[holmberd]

- Go to bed early and develop a regular sleep pattern, and don't fool yourself with the myth about being a "night person", you are not a cat, you have just offset your sleep/wake cycle from lacking proper routine.

- Exercise regularly. Aerobic exercise(whatever that means for you) that you can maintain without develop injury or over-training will be your baseline. Endorphin is what you are after, since it provides a boost of immune system, better sleep, less anxiety and increased overall health.

- Be outside in the sun everyday, take a walk or sit and read a book.

- Cut out any consumption of large amount of drugs: alcohol, sugar, nicotine...

- Talk to someone about your worries and sprinkle some Zen in your life.

- Help someone else for no personal gain, but don't let it consume all your time.

- Understand that all things are transient, nothing is static, and trying to be eternally happy is impossible and the quest for such a thing will make you unhappy.

[tom_mellior]

If you can motivate yourself to do most of these things, then what you have is not depression. It's a bout of sadness. Yes, you'll get over it.

Depression is not just a sad spell. Depression is a medical condition. Seek medical help.

(But yes, all of the things above are good things to do in any case, for anybody.)

[holmberd]

I agree seek professional help if you can. There could also be physiological reasons that triggers an episode of depression, especially lack of B12, iron or D-vitamin.

Developing good routine is not an easy thing for people that are deep inside a negative spiