a friend. something that excites you. Knowing your loved. Stop staying in. Take a day off with a group of friends. I have been so depressed and was cured just by having someone I knew cared so much. Sometimes of course, its not that easy. But I know that not working at it will make it worse. Take up a new hobby, something you love. Something that will make you smile. Doing the same thing everyday, or doing what you don't enjoy can keep in depressed, forever.

Seek professional help to determine whether your depression is clinical. If so, individual or group therapy, or medication may be indicated.

after my divorce I was depressed then one day I went to the boardwalk and started to run and run and run-like Forrest Gump. started running everyday. It worked. Joined arunning club. Made new friends. lost weight. looked great. ex wanted me back

I think it depends on the kind of depression that you have. Obviouslly if you are manically depressed for a longn period of time you need to seek professional help to see what's causing the problem and then get some advice on how to solve the problem. But if your depression is mild, certain activities will help. Exercise, meditation or any other activity that gives you pleasure and are positive will help.

Avoid repetitive thinking. If you catch yourself thinking the same thing again -- stop it, and substitute it with positive thoughts. And now for the whacko part -- but I believe it works: if you can't think of anything positive... think about the sun -- visualize it's color -- visualize the inferno -- visualize the heat -- visualizing it burning away negative thoughts. The longer you can think about this, without getting interrupted by other thoughts, the better. It is important to escape from environments that make the negative thoughts occur. It is good practice to do this in a park, where you can look at things like birds and flowers, which wouldn't be there if it weren't for the sun. I would avoid doctors and drugs at all costs -- unless you are considering suicide, and nothing can make you stop thinking negative thoughts. You are strong enough get through this by yourself if you want to: stick with the sun -- granter of all life on the planet. A fabulous future awaits. PS... not such a whacko idea -- buddhist monks have used this meditation for 1000+ years to purify their thoughts. re: comments Good point -- meditation does not cure depression overnight -- it's like the meds themselves -- a daily practice. But it doesn't have to take years to overcome. Meds are limited by dosage and the effectiveness of the psychiatrists balancing experiment's. Meditation you can do at anytime, there's no amount that will harm you. In my opinion, unless you are contemplating suicide -- you can recover without drugs. I lived with somone on meds for 7 years -- the drugs did help, but they were not a cure.

Certainly you should consider therapy. Depression can be very serious. But I will say that the common sense notion of "overcoming depression" isn't a very effective way to look at the issue. That turns it into yet another thing you have to do battle with (I get tired just thinking about what such a struggle might mean!) Depression is a generalized "deadness" or numbness. When we're in pain (e.g. from a loss, or a sense of failure, or whatever...), we don't want to experience that pain. So our minds do something they learned very early in life as a coping strategy: they shut down all feelings. This "generalized suppression" deadens the pain, but it also deadens any of the joy, satisfaction, or other enjoyable feelings. We can't selectively kill *just* the pain, there isn't a knob for each different kind of emotion. So we have to turn down the volume on everything, and that leaves a sense that nothing is satisfying or interesting -- i.e. depression. The general path out of depression is turn and face directly into the pain which you're trying to escape from: to experience that which you've been trying to avoid experiencing. Life includes pain: there is no way around that. One must "turn and face the music", whatever that may be, in each situation. This can be a very frightening prospect, especially if one has expended a great deal of energy avoiding the issue. The good news is that in most cases (with the rare exception of biologically-driven mental illness) it actually is possible to pass through to the other side and come out whole and healed. But that depends very much on the degree to which you're willing to come to grips with the painful content at the core of the dark areas in your life.

Well i just do things that I enjoy. If there is someone that puts you down sometimes, then steer clear of them. don't play games that say "You Lost!" when you loose. Don't eat too much, but when you do eat cook it yourself and have it taste good. I like listining to music while I drive on buisy streets at night. Maybe smoke some pot.

A new girlfriend is a good FAST way to snap out of a depressed state

One of the keys to overcoming any challenge in life is our mental attitude. keep a positive outlook regarding any setbacks, people with a positive outlook are likely to adjust better than pessimistic people. As the Bible says, “a heart that is joyful does good as a curer.”

A combination of medication, talking therapies (counselling, etc.,) taking time out for yourself and a loving and understanding group of family and friends. That is what has kept me going for the last 10 years I've suffered with depression.

Shopping! If you can afford it, otherwise the credit card bill will make you feel worse.

In our country recently, they have allowed subsidies for people getting cognitive therapy for depression, as the cognitive therapy is proving to be very effective in helping depression. It can be used in conjunction with depression medicines.

Surround yourself with positive influences.Go outside,enjoy the sunshine.Think positive thoughts.Meditate.Do things you enjoy.If that doesn't work,then it may be serious depression that is either a chemical imbalance or something stemming from the past that you were incapable of dealing with.If that is the case,seek treatment from a proffesional.Good luck!

