Battling Depression During COVID-19

Depression is real. It sucks. It’s overwhelming. It’s unpredictable. I can at least recognize it in myself, but that doesn’t make it better or make it disappear. It doesn’t help me play more with my kids, or cook better meals. It doesn’t help me get more exercise, especially with an extra 10,000 people crowding my normal trails.

Depression on a normal pre-COVID day was awful, but now the social supports, structure outside of the home, my professional work, and short breaks from my kids aren’t possible. I wish I had some answers on how to get through this, but I’m doing the best I can and I know you are too. The things that usually bring me out of a rough day? Usually a good in-person rant session with a mom friend while our kids fight over something neither of them really wants to play with. Since that option isn’t possible, I’ve been focused on other ways of coping. If you’re struggling too, maybe one or two of these will be useful for you.

1)Exercise in nature. It feels good to move, especially outside in nature. Because there is so much to look at and take in, I’m less likely to focus fears of “certain death from COVID-19” (which is often otherwise echoing in my head). Being outside is great for me, and the kids too.

2) Crossing things off the list. I try to keep a running list of things to do. Something about knowing my daily accomplishments brings peace and joy. Also, if I don’t have a list, I tend to wonder around my house and yard and can’t focus on anything. My kids then follow suit and we all drive each other bonkers. Having a list, no matter how small, gives us direction and clarity in our days.

3) Baking. I know I know. Everyone is baking bread and other things these days but honestly it works. Seeing a delicious accomplishment come out of the oven is wonderful and so easy to show your partner (See?!? Look what I did today!!) Also- don’t look at your scale. The “COVID-19” (similar to the Freshman-15) is real. I’m ignoring it in exchange for the mental health benefits.

4) FaceTime calls. Sometimes just seeing a friend’s face and hearing their voice is needed. Texting works too, but with this long term social distance thing, I’ve had to revert to real phone calls. While it felt hard at first, once I got back into it, the impact has been worth it.

5) Putting my phone away. Turns out, there isn’t anything critical right now. I’m not missing a meeting or work commitment. My jobs are gone for the moment, and worst-case scenario is I miss a call from a friend. When I have my phone in hand, I tend to be checking my e-mail or FB over and over again and let me tell you.. there’s not much happening with either. Putting it away can help me re-focus and forces me to better engage with the small humans in front of me.

What are you doing to help keep the anxiety and depression at bay during these hard times?