So i still have depression and im constantly bored, i feel like a loser who cant do anything right. I want to let my creativeness out, make something i can share with the world or family, but im probably dreaming too big. I cant stand being depressed and bored, it stinks, everyone tells me to work out but i lack the motivation to do so.
i usually just watch youtube all day while complaining to family members that have no idea what to do about me.
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You have lots of good answers posted but here is the trickâŚYou have to START.
You donât need to sign up at the gym today and build a schedule to work out. Thatâs way too much commitment. Instead just go outside.
Thatâs it. Just put down the phone and go outside. Spend 5 or 10 mins out there. You didnât run a marathon, but youâve done something today. Maybe later today you can go outside again. Tomorrow so the same thing. Put the phone down and go outside for a short time.
You gotta start somewhere, so make it easy and start small. Eventually youâll spend more time outside and less time doing nothing. Maybe you see cool plants and start getting into gardening. Maybe you find that walking isnât so bad and you find a park with a nice trail and work into jogging? Maybe the kid down the street wrecks his minibike in front of your house while youâre outside and you stop to help and think the tiny motorcycle is cool and get inspired to start riding.
tldr- Donât just pick someone elseâs hobby. Put down the phone and go experience life outside your home. The hobby will likely find you when you start paying attention instead of distracting yourself.
When I felt severe depression, I struggled so much with feeling good about what I did. I thought it had to be significant to be worthy of enjoying.
It took me a very long time to start celebrating any tiny thing that I did. Sometimes it was doing something frivolous and feeling good about it for its own sake. Sometimes it was doing some productive and feeling good about achievement. They had one thing in common: I gave myself permission to feel satisfied with even tiny steps.
First and foremost I want to second anyone who brought up cooking. Learning to cook a meal perfectly to your tasted is both accomplishing and sharable.
For the geekier stuff, I have taken up Gundam model kits in the last year. You can start off with simply building them straight from the box. There are also a ton of ways to customize them such as repainting, adding decals, create âweatheringâ effects and âkit bashingâ (mixing models together to make your own new model). It has been a very nice outlet whenever I want to be crafty.
Iâm going to need you to elaborate on the Gundam model kits. Sounds cool as hell. Any good resources for getting started? Any recommended kits for beginners? Is it an expensive hobby?
There are lots of guides on YouTube but this should suffice.
Costs are sort of just down to how into it you want to get. Kits range from $10-$300. I usually build ones in the $30-$80 range. You can get lots of fancy tools but really, just get a decent pair of sidecutters and a hobby knife (exacto or other brand) and maybe a sanding stick. I actually started with a nail polishing block that you can get at any store that has nailpolish.
Kit wise, really just start with a HG (High Grade) or EG (Entry Grade) that looks cool to you. If you find you enjoy the process more than the end product you can get into RG (real grade) or MG (Master Grade). All but MG are a 1/144 scale while MG is 1/100 scale. MG and RG are much more intricate.
As a last word of caution, the earlier RGs were not designed very well, each kit has a number, currently their are ~40 of them with the last 10 or so just being tiny MGs. The earlier ones can be great but need a bit more love to get right.
My personal favorite kit I have built is the RG Hi-Nu Gundam
Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/Idm7mt98enM
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
Iâm open-source, check me out at GitHub.
I second Gunpla, itâs incredibly mindful to just crank some tunes and clip runners, sand nubs, and slowly watch something come together that seemed impossible from flat plastic. Then you see the articulation and and even more blown away by the engineering of it all.
Knitting, crocheting, embroidery, cross stitch, etc. The work is meditative, and you get in a groove waiting to see what the next row or stitches will look like. Producing an object feels productive, and gives a feeling of accomplishment.
Choose bright colors and fun patterns, and itâs a lot of fun. There are patterns for all interests, so donât think this is the realm of only little old ladies. ( ͥ° ÍĘ ÍĄÂ°)
There are also a lot of kits that include most of what youâll need (especially for cross stitch). It can be a really convenient way to start and most kits come with really good instructions on how to cross stitch too.