Watching morning telly, Seeing that there are people in worse situations than you on Trisha and Jeremy Kyle show.

I have dealt with depression from the youngest age I can remember. Heres what I find to be the way that worked for me. 1ST MEDS TO GET THINGS IN CONTROL THEN START TALKING and keep talking. Be as honest as possible! Really dig deep and pull out all the triggers and what makes you tick. Then start looking at things and talking about it. Make a pact with yourself regardless of how sad you are you don't have the option of suicide!!!!! Suicide is the most selfish and painful thing you could ever do! Believe me I have lived with the suicide of 4 family memebers! My brother and I made a pact years a go that no matter what NOT AN OPTION> Go to the hospital immediately or call 911 if you are that down! I know I can not speak when I am that down so 911 is a good option...they come regardless if you speak or not. Call someone to be with you and be honest of how low you are! ITS NOT GOING TO MAKE IT GO AWAY!! IT WILL JUST HELP GIVE YOU THE TOOLS TO KNOW HOW TO GET THROUGH IT MORE EFFECTIVELY. I know how much it hurts! I spent last night with this serious pain that many would just cut there losses and end it all....but as I said never an option. I just sobbed so hard for hours my eyes are now swollen shut! But I will never hurt another person that bad because I hurt that bad. I allow myself to feel then I start to look at it on the outside and try to find a small amount of something I feel good about then I just pile up another etc. NOT perfect feeling but it gets you through the moment. Depression does hurt everyone around you too. So first start with zoloft or one of the other ones and TALK YOUR HEAD OFF!

I recommend Beer therapy,... hey, it works for me.

To me I believe the medicine is a crutch to help a person get over the problem that occured in their life.I think one has to realize what has happened so eruptly in their lives that caused this problem.

Counseling coupled with vigorous physical activity works well. Take up a martial art. Focus all of your anger or sadness on improving something about yourself and reap the rewards.

I take antidepressants and try to remain in a positive environment around positive happy people and I encourage myself. it can be difficult sometimes.

For me personally, I try and pin point what exactly I'm depressed about, I make a list of those things and I try to get them checked off. Sometimes depression is a by product of stress, if you alleviate the stress in your life, depression will disapate. If it's depression in general, with no specific reason, I surround myself with things and people I love. It might not suppress depression permanently, but it makes you feel better and inables you to think more clearly.

Many people in this world that "suffer" from depression would tell you that there is no cure-all for this malady. I have had bouts of depression off and on for years now, both with and without different types of medications. Of course, what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for another. It has been my experience however that the best, or at least most effective, for me, way to battle depressive moods is to do exactly what you don't feel like doing... get out and enjoy yourself and life. Feeling depressed tends to leave you thinking that there is "nothing left in life," that "nothing is really worth while." I firmly believe that a smile and a good laugh can go a long long way. Do not isolate, if you really want to get back on the road, just get out and experience the life around you. Hang out with friends and family. Open up and quit keeping everything inside. If you're having problems, let people know. Be honest. It will take some time and there are no guarantees that you'll ever be done with these feelings, it's very likely that it will always be there one way or another, but, with time it won't be so hard anymore and you'll know how to deal with it. Of course, there are medications that can help, as I eluded to earlier on. There is also therapy and things of the like. It is my opinion however that taking an active part in feeling better is the best way to go. Do not rely on a pill or the advice of some doctor to make you feel better. Even if you do go that route, you still need to actively chase that better mood. Take care of yourself and find a smile around every corner. Life is too short to be worried all the time and feel glum. There are much better things to spend your time thinking about. Right? :) Just smile and have a good time. It really is that easy. Give it a try. :)

I hope I'm not speaking out of turn but I did discuss this with a close friend who has ongoing depression. Here's what she had to offer: "Firstly using the term 'overcoming' is inappropriate. For those of us with depression it makes depression seem like a disease. None of us want to have depression but we do. However, we do cope with depression. Depression can be a lifelong thing and something that requires ongoing medical and therapeutic treatment to help it to become more manageable. Management of depression is more of a realistic goal and more achievable. For those who have long-term depression, being given the impression that it can be eradicated is unfair as it creates illusions surrounding the reality of depression." I'm not sure if this is helpful or not but it is what a close friend wanted to say.

hang out with frens

The best therapy is to feign enthusiam - and to try to do something real.

