6 Subtle Things Awaiting You on the Brighter Side of Depression

From Surviving to Subtle Shifts: A gentle guide to what’s waiting when the darkness lifts

Have you ever wondered what quietly awaits on the other side of depression?

Not in a dramatic, overnight way, but in the small, soul-soothing shifts that return when you begin to heal.

Today’s Well-Being Wednesday Collaboration for Mental Health Awareness Month, we dive into subtle but powerful shifts for you to rekindle inspiration and presence.

Two voices: one rooted in behavioural science, the other in lived experience—meet here to offer grounded, gentle guidance through the fog of depression.

By the end of this piece, you’ll be reminded of your strength, more connected to your healing path, and supported by tools you can use.

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Collab Well-Being Wednesday:

Depression deep dive: Mental health awareness month special

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6 subtle things awaiting you on the brighter side of depression

This week's Well-Being Wednesday is close to the heart and deeply collaborative.

Two voices. Two stories.

One shared intention: to help you reconnect from the disconnect.

From science-backed insights to soulful reflections on nature, connection, and creativity, we explore the tender truths that await beyond the heavy fog of depression.

This post is FREE for one week in honour of Mental Health Awareness Month.

What’s one gentle shift or practice that helped you move through a tough mental space? Let’s open the dialogue. I’d love to hear from you in the comments.

Today’s spotlight is

Jane Xu, PhD, MPH, MS

:

I am a behavioural scientist working on well-being improvement for decades.

This includes helping people in distress or other negative states. With a Master's in Physiology and in Public Health, and a PhD in Behavioural Sciences, I have a good understanding of the physiological, psychological, and social aspects of both positive and negative emotions, including depression.

It is an honour to have the chance (Thanks to Ms. Grossmann’s invitation) to connect with the community here!

I hope to help a bit in bridging depression toward “the bright side”, by firstly introducing some research-backed positive tools in this collaborative article.

• Developing an Optimistic Explanatory Style (or to put it more mildly and easier to do (same as below): adjusting explanatory style)

• Practising self-love (or: giving yourself some tender loving care)

• Identifying internal strengths (or: Knowing you are stronger than you might have thought).

(All three are rooted in positive psychology theories and research, with evidence-based tools)

Adjust your way of explaining things, if warranted.

Research showed that, in depression, we tend to explain things happening to us in a more pessimistic way.

We tend to blame ourselves for bad things, seeing them as more permanent and pervasive than they are. We tend to attribute good things to reasons other than ourselves and see them as temporary and limited in scope.

It is not hard to see how such explanations can sadden us more, whether things are going badly or well!

A brighter note is that this tendency is not fixed to us.

We can consciously make adjustments to it.

Research has provided us with practical ways to do that. Here is a simple way to start:

We first want to identify whether we are explaining things in this style:

If we are, we may want to examine carefully whether each explanation is objective (our depressed mood may bias our objectivity!) Once we catch that the explanation is not true, or not entirely true, or we could see it more positively, we adjust it accordingly.

That would be a good start, and you may begin to see things in a brighter light!

In the long run, it is worth cultivating an Optimistic Explanatory Style, which has a proven power to fight depression. We specifically have guidance and support for that here.

Give yourself some tender loving care.

In depression, everything seems so tiresome! And we might not even have the energy to deal with things we urgently have to do….

In such difficulty, we might put some things on the back burner. We tend to particularly neglect taking care of ourselves.

It is of utmost importance that we take good care of ourselves, that is, to exercise self-love, which involves self-acceptance, self-compassion, self-worth, and self-care.

We want to give ourselves plenty of self-acceptance and self-compassion, and remind ourselves that our self-worth does not go away just because we feel down now.

Don’t beat ourselves up over, say, not getting everything in order the way we would like to. It is okay. We are humans.

Humans have down times or even rock-bottom times.

Let’s accept that with tenderness to ourselves. It is going to be better when, after some self-care, we gather energy to do things better.

Be compassionate like you would to a dear friend, but this time, to yourself!

We deserve just the same compassion toward ourselves as we would give to our friends in the same situation.

So whenever you feel bad about yourself, think of a dear friend and how you would treat him or her in the same situation. Be the dearest friend to yourself!

Then take some actions to make yourself feel cared for, even just something small to start, like a warm bath, or a spa service, or something else you want to indulge yourself a bit with.

Know that you are stronger than you might feel now.

Do you know that each of us is born with a set of internal strengths that’s unique to us? They are called our “Signature Strengths”, according to extensive research on human strengths. See this post for detailed descriptions.

Having depression does not change your Signature Strengths, just like having a layer of glue coating your finger does not change your fingerprint.

It may mask it, making it perhaps invisible to you for now, and you may forget about how strong you are. But your strengths are there, maybe buried down deep.

Uncovering those strengths, or rediscovering them, will help you get back to being your true self!

To “scientifically” identify your Signature Strengths and learn to use them to the best, we have professional services here for that.

