We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. – Joseph Campbell
Wouldn’t it be great if life could smoothly move on after a breakup? But, unfortunately, it’s not that easy to get over someone you shared almost every front of your life with.
But does that mean that a breakup should leave you completely sunk into depression?
Definitely no!
Here’s a complete guide on what you need to know about post-breakup depression. Then, read through to know how you can overcome this mental health disorder after a breakup.
Common Reasons for Breakups
There’re many reasons that cause separation in couples, but here are the common ones:
• Cheating
• Difficulties in managing conflicts
• Disconnection
• Jealousy/controlling partner
• Family differences
• Bad sex
• Financial issues
No matter what your reason for the breakup is, you would not want a depressive effect to bar you from moving on.
How To Tell That You’re Depressed After A Breakup?
The mental anguish after a breakup can be mild or severe. In parallel, some people may have negative feelings or depression for a short time, while for others, it may be long-lived.
Some of the short-lived symptoms of depression are grief, loss of self-esteem, sadness and loneliness. Typically, these feelings are expected when you’re in any stressful situation in your life, so they’re usually not a cause for alarm. But, even if the divorce were by a mutual agreement, they would still come about.
The severe and more worrying indicators of post-breakup depression include:
• Changes in appetite
• Extreme weight loss/ weight gain
• Loss of feelings and interests
• Loss of sleep or sleeping too much
• Excess fatigue and loss of energy
These are certain symptoms that you need to watch as they could mean a complete disruption of your everyday life.
How To Overcome Depression After Breakup?
Mild symptoms of post-breakup depression can be handled at a personal level following these simple tips:
• Surround yourself with people you can open up to-Whether it’s friends or family, find someone you trust and share your feelings. You’ll find the process soothing, and the thoughts’ burden lessened.
• Exercise and sleep optimally- Exercise will revamp your energy and keep you in the right mood. By exercise, I mean even a 30-minutes’ walk a day when the sun is up and refreshing. Similarly, quality, consistent sleep will leave you refreshed throughout the day, and it’ll be effortless for you to cope with the situation.
• Focus on the reason why the breakup happened- Instead of always asking yourself if the separation was the right decision to make, stay focused on the material reasons why the relationship could not continue- have no regrets whatsoever.
• Erase everything on social media that reminds you of your ex- Checking up on your ex, or the uploads you made online will only hurt your feelings more. Delete everything to save your feelings for the process of getting back on your feet.
• Pursue a new hobby- If you engage yourself in a new activity different from what you usually did when you were with your partner, you’ll feel better, faster.
Additional tip
Write about what you’re feeling about the breakup experience- this is a research-backed strategy that can help you overcome depression after breakup.
With these simple coping tips, along with giving yourself some good healing time, the breakup thoughts will be far off your vicinity without even you know. Eventually, you’ll get better, and your life will start rolling as usual.
For severe depression, the best thing you can do is visit your doctor. Counselling is the standard first treatment approach for depression. The doctor will do their best to alleviate all the negative thoughts that you may have, in addition to helping you gain your normal frame of mind.
If counselling as a standalone intervention isn’t working for you, the doctor may prescribe anti-depressants to aid in the healing process.
Good news: Severe depression always stems from mild depression, so if you’re able to handle the latter at a personal level, you’ll seamlessly transition to your next stage in life after a breakup.
Trust me. You got this.
There’re few things in life like a breakup that can really hit hard on your emotions. Yes, it’ll also feel like your world is falling apart, but if you give yourself some time and leverage the easy coping tips discussed in this post, you’ll definitely overcome the depressive effect of the divorce.
A divorce is not a life sentence, and life is what you make it. So, accept and work on the situation, and you’ll realize the better things life has in store for you!
