Overcoming Depression’s Grip on Daily Tasks: Further Resources
How many times have you asked yourself, “why can’t he remember to pick up the kids” or “how can she stand her house being so messy” or even “is he even paying attention when I talk to him?” Well, did you know that depression can affect more than just someone’s mood? Depression can affect how a person thinks, remembers, and organizes their life around them. Depression may impact executive functioning. If your loved one is struggling to overcome depression’s grip on daily tasks, we have some recommendations for you.
Depression’s Grip on Daily Tasks
The first step to helping your loved one overcome depression’s grip on daily tasks is to educate yourself. Families for Depression Awareness offers several tools to teach caregivers about the cognitive symptoms of depression. We have a series of fact sheets that cover the ROAM symptoms of depression (reasoning, organization, attention, memory), action steps, and tips for interacting with providers. We also recorded a webinar with Dr. Alice Medalia that covers how depression affects thinking.
Cereal for Dinner
Cereal for Dinner is a fantastic resource. Although it was created for people with depression by people with depression, family caregivers can also benefit from access their advice. The creators of Cereal for Dinner aimed to help people navigate life with depression by offering practical suggestions on topics such as hygiene, body movement, nutrition, and sleep. For example, your loved one is experiencing a depressive episode and they are too drained to do any vigorous exercise. The Cereal for Dinner website has links to instructional videos on exercises that can be done in a chair or lying down.
Further Resources
- Read Kathy and Dean’s story about Kathy’s depression symptoms.
- Watch our interview with Cereal for Dinner’s founder, Emily Derecktor.
- Listen to Don’s story of how depression affected his attention span.
- Watch our More Than Mood: Depression Symptoms webinar.
- Visit the Cereal for Dinner website for practical advice and ideas.