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Description
This is the fifth part of my project "The Robots' Guide to Winter Depression" - an illustrated guide on how to get through the dark winter months and handle seasonal affective disorder. If you happen to speak Swedish, you'll find the original, more in-depth, guide on my instagram: www.instagram.com/joensoderhol…

Tip number 5 - Try to do something you enjoy every day
Depression can be a monotonous thing and winter can be a monotonous season. That combination can drain you and you might feel like nothing in life can ever be different. At least not in a positive way. One way to break that monotony and feel more hopeful is to try to do something you enjoy every day. Something that makes you smile, even if just a little.

If you are feeling depressed or low on energy, that might sound overwhelming or impossible. But don't feel any pressure with this (or, well, try not to...). It doesn't have to be anything big. Sure, you might enjoy planning a huge Christmas party or something. But you can also just enjoy a good cup of coffee while listening to Simon & Garfunkel. You can try to spot fun shapes in the clouds. Maybe you can text or call a friend? Or watch a youtube clip from an old movie that you loved as a kid.

Getting past anhedonia
Do you feel like there's nothing at all you enjoy anymore? That might be a sign of something called anhedonia, the inability to feel pleasure. Anhedonia is a common sign of depression and you may need to seek professional help in that case (I am not a professional, just to be clear). Until then, one way to handle this feeling is to do things that you remember that you used to enjoy. It's difficult at first, but gradually you can start to rediscover the joy you used to feel with these things.

You can also write down these enjoyable things you do every day. Create a log that you can look back on. Maybe that log itself can make you smile. Even if just a little. Good luck!

Do leave a comment if you want to share some particular thing that you find enjoyable!

Here are the rest of the entries in this series: www.deviantart.com/joenso/gall…

Description
This is the fifth part of my project "The Robots' Guide to Winter Depression" - an illustrated guide on how to get through the dark winter months and handle seasonal affective disorder. If you happen to speak Swedish, you'll find the original, more in-depth, guide on my instagram: www.instagram.com/joensoderhol…

Tip number 5 - Try to do something you enjoy every day
Depression can be a monotonous thing and winter can be a monotonous season. That combination can drain you and you might feel like nothing in life can ever be different. At least not in a positive way. One way to break that monotony and feel more hopeful is to try to do something you enjoy every day. Something that makes you smile, even if just a little.

If you are feeling depressed or low on energy, that might sound overwhelming or impossible. But don't feel any pressure with this (or, well, try not to...). It doesn't have to be anything big. Sure, you might enjoy planning a huge Christmas party or something. But you can also just enjoy a good cup of coffee while listening to Simon & Garfunkel. You can try to spot fun shapes in the clouds. Maybe you can text or call a friend? Or watch a youtube clip from an old movie that you loved as a kid.

Getting past anhedonia
Do you feel like there's nothing at all you enjoy anymore? That might be a sign of something called anhedonia, the inability to feel pleasure. Anhedonia is a common sign of depression and you may need to seek professional help in that case (I am not a professional, just to be clear). Until then, one way to handle this feeling is to do things that you remember that you used to enjoy. It's difficult at first, but gradually you can start to rediscover the joy you used to feel with these things.

You can also write down these enjoyable things you do every day. Create a log that you can look back on. Maybe that log itself can make you smile. Even if just a little. Good luck!

Do leave a comment if you want to share some particular thing that you find enjoyable!

Here are the rest of the entries in this series: www.deviantart.com/joenso/gall…