4 Supportive Self Care Activities for Depression and Anxiety Symptoms

Give yourself some love and attention and help reduce stress that can lead to anxiety and depression.

Supportive Self Care Activities You Can Do Almost Anywhere:

4 coping skills for anxiety and depression symptoms.

Practicing these in times of wellness can help to use these on “autopilot” when you are feeling distressed.  Some may not work for you, and that’s ok.  What are some things you can do to comfort yourself, or that you enjoy doing when you are feeling well?  Which of these can you do when you are feeling distressed to help you feel safe and supported?

1. Adjusted Daily Routine

It’s ok to sleep more and say no to social functions when your symptoms are elevated. Just do the basics like if you had the flu (shower, eat as able, brush teeth, etc). 

Why it works

Depression symptoms are your body’s and mind’s way of saying “slow down!”  When you have an illness such as the flu, your immune system kicks in.  You may see symptoms such as fever, headache, cough, congestion, fatigue, etc.  Your body needs extra rest when you have a physical illness (like the flu) so that your immune system can do its job.  When you have symptoms of depression or anxiety, your nervous system is sending signals that you need to listen to.  Ruminating thoughts, all-or-nothing thinking, self-doubt, feeling alone, hopelessness, upset stomach, headache, body aches, etc. are all signals (among others) that are letting you know that your body and mind need rest so that your nervous system can help you feel better. (Just like your immune system helps you feel better from the flu).  When we give our nervous system a chance to help us feel better, we build resilience and our emotional and stress tolerance levels increase. So give yourself permission to “take a sick day” or as many mental health days as you need to care for yourself like you would if you had the flu.

2. Repetitions of Intention

Set an intention for how you want to feel/be and repeat it mentally for 5, 30, or 60 seconds. Ex: “calm calm calm” etc or “breathe” or “peace”.

Why it works

The “voice in your head” or negative self-talk can feel really natural, correct, and automatic, but nobody starts out with this “automatic” self-talk.  This voice/talk comes in from our repeated experiences, many external voices from our past and present, and our own insecurities from past negative experiences.  It is there because we have internalized it, and one great way to practice changing it is to override it with repetitions of intention, or what you would prefer/like/hope to hear.  Choosing a word that you want to feel or focus on overpowers the recording in your mind, and can promote mental and physical wellness.  Neuroscientists have discovered that “neurons that fire together, wire together”.  So neural pathways in our brain are strengthened each time we think or do something in repetition.  The other half of this is that when we do not think/do something regularly, those neural pathways are “pruned” much like tree branches are pruned in a “use it or lose it” way..  Basically this means “what we think, is true”.  Read that again: “what we THINK, is (becomes) true”.  As Shakespeare said in Hamlet “nothing is either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”  So our thoughts are strengthened each time we think them, and our thoughts are weakened each time we do not think them.

3. Create and Use a Comfort Kit

Make your comfort kit with any or all of the following items:

a) something that is soothing to your skin and senses (soft clothing, lavender lotion, heat pad, cooling gel pack for eyes, feather, etc)

b) something that reminds you of someone you trust/love (picture or souvenir or memento of shared happy experience)

c) something that makes you feel pleasure or indulgent (fancy chocolate, favorite junk food, lotto scratch card, fancy meal, etc)

d) something that shows your resilience/accomplishment (biz card, proud piece of work, certificate, etc)

e) a container (something to hold your worry, fear, thoughts, problem, etc until you want to look at it again— a jar, a box, a closet, etc)

Why it works

It is natural to seek comfort when feeling distressed. Sometimes the comfort we reach for can make us feel worse when we are feeling stressed, or may cause us to ignore important signals from our bodies that are telling us to take better care of ourselves or deal with a traumatic experience we have had.  If you turn to harmful substances or activities during times of pain, you may extend the time of your pain and healing.  If instead, you create a comfort kit for when you are under stress or feeling any anxiety or depression, or other challenging symptoms you can actually reduce the harm you are experiencing and also be taking active steps to let your brain and body heal.  Comfort kits can fit in a pocket or a closet.  Maybe you have some in strategic places like a first aid kit.  One for the car, home, work, and when you are on the go.  Take a moment to create a comfort kit today.

4. Acute Awareness of Experience-grounding exercise

Take a shower or eat a meal or look at something with all of your attention and awareness. Focus on all five senses as you engage in the activity. 

To do this well you want to think about how to incorporate each of your senses the experience.  For example, if you choose the shower activity you might start by noticing the feel of the towel as you set it aside for after.  You might notice the feel of the heat or cold of the water on your body.  You may notice the smell of your soap or shampoo.  You might open your mouth and drink some of the water, noticing the taste and tough of it as it goes into your system.  You might notice the sound of the water as it falls.You might take in all of what you see as if you are experiencing it for the first time.  Notice every detail and use your internal dialogue or voice to state what you see.  “I see the water falling on my body.  I see my tub, the shampoo, soap, the color of the walls and tub, the ceiling and that spider web with a spider inside.”  Whatever you may see.  By taking the time to really experience all 5 of your senses in a routine activity, you create curiosity and wonder which are both create tools to introduce a state of calm to your nervous system and reduce any stress or tension you may be feeling.

Why it works

Whether you are doing a quick 5 senses activity to calm yourself in a stressful  moment, or you are needing a larger reset and wanting to use this acute awareness activity where you fully engage all of your senses in the present moment, you will find that this can be a powerful tool for calming any anxiety or stress you may be experiencing.  If you are feeling disconnected in your mind or environment, it can help draw you back into the present moment with a pleasant experience that helps to soothe your senses and calm your mind.

Give one or all of these a try and let me know if they work for you!

Let me know if you have other ideas about what works well to decrease anxiety and depression symptoms.