: Essential
   Exercise is essential for everyone, as we’re designed to move and be physically active. That’s accurate for those who are considered perfectly healthy, but it is especially true for people suffering from depression or another mood disorder.
   That’s because those who are struggling have fewer reserves, but more importantly, because exerting ourselves and moving around helps to regulate our mood by releasing neurotransmitters.
   There’s also the added benefit that working out and being active often occur in nature, which helps combat the isolation that frequently accompanies psychological difficulties by getting us out of the house.
2. Establish a sleeping schedule: Essential
   
   The single best thing I ever did for improving my depression was establishing and maintaining a sleeping schedule.
   Mental issues regularly cause sleeping problems like insomnia and oversleeping due to a variety of depressive symptoms, such as overthinking, rumination, going to bed and waking up too late because of deregulated circadian rhythms, and not being tired enough since we might not exercise anymore.
   There’s also the fact that we might be unable to work because of severe depression, further disturbing our usual program and removing one of our prime reasons for getting out of bed to survive.
   As we can see, there’s a large variety of depressive symptoms that can disrupt our sleeping patterns.
   Unfortunately, these issues tend to worsen the longer our usual tightly structured schedule becomes deregulated, causing us to go to bed later, struggle to sleep, and ultimately lead to getting out of bed even later.
   But sleep is necessary for everyone, no matter how physically and mentally tough you might be.
   We need it to be able to function well. And no matter how much you might think getting little rest doesn’t affect you, it does.
   Just because you don’t notice the negative effects doesn’t mean that there aren’t any.
3. Setting goals: Essential
   Setting goals is critical because we need to know what objective we want to achieve, and so we can break these large goals up into smaller ones to measure our progress.
   We don’t want to wander around aimlessly without knowing where we want to go. Thus, it makes sense to formulate objectives we want to realize.
   Speaking from experience, depression usually brings along a lot of turmoil and uncertainty. But having something to aim at helps to bring structure into our chaotic lives.
   It also aids in getting out of this rut quicker because we need to put in some deep thought before we can formulate a plan of action.
   We can also adjust that strategy when we notice things are not working out the way we wanted or expected.
4. Taking responsibility for the situation: Essential
   
   Taking accountability is needed because no matter how unfortunate you might be, it’s still your own life and responsibility to get better once again.
   I’m not saying that every depressive episode is your fault. After all, we can become depressed after a loved one tragically dies in an accident that nobody could’ve prevented.
   But we shouldn’t make a bad situation any worse than it must be. We shouldn’t victimize ourselves, since that gets us nowhere except making us feel even more miserable.
   Whether we decide to employ the help of friends, family, and/or a therapist, it’s ultimately still up to each one of us personally to get better, and that’s no one’s responsibility except our own.
5. Becoming disciplined: Essential
   Becoming disciplined is necessary, no matter what we want to achieve in our existence. But it’s especially important when living with a mood disorder, since it tends to drain motivation out of our bodies, particularly when we’re severely depressed.
   Simply waiting until we’re feeling motivated is not a viable option either, since that means we’re dependent and a slave to our temperament to get anything done.
   We also don’t know how long we’re going to suffer from our mood disorder, and if that motivation is ever going to come back at all.
   That’s why I’m saying that you need to become self-controlled if you want to give yourself the best chance of getting better again without having to depend on too many external factors outside your control.
6. Changing your mentality: Low importance-essential depending on the cause
   
   The importance of changing your mentality depends on the circumstances and the cause of your psychological difficulties.
   Perhaps it’s best to give an example to make things clear.
   A loved one passing away from cancer is outside your control, and thus, it’s normal to struggle for a while and even to become depressed.
   Changing your mentality might not be as essential here compared to when you’re depressed because you lack the necessary social skills to make friends, yet you place the blame on everyone else and the world around you instead of acknowledging that you need to acquire some new abilities and a more accurate worldview.
   In the first instance, the depression might not necessarily be the result of a faulty way of thinking. But in the second example, the issue is caused by an inaccurate way of reasoning and a poor mentality to go through life.
   Our mentality can work for us, but can greatly hold us back as well, since we tend to reflect what we believe. If we believe we’re perfect and know everything there is to the world, then why would we bother improving or changing the way we think? A question worth thinking about.
7. Therapy: Moderately important-essential, depending on the severity
   Let me start by saying that therapy is never a bad idea, even when your depression might only be mild.
   But a mild depression can probably be treated without going to psychotherapy, depending on the person, their circumstances, and their abilities.
   Still, a therapist can give you a more objective view of the situation and how to deal with the detrimental symptoms.
   On the other hand, treatment is essential if you’re going through a severe mental disorder. That’s because you’re at an increased risk of self-harm, and since you can’t afford to let things spiral any more out of control than they already are.
8. Medication: Moderately important-essential depending on severity
   
   Kind of similar to going to therapy, the importance of medication depends on how grave the mental problem is.
   Mild depression can be treated without medication most of the time. Still, it can help to ease the annoying and harmful side effects that go along with it, and that’s why it can even be a good idea to use antidepressants to get better.
   On the contrary, medication is always required if you’re having suicidal thoughts or are at risk of harming yourself. All arguments you might have against antidepressants go right out the window if you end up seriously harming yourself or when you’re gone.
   I would even say that antidepressants are a must when you’re going through a severe episode, even though you might not be suicidal or have no thoughts about harming yourself.
   That’s because you have little wiggle room left to let things get worse, and since the symptoms are usually so intense in these cases that you need the medication to function somewhat decently.

Final thoughts

While depression is a horrible event to go through, it’s not something insurmountable that can’t be treated.

There are a lot of things we can do on our own, aside from seeking help from friends, family, and a therapist. You can greatly improve your mood and quality of life by doing the things I described above.