What Can Help Depression On Bad Days?

For people with depression, some days may feel more difficult than others. Hopelessness, exhaustion, and difficulty finding enthusiasm may occur. With these feelings and a lack of motivation, finding coping mechanisms that work can be difficult. However, you’re not alone, and there are ways to support yourself and receive guidance during the most challenging and complex periods of depression.

Tips for when you’re depressed and having bad days

Below are several suggestions for coping mechanisms you can try on a day with symptoms of depression. If you need to modify the techniques to make them easier for you, personalize them in a way that makes sense for your day or situation. These skills are for you, so you don’t have to try to be “perfect” or complete them all. 

Stimulate your senses

Research has shown that stimulating your senses may improve mood and reduce symptoms of depression. Below are a few ways to focus on each of your five senses to improve your mood. 

Sight 

Light can be used to improve mood and overall well-being. If you’re at home and there is sun outside, open your drapes and sit by the window. If you feel up to it, go outside and feel the sun or air on your skin. Try a sun lamp on days with inclement weather or when you can’t muster the energy to go outdoors. Studies have found that sun lamps can reduce symptoms of seasonal affective disorder, including depression.

Smell

Stimulating your sense of smell may help you enhance your mood and fight symptoms of depression. If you can go outside, note the smells of fresh-cut grass, fragrant flowers, breeze, or soft rain. Smells activate the limbic system in your brain, and you can benefit from tapping into positive memories and emotions. You can boost your limbic system by spraying uplifting fragrances into the air, turning on a fragrant candle warmer, or filling your kitchen with aromas as you cook your favorite dishes.

If you're struggling to get out of bed on a bad day, try having a candle nearby or a wax warmer to turn on when you don’t want to get a match. You can also try cuddling with your pet and smelling the warm and clean scent of their fur to support your mental health. 

Sound 

Hearing pleasant sounds may support a positive mood by releasing a neurochemical called dopamine. Dopamine impacts mood, memory, motivation, and attention. On days when you’re depressed, put on your favorite music, listen to an audiobook, or call a friend on the phone. Your brain may also respond positively when you open a window and pay attention to the sound of the birds, the wind, the rain, or children playing outside.

Touch

Moving around and touching tactile objects may help your body release “feel-good hormones” known as endorphins. Pay attention to your positive feelings as a result of touch or movement. When you take a warm shower, lather up and bask in the feelings of warmth and cleanliness. Pour yourself a hot cup of coffee, tea, or cocoa, and be mindful of the warm liquid enveloping your mouth. On bad days or when you don’t have the energy for these things, you can surround yourself with softness by wearing comfortable pajamas, a cozy robe, and fluffy slippers. Wrap yourself in a soft, velvety throw and cuddle up on the couch with a loved one or your pet.

Taste 

Rather than quickly eating, try to savor your food at mealtimes. You can learn more about the effect that food has on your brain or pay attention to how different foods seem to impact your mood. Certain foods like healthy carbohydrates, salmon, eggs, nuts, and seeds may boost the serotonin levels in your brain. Serotonin can reduce depression symptoms, allow you to manage anxiety better, and produce healthy sleeping patterns. 

Keep a consistent daily routine even on bad days

People with depression may have difficulty completing daily habits like showering, brushing their teeth, cleaning, and changing into fresh clothes. However, having a consistent hygiene routine may help you feel more in control. It may help to try to establish these routines on “good days” to potentially make it easier to keep them up on bad days. For example, try to create a routine of showering every morning and putting on clean clothes, even if you’re not leaving. If that feels too difficult, you could clean your body with a wet washcloth or wash your face while you build up to it. 

Combat depression with comfort in bed

On difficult days, some people with depression may struggle to get out of bed. If it’s possible to do so, try to allow yourself to stay in bed while practicing self-care. Keep lower-effort positive coping tools nearby, like a journal, a stuffed animal, or a candle that you can easily get. You can also keep comforting or funny books near your bed that you can grab to cheer you up. 

If you have a pet, you might consider inviting your pet into bed with you. According to a 2021 survey, 87% of pet owners reported mental health improvements from pet ownership. Additionally, research has found that pets can reduce loneliness boost mood, and improve symptoms of mental health conditions.  

Eat a balanced diet and try to plan ahead

Nutrition keeps your body’s systems running optimally. However, when experiencing a depressive episode or symptoms of any mental illness, it can be common to experience changes in appetite and eating habits. 

Some people with depression may lose their appetite and struggle to eat regular meals. Conversely, some may have intense cravings and eat more than usual to cope. When you’re depressed, you might not have the energy to figure out what to eat or to cook a balanced meal, so it can feel easier not to eat or to overeat fast food. 

One way to try to eat well is to plan ahead when you’re feeling better to make it easier for yourself on the more challenging days. For example, you can keep water bottles in your refrigerator to grab one quickly. You can batch-cook some of your favorite meals and freeze them for those bad days when you’re too exhausted to cook. 

When planning for the future, you can heat the food and enjoy a relaxing meal with minimal effort. You might also consider buying finger foods as snacks and TV dinners you can quickly heat in the microwave if you’re not ready to cook. Eating some food can be healthier than eating none, so try to have options available. Some people create snack carts with healthy snacks they can pick out during the day. You can put a snack cart close to your bed and add sticky note reminders for easy recipes for your daily meals. 

Seek help 

While the above tips may be beneficial, keep in mind that you don’t have to manage depression on your own. Help is available, and depression is a treatable mental illness. Standard treatment options for depression include medication, therapy, or a combination. Some therapy options include attending local support groups or speaking with a mental health professional. If you’re considering therapy but don’t feel up to commuting to an office, you might try online therapy. 

Online therapy can be convenient, as you can meet with a licensed mental health professional without leaving your house. Through a platform like BetterHelp, you can match with a specialist in depression and meet with them over the phone, via video chat, or chat messaging. If you’re experiencing a day when you’re struggling to get out of bed, you can meet with your therapist in bed and your pajamas, which can take away the pressure of getting dressed to see a counselor. 

Research has also demonstrated that online therapy can effectively treat and reduce symptoms of depression. One study examined the effectiveness of a digital cognitive behavior therapy program for depression and anxiety, and the researchers concluded that “digital interventions can support sustained and clinically meaningful improvements in depression and anxiety.”