If you’ve ever fallen through a dark abyss of depression or experienced severe anxiety disorder, you know how difficult it can be to come out of it. It may require a combination of medicine, counseling, self-help tricks, and letting go of any negative influences. When you begin having a few good days here and there, you may wonder if it is “for real” this time. Will the depression come back? How do you know you’re doing better? While there’s no one right way to answer whether your mental health is improving, there are some signs to look out for. Here are the top 5.
1. You Begin Having Fun Again
When you are trapped in depression or anxiety, there are either really bad days or functional days. You begin associating the functional days with good days when really, you are just doing “o.k.” You probably aren’t enjoying life or finding joy in the little things. When your mental health begins to improve, you will notice yourself having more fun. You will be more in the present moment and less in your head. You will laugh more, want to get out more, and enjoy spending time with loved ones.
2. You Feel Genuinely Grateful
When we are depressed or anxious, our lives always seem lacking. The negative stands out more, and nothing ever feels good enough. When the darkness begins to lift, you will start seeing more and more things from a “glass-half-full perspective.” The negative will feel more tolerable and less frightening, and the positive will mean much more to you.
3. You Aren’t as Angry
It’s normal to feel angry when we are anxious and depressed. We also have less serotonin and feel-good chemicals making their way through our brains. This makes it easier to lash out at others or become unusually short-tempered when provoked. When you begin to feel better, you’ll be able to let go of past and current resentments. It’s not that the wrongs committed go away, it’s that you have less anger when thinking about them. Because you are happier, you are less irritable. It’s that simple.
4. You Want to Help People Again
It’s impossible to give to others when you are pouring from an empty cup. Anxiety or depression forces us to give out of guilt, or isolate ourselves from those who we know want something from us. Either way, we have little to give to others because we are too focused on the pain that we feel. When you come out of that fog, you will find yourself giving to others when you want to, rather than when you feel you should. The rewards of doing so are far superior, and you know you are helping others for the right reasons.
5. You Have Fewer Panic Attacks and Depressive Episodes
If you have lived with anxiety and depression for a long time, you feel used to it. You forget that most people don’t live with a gnawing fear in their gut or a dark cloud of sadness over them all of the time. Panic attacks and depressive episodes will never go away entirely, nor should they. Rather, they should only occur for the right reasons. When you only feel anxiety or depression because of a specific circumstance, you will know you are improving. Everyone in the world feels these feelings at times, but nobody should feel that way all of the time.
Do you suffer from anxiety, depression, or guilt? If so, please contact Straight Talk Counseling at 714-828-2000 or visit our website at straighttalkcounseling.org. One of our professional counselors would be happy to speak with you.
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