This has probably been answered correctly but I will add what I can to this. First off, you must be free of drugs and alcohol abuse, before you can battle depression. Next, you must see a doctor, and be prescribed an anti-depressant. You must always talk with your counselor, and those who love you, do not hold back any of your feeling, wants, needs, fears, anxietys, etc. Trust those who are trying to help. Try to stay active, it is so easy, to just not want to get out of bed. Make sure you never go without proper food, water, rest, exercise, these things are important. Learn to love yourself, no matter how much the situation seems hopeless, find hope, look for hope, and if you are religious, then pray. If you are depressed, I am very sorry, I am here, if you need to talk!

Spiritual practice is the best therapy for depression. I was depressed for over a year. As soon as I started spiritual practice of chanting the name of God, I started feeling better. I was healed within 2 to 3 weeks without any medication. Pls visit http://www.spiritualresearchfoundation.org/spiritualresearch/mentalhealth/

IN A WORD: EXERCISE. Sounds simple, but if you took a walk and just kept walking somewhere warm and outside (if possible), take a bottle of water and some snacks... and walk until you can't walk anymore -- I mean for 3-4 hours if you have to. No music or radio or talking with anyone but yourself and God. You will start to clear your head... YOU WILL BE AMAZED! Do it again the next day even if you don't feel like it. DO IT NOW!

It's dependent on how depressed you are. If you have mild depression - talking and therapy is the best way to go to start with and that will hopefully raise your mood. Cognitive therapy is good, as is Gestalt - both bring into your awareness bodily and/or mental processes that are taking place that contribute to your mood. If you have severe depression, drug therapy would be a priority from my perspective. You need to get yourself stabilised and brought up from the pit you're in. At that point you should seek counselling. That's my opinion. I'm not a doctor. I'm not a psychologist. I have half a psychology and neurobiology degree and have had bipolar disorder for ten years. I am fully medicated and have had three different types of counselling over the years - cognitive therapy (which explores the process of what automatic thoughts and feelings are going on in your head that can contribute to your overall mood), existentialist therapy (which was useless) and Gestalt therapy (which brings to your attention awareness not only of thoughts but also physiological processes that occur when for example you are feeling anxious - heart rate etc. Once you know that these things happen you can start making yourself feel better by slowing them down). Gestalt therapy is what has worked for me, in combination with anti-depressive and mood-stabilising drugs. I think that the combination of drug therapy and counselling is very important to the healing process for someone severely depressed. Drugs on their own can only do so much - they can bring you to a reasonably stable mood, but you need the counselling to create a safety net for yourself and ensure that you don't slip back down again.

I believe cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the best therapy for depression. Using the workbook, "Ten Days to Self Esteem" by Dr David Burns, I worked myself out of the worst depression of my life in about 6 hours of step by step writing exercises to get in touch with all of my thoughts about the event that propelled me into that depression. I also listed the feelings I had about the event, using the book's list of common feelings. Once I had the list of thoughts, I identified the distorted thinking patterns in my thoughts, such as black and white thinking, fortune telling, labeling, minimizing and maximizing, blaming, and others, again from a list in the book. Having done all of that drudgery, I then wrote more positive rational responses to all of my automatic thoughts about the troubling event that triggered my depression, and as I successfully did that, my feelings of anger, depression, anxiety and others, diminished to zero or near zero. My thoughts reshaped into more positive, believable ones, not by positive thinking self manipulations, but realizing where I needed to take action, what I needed to accept as true, where I needed to give myself credit and recognition, and where I needed to assess responsibility to the other party and stop taking it on to help her avoid having to deal with it herself. In short I discovered that I knew what was troubling me, and with effort, could clear my mind and redecide my life. The book providing me with the structure for organizing the myriad of my own thoughts and the erroneous decisions I was making about them. I don't remember the statistics, but you can search for cognitive behaviorial therapy online to find the studies of the effectiveness of the therapy.

Believe it or not it is actually retail therapy. Research shows that shopping works better than any drugs that are available.

counseling and medication!

I had a hard time with depression for years and tried drugs. They did no good for me. That doesn't mean they won't work for others. What worked for me is to change the things in my life that I was depressed about. I forced myself to get out of bed, I worked hard at work to become successful, and I met a wonderful wife. These things got me out of the depression I was in, and now when I get thoughts like that I just force them out of my head by thinking about what I do have instead of being depressed about what's wrong with life.

with a set of hammers and suction cups... or try 1-800-DentPro press outwards from within the inside in order to fix a dent and forget it... same thing applies to the mind

exercise.....get off your ass and walk, run, whatever.....and for pete's sake WATCH WHAT YOU EAT....cut way way down on processed foods.......!!!

you might need meds for it if you have a chemical imbalance causing it

It's important to surround yourself with people you know you can trust and with whom you feel loved and comfortable around. Make sure to stay out of home, you need to get out more and not let the days slip. Stay positive by doing things you love and stay away from those who might have caused the depression along with things that might have caused it as well. Hopefully that helped at least a little, get better :)