1. DANCE. As often as I can, as much as I can, wherever. Even if I do not feel like it, I find a good dance song and commit to dancing it till the end. By the time the song ends, I am laughing, heart rate is up and I seem to have less grumpiness in my heart. Try this song if you are lost for one
3. HERBS. Passion Flower. Holy Basil. Kava Kava Root. In the appropriate doses these herbs have helped me in giving me a slight boost in "Love of Life" feelings. My favorites are Pascoe Flaire or Happy Camper Pills. Do some research, try some out and find a relationship with the plant medicines. It is so much safer then pharmaceuticals and so much cheaper.
5. HOT WATER. Have a shower or a bath. Get clean. Use some nice soaps or oils to smell clean. Fake it till you make it. If you feel clean and ready for this world on the outside, then you might start to feel the same on the inside.
6. MOVE. Just move, do whatever you can to move. Walk, run, jump, yoga, jump rope, whatever you can to get your body moving.
7. BE IN THE MOMENT. You might feel like shit right now, but it will pass. I often say that being depressed is like trying to walk in knee high mud. It is a lot of work to take a step forward. I assure you that if you keep moving, if you keep trying to take the next step, soon the mud will become shallow and you will reach dry land. When you do reach dry land you will be stronger and more stable then anyone around having built up your muscles walking through the tough mud. Just keep on keepin on.
8. LISTS. Take a pen and paper and start to write down everything you are grateful for in your life. Start simple with gratitude for your bed, your house, your coffee, your jeans... whatever it is, no matter how little. Push that list as far as you can. Write everything you can down that you do like, even a little bit. See how many you can get.
9. TREATS. Treat yourself to something wonderful, simple and accessable. Not something cheap. If you love chocolate, go get the best chocolate you can afford and find. If you love music, buy a new album. This is not to be done lightly. It is essential that you pick the best of the best. A small piece of the best (fill in you favorites here) is far more powerful then the cheap easy to get one at the corner store. If you are going to treat yourself, treat yourself right!
10. FUCK IT ALL. I have quit many times in life. I am OK with that. The only condition of quitting something is that I have to do something else. If I quit my job I still have to pay bills, so I get another job. When I am depressed I do not make major life decisions. I tend to stick to simple quitting. Putting down stresses is a must in life. You can let it go, whatever it is, even for a few minutes. I quit being a husband or a father or a worker or a human many times. I pick it back up after a few minutes but it is nice to take a break for a bit. Let it go, just for a bit.
Be kind to yourself. You are so not alone in this. Most of us are struggling with our inner pains. It is a normal reaction to this world. You are fine, everything is fine, you are safe. Just be easy on yourself. Loving yourself is a tall task, the best you can do is to work on not expecting too much from yourself and accepting that you might need some self love/ self mothering from time to time.