STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Alegria · Kate Spade

Need Ideas

Mandy · Kate Spade

Maybe do some cheap craft projects, it'll give you something to do and help decorate the house. With the holidays coming up there are lots of DIY wreaths and things you could make. I know its hard to get motivated, but exercise is supposed to help with depression too. Maybe if you start small and just take a walk or something.

sydney · Kate Spade

I agree with the exercise thing - get out and take a walk right when you get home. It doesn't have to be strenous/high commitment, maybe only half hour to start and you can walk as fast or slow as you feel like that day - it will let you clear your head and think and it does help you to generally feel better. After all, you can start to feel like you NEED to take walks. If you feel up to it, you can turn it into a longer walk or start to jog.

Collette · Chanel

Do you enjoy writing at all? I know when I'm depressed journaling really helps me out. I know you've had a rough year maybe writing in the third person could help. Like it's someone else's story. Sometime it helps to look at it from another perspective.
Or write little stories for your kids and read them to them. Maybe you write and ask them to draw picure to go with the story. Make them the character in the book, it can be silly fantasy or write about the day they were born and how happy they made you. It's a good way to remind them of how much you love them and they can keep them! It's costs zero but the pay out could be pretty big.

AllieGurl · Marc Jacobs

Alegria , I am sorry to hear how depressed you are :( Here are some free ideas that will help involve your kids -

How about taking your kids to a playground or park and playing with them? ( not sure there ages ... so you could modify this if there older to go play basketball or soccer with them) This can help burn calories and get your outside which will help you feel more energized.

Reading is a great stress reliever for me too, maybe make a trip to the library (gets you out of the house again) browse the books and then come home. Anything that helps keep your mind and body active is great for you!

a few of our employees swear by painting to help raise there spirits. Even if you have no skill at all , this is still an inexpensive way to involve your kids and help you engage your mind.

hth!

cahabo · Kate Spade

My girls and I enjoy coloring together and watching short video clips of animals and babies on You Tube. "Talking" cats and laughing babies always crack us up even if one of us isn't in a good mood.

Suasoria · Chanel

I've gone through periods of un/underemployment and I agree that it's hard to structure your time when you have too much of it on your hands. I found it helpful to carve out times of the day for certain tasks - like a walk when you get home like Sydney said, then a snack with the kids or homework time at 3:30, then a half hour of straightening up the house, then some quiet reading or finishing the crossword puzzle, then starting dinner at 5, and so on.

If you like to cook, that can be a productive use of time, maybe try browsing recipe sites and getting the kids involved, or getting everyone into healthy foods.

Another worthwhile project is gardening, which can be done indoors even in the winter. You can plant lettuces and herbs from seed in a bright window. This is also an education for the kids.

Yoga or meditation can also be therapeutic. You may want to see if the library has yoga DVDs to check out, or try a guided meditation - if you type "guided meditation podcast" into google you'll find interesting stuff.

The public library also has movies on DVD. You could invent a theme for the week, like foreign films, documentaries, 1950s Oscar winners, Halle Berry movies, etc.

I have two friends who really like jigsaw puzzles, and we can sit around for hours barely speaking to each other working on one, yet it's extremely fun and relaxing at the same time. It's like the brain goes into a different mode.

halleybird · Hermes

Do you have any pets? Spending time with animals is great for people with anxiety/depression.

I agree with the exercise thing too. Also, if you are able to and are not already, please seek therapy and/or medication for your depression. It has made a world of difference for me & those in my family.