Also, telling a depressed person their answer is to exercise is like telling a homeless person that they just need to get a job. The not having a home prevents the getting a job. If they had the ability to find a job, they wouldn't be homeless (except obviously the people who don't make enough from their job to support themselves, but that's a whole different issue that shouldn't exist).

So even if someone does have the time, getting the depression under control may be necessary before the exercise seems like a reasonable possibility.

Exercise can help a lot depending on the source of the depression. My walking fast for an hour a day only helped a little (don't worry, I'm better now).

As someone who struggles with chronic illness and depression, I believe you're right.

I'm not a psychologist, but I've spent a lot of time with them learning about depression and how to live with it. It's all about incremental change. When I realize I'm slipping back into a depressive funk, I have to figure out what I did to dig this hole and start addressing that to get myself out. It's a matter of days or weeks. I'm not special. If I was special, I wouldn't get depressed. I just found what works for me through trial and error.

On the flip side, I have a friend who has been mired in depression for years now. He doesn't try to change his behavior. He has an inconsistent sleep schedule, rarely goes outside his house, eats poorly, doesn't exercise, plays video games 12+ hours most days, and, what I'd say is most important of all, won't see a therapist to deal with his current and early childhood issues. He seems to think that playing more video games, sleeping more, and avoiding any and all unpleasantness will make him better.

I've run into a few people like this and they seem to reflexively write off helpful advice for incremental change. You suggest something like starting out with a 5 minute walk, once a day, just to establish a healthy habit. The response? "A five minute walk isn't going to cure my depression". No shit, no one suggested it would. It's just a start to managing it.

Yeah the thing that is so hard is that none of the individual actions feel successful. But overtime they pay off. You have to build a guest house for happiness and keep it clean. So the next time he shows up, maybe he'll stay awhile.

As someone who spends 10+hr a day working outside I can assure you that being outside and doing physical activity does very little to aid my depression.

mhm... and what if you just had a kid and moved away from helping family to a country which thinks that paid medical leave or reasonable parental leave are luxuries not worth having? have you ever tried to get more than 3h of sleep in a row while taking care of a newborn? good luck going for a run after that! if it also happens to be a winter you may need to wait until spring for that sunlight too. good that we at least have parental groups to socialize... unless you are stay at home dad that is, cause trying to talk about restarting your career after the break might not sit well in a group that mostly connects on how their childbirth went...

If you're prone to spiraling into negative thoughts when left along to think, listen to music or something. Without it I found that immediately during and after exercise I felt worse which outweighed any benefit.

One of my coworkers has been doing daily hikes with a friend who moved across the country. Every morning one will shoot the other a text when they get up, then call when they start their walk. It's both a good way to stay close with a good friend but also helps both maintain a healthy habit

Yeah doomscrolling is single worst thing you can do to yourself online

Unsubscribe from any doomer themed stuff, now. Watch your mental health recovers in real time over next few days.

And I mean any. Boring dystopias, politics, all this horseshit that brings zero value into life

Also take showers when you feel like it, not when it's appropriate. Well, at least put some water on your face and make your feet wet, if shower is not an option.

(At least that helps me personally.)

The "less sugar" advice is good.

The physical exhaustion advice is good.

But frankly all this seems connected to that cluster of autism\depression\ADHD or something. Getting more dopamine, reducing prolactin, reducing bodily disregulation, something like that.

Aww chitch 😭

Also, exercise has been shown to help with mild to moderate depression symptoms. It is not a cure as some would make you believe. But it certainly does help, and help quite a bit it can.

Can they really be beneficial? Sure.

Are they actually a magic wand against genuine mental illness? No.

Hey look, it worked!

What worked for me was starting out slow, but making sure being consistent was my priority. I forced myself to go on short walks at least 3x a week and stuck to it. It kind of grew on its own from there.