How to Get Out of a Funk

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By Elizabeth Beeson
User-Submitted Article

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(6 Ratings)

Break out of depression and feel better today.

The blues, depression, or a funk can happen to the best of us. For serious depression make sure to see a doctor, but for a minor case of the blues, try these tips to snap out of the funk you're in.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

excercise gear
healthy food
vitamins
black out curtains
access to animals

Step 1

To start, aerobic exercise can be a wonderful way to decrease depression and increase positive feelings. Exercising releases endorphins that naturally make you feel good all over. Continuing a long-term exercise regime can also increase self-esteem. Not only will you look healthier, you'll feel stronger and have more energy. Overall, exercising is a powerful way to feel better immediately and over in the long-run.
Step 2

Meditation can also help to add a sense of well-being to your day. Meditation can help to ease stress and allow you to regroup before the daily hustle. Regular meditation can increase focus and calm nerves and it only takes around 15 minutes a day to be effective. If you need to know how to meditate to effectively reduce stress, read the article in the resources section of this page.
Step 3

Daily sun exposure can also help to quell depression. Vitamin D is absorbed through the skin from sun exposure. Try not to expose skin too often to the sun however, as it can be very damaging and cause skin cancer and premature aging. Vitamin D can also be taken as a supplement. The vitamin D supplement can be found at most grocery stores and vitamin stores.
Step 4

It is also very important to eat a healthy diet. Fresh fruits and vegetables along with Omega-3 fatty acid foods like Salmon can help to increase mood. These foods help to make you feel better physically and they also help to elevate mood and increase energy. If you can't get a healthy diet for any given time, make sure to take vitamins to make up for the lack of natural nutrition.
Step 5

Many times volunteering can also help to elevate mood. Helping others can increase self-esteem and help to create a positive world view. Find an issue that interests you and research organizations online that deal with that issue. Find out if they have local chapters or sister organizations that could use some help on a routine basis. Often, seeing others problems helps us realize how small our are in comparison.
Step 6

Finally, if you are an animal lover, try to find a way to be around animals. Spending time with an animal can increase positive feelings and help to fight the blues. If you can't have a pet of your own because of work schedule or living situation, maybe you could offer to walk a neighbor's pet. You might also be able to volunteer for an animal advocacy group. Perhaps you might even be able to foster cats or dogs for your local humane society. I've placed a link in the resources area of this page that tells you how to foster pets.