But here is a simple way to start: Recall those times in the past when you felt strong, energetic, and full of life…. Then you might have hints about what your Signature Strengths are and how you have used them.

Yes, using your Signature Strengths naturally makes you feel alive and energetic!

So find out yours and be strong again!

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It was in these fields that I felt the most depressed in my life.

Fast forward 5 years, and I feel the most connected in my life (even after a breakup two months ago, I am rekindling MY dreams and desires because I know: life is working FOR me).

Here is the beginning of my Mental Health journey. I opened up about this month so YOU can heal yourself as I did, too. Not just medication and therapy, but real inner work: that is how you heal.

Now, for today, my three simple but subtle ways I healed from depression and psychosis:

Nature

“Nature is always readily available for us to gain peace and clarity. How? Look

at a tree, smell a flower, feel the power.” - Chill Out and Cheer Up: A Ten-Step Guide

I know how depression feels. I have been there. It is heavy to carry, and sleep seems like the best answer on most days.

Why do we have to face life? Let’s just sleep it off.

But guess what? Nature is there for you. Nature works like magic for our minds, bodies, and souls.

As my Mind-Body-Soul Healing Series this month lays out, depression is a disconnect, as many mental health issues are. To find the root cause of this disconnect, reconnect with Mother Nature.

I am sure that one of the big reasons we are suffering from a mental health crisis and loneliness worldwide is due to…

The disconnect from our Mother Nature.

We dont need to go out daily to find our food, forage and work with nature together. We have become the epitome of laziness. I am grateful for all we have at our fingertips, but it is too much.

What do we have to work for that we consume ourselves these days? Think about it.

We are not robots or human doings, but human BEINGS.

This means we must reconnect to our roots: outside.

I see the effect it has on children in kindergarten.

We will be inside. The noise goes up, tension rises, but then we go outside into the forest or nature: the children are at home.

I really feel this too. When I am out in nature, I feel safe, seen, and relaxed.

Luckily, back then, during my mental clinic stay, a forest was not far away.

The clinic was nestled within a part of the black forest.

I found myself again in these beautiful big trees. There is no judgment, just appreciation.

Trees are the longest living organisms in our world, so we can learn a lot from them.

Oh, and go hug a tree: it works a treat. You feel held, and all your stresses are released.

Connection

“We are wired in a way where connecting is compulsory for our development, determination and drive.” - Chill Out and Cheer Up: A Ten-Step Guide

I keep banging on about this, but it is what saved me: the connection with myself and with others again.

We are SOCIAL beings, so we are not meant to be alone all day and all night.

Sure, when I was depressed, I felt more disconnected being around others, but the key is to surround yourself with people who care and are there.

There can be a big disconnect with people who dont understand you, and it can make you feel worse, I get it.

Hence why we have access to Substack too: what a beautiful community where you can find someone who understands you, I promise.

That is the power of the internet we want to use to our advantage: real, true, deep connection.

We all crave deep connection, there is no doubt about it.

Just many people think they don’t know “how” or with “who”.

Reach out to me - I have a community for people on their healing journey who are here for intentional slow living to take daily steps towards attainable goals and gratitude as our foundation.

You DO know how to connect. You WILL when you find the right people that make you feel safe, seen and heard.

Start slow, follow your flow.

Don’t force anything, and pleeeeeeeeeeeeease don’t force relationships or friendships that make you feel more depressed:

Some people aren’t meant to go with you on your journey, some must be left behind.

Creativity

“Be intuitive. Take the initiative. Be intentional. You do you, then the rest will follow like a dog obediently scurrying along after its owner because loving yourself attracts others.” -

Chill out and cheer up: A Ten-Step Guide

We all have a creative soul, I am sure of it.

We are all born with it, but lose it when younger, and the education system tears our creativity away and replaces it with the need for perfectionism and judging ourselves.

I saved myself through psychosis and depression with CREATIVITY, more specifically: writing.

I have always honed my ability to write, hence why I studied Journalism 10 years ago.

With my Bachelors, I didn’t want to land in a Journalist role and be sucked in by the full-time job of workign and writing for others.

I wanted to hone my writing to help others.

So I did. I wrote my first self-help book at 21 after my best friend passed away in honour of him and to help others find their light to shine bright.

Have you ever heard that depression comes from a lack of expression?

When I heard that, everything made more sense.

I took baby steps again to writing in the mornings in the clinic (back then on Medium in 2020), and it helped me a ton.

Afterwards, I took a 3.5-year break from writing online, as that platform also had a tint of toxicity towards me and my why… but yes, now I am back, and you can read why it helped to take a break too.

Write poems, letters, and articles.

Paint a picture or design something. Use your creative soul that is there for you to tap into and make you feel whole!

Pro-tip: When depressed, you judge yourself way more, so please, just create with no “goal” but to just create from your soul.

Reconnect to stop your disconnect.

With gratitude

Grace

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