Find a hobby! According to Bill Malone in 70 Ways to Beat 70, “hobbies are a great distraction from the worries and troubles that plague daily living.”
As we age, the daily stresses we face become more and more difficult to deal with. Sometimes stress can get so out of control that it manifests itself into depression. Many adults develop unhealthy coping strategies to deal with stress, anxiety and depression, such as drinking alcohol, binge-eating and smoking cigarettes.
Hobbies are a great, healthy way to drown out the wallowing weight of depression and anxiety. When you’re doing something that you enjoy, endorphins are released in your brain, relieving stress and balancing out serotonin. Hobbies can also be a great emotional outlet. We all get tense, worried, confused and as we age, the emotional rollercoaster get’s even crazier. Hobbies are about self-discovery and self-awareness.
In addition to eating the right foods, getting plenty of exercise and using stress reduction techniques, it would be wise to get your hormone levels checked if the depression has lasted for more than two weeks or if you’re experiencing other symptoms associated with hormone imbalance such as fatigue, weight gain, low libido, mood swings and foggy thinking.