Making food, either baking or cooking. They focus you on the here and now and you eat well to boot.
A hobby that has helped me a lot is knitting. Itâs simple to learn and itâs another truly mindful thing to do for you.
I second cooking!
Yes! I struggle to motivate myself to stick with hobbies. I love photography, making art, writing - but often the motivation is just lacking. But cooking? Iâm biologically motivated to cook (most days) so itâs easy to keep up with. All I have to do is save recipes and plan ahead just a little
All these nerds are saying shit that absolutely isnât fun if youâre depressed.
Start skateboarding. Itâs like self harm but you look sick as hell doing it. And once youâve spent a few hours on the board and are comfortable, you can just skate places and itâs fun. Skate to the store or McDonaldâs.
Itâs crazy social and everyone else who skates is friendly and wants to help you learn too if you ever go to a park.
To add to this, if youâre not too coordinated and are struggling with the smaller skateboard and doing tricks⌠try longboarding! Itâs like skating, but without the stigma of being capable of doing tricks.
Plus theyâre INFINITELY more comfortable to cruise around on. They even made drop through decks that are designed for long distance cruising
Bonus points for getting into downhill longboarding. Just make sure youâre ready for it/have the proper gear.
Above age 25 itâs more like assisted suicide rather than self harm lol.
Photography.
You can set up a little studio area in your house and start with still life pictures. Search for Danish Still Life Paintings for some ideas - Iâm sure thereâs plenty of YouTube rabbit holes for more ideas. Or, just take up painting!
Photography is also a great excuse to get out of the house and walk around. Whether itâs street photography or landscape or close up nature photography, thereâs always something to take pictures of. Give yourself little assignments - just circles today, just signs, just shadows, etc.
Either way, this is a creative outlet that you can share with others as you progress and get better. Who knows, you might start printing your images and have a gallery showing at a cafe!
Hiking. It costs nothing and you can create your own meaning from it. You can do the same trail over and over and know the place intimately, or you can make it a goal to do as many as possible and keep track of them all with souvenirs or art or whatever you want. The benchmark for success is what you define. And itâs got a bonus of being good for your body.
Iâd also suggest traditional music, but maybe keep it simple and cheap⌠ukulele, didgeridoo, or tin whistle. Itâs a low bar for entry and itâs inherently social, all about jamming and being inclusive. Didgeridoo is more solitary, if thatâs what you prefer. These instruments have almost no ongoing costs and are great for learning the basics of music.
Instruments arr both humbling and also affirming. You can make noticeable progress and, again, define your own success. All my best friendships came through playing music. Itâs an endless source of joy for me. I generally tend toward depression but music keeps The Big Sad at bay
Iâve only known the hike âas many different trails as possibleâ method but am intrigued by the âmake one trail your ownâ method.
I do both. I do lots normal public trails, but theres also a secret spot that Iâve found and been back like 40 times over 10 years. I feel like i know every tree, rock, and stump, but each time, I find something new and interesting. Its a 1sq km area of granite, forest, and stream. So peaceful. Its about 1km off an overgrown, uninteresting logging track, nobody ever goes there but me. In fact Im going back again on sunday, hoping to photograph some rock dragons.
Go exploring. On whatever mode of transportation you prefer, in whatever area you like. Set small goals for each trip (this is important to keep you from just wandering completely aimlessly). Maybe try to find a new restaurant of a cuisine youâve never tried. Maybe find a street or alleyway youâve never visited and see whatâs there. Maybe go find the biggest tree in the park. Basically just go see whatâs out there.
If you struggle coming up with your own fun goals, try geocaching instead.
I used to ride my bike a lot when I was young to the point where it became my automatic thing to do whenever I was feeling stressed/anxious/depressed. The adventures I went on, while also being outside in nature and in the sun (or moonlight) would always pick me right back up.
I only realized this recently as Iâve had a huge urge to buy a bike again but didnât know exactly why.
Adding to all of the other comments, I have to add to the music suggestions: You DO NOT even have to learn an instrument. Learn how to make electronic music (you donât have to make techno or other such electronic electronic music. Just lay down a drum track and add a little sound here and another there. YouTube is full of tutorials for full blown DAWâs/workstations and the simplest apps. Get Koala Sampler or some other app for your phone or better yet, tablet.
Even simpler, try an app called Keylimba, the default sound is a soothing thumb piano/marimba, and for just a couple euros/bucks you can get a range of instruments, but the marimba is very well enough for a long ass time. With it you can just have the thing loop whatever base you put in and just, pluck a sound here and there. Iâm a half-pro musician and I still often find myself just relaxing with it. Making a simple chord structure and just chilljamming away. Music isnât hard and difficult, people/society just approaches it in a really backwards way. Anyone can do music. Sequencers and loopers are such an underrated tool for learning and creativity. You donât have to mind any theory at all, just do what feels good.
I also have to add - meditation. Get a calm album or find one on YouTube that has music you enjoy, or even look up a guided meditation on YouTube, thereâs tons. Meditation is great if you can find even a moment to focus/unfocus on it.
Learning how to DJ is another good way to get into the world of music. The first time you get two songs to smoothly blend together feels like magic.
Then when the time comes to buy turntables, learning to scratch is even more rewarding. But donât go spending any money just yet. Start off with a free copy of Virtual DJ, and learn the basics with a mouse and keyboard. The hardware comes later when you decide that youâd actually like to pursue this hobby. At that point youâll have to decide if you want to go with Seraro, Traktor, or Rekordbox. They all have their niche uses depending on what kind of DJ you want to be. But start off with VDJ first.
Yep, in my highschool/college depression days, making YouTube videos on music production helped me keep my head up.
Frisbee golf. Itâs cheap, fun but challenging, and outdoors. Worst case scenario, you go on a long walk and bump into some interesting people. If youâre in a medium sized city or larger, there is probably a course and league near you.
The culture is generally very polite and fun to be around. Lots of harmless stoners and 30yo bearded people with beers in hand. In the south there is starting to be some influence from megachurches using it as an enticement, so Iâm not sure if itâs âcleaned upâ a little more down there.
Very solid answer. Just make sure to watch a couple YouTube videos tutorials on how to throw correctly so you can quickly make.progress toward being good enough such that you donât just lose your discs every time you throw them. Itâs a lot more fun when that annoyance is less frequent.
Depressed people make the best bread.
Sourdough is great because your starter is like a very low maintenance pet that you can periodically eat parts of. I named mine Phil Colonies
Oh yeah, this is a great one. People love receiving a loaf of bread as a gift and itâs really gratifying to see
I made bread in Lockdown 1. I may have to pick it back up again, just to give my mates some.
Model railwayâŚ
Build your own buildingsâŚ
This one, i made myself. https://japix.schuerz.at/p/jakob/402735537014407232
Did not know before, that i can do this⌠đ
Made me really happy and proud.
The details look great!
Thank you! :)
Nice job, those look really good.
thanks :)
Working out. Either biking, walking, lifting weights, doing martial arts, etc. It doesnât matter. In some of my lowest points if my life I started working out and it helped. It didnât fix it but it really helped my mood improve. It also raises your self-esteem. I did a couple of years of BJJ and it really made me feel better about myself. Now I go to the gym and lift weights. Looking better and seeing the weights I can lift become heavier do a lot of me.
Music. Pick up a guitar. Thomann sells really cheap guitars that are great for beginners. Learn some songs you love and play along with them. Just look up tabs online and go from there. Eventually, youâll realize that you can use the instrument as a constructive channel to your emotions.
Both (or even most) suggestions youâre going to hear about this topic take discipline. There is a reason for that. These things are rewarding proportional to the effort you put in. Seeing yourself improve at whatever you choose ultimately will only happen when you make the time and put in the effort. Do not be discouraged. The first few weeks are always hard but you can build good habits in a short time.
Taking care of pets might help with your mood and help you meet other people as well.
Going on random long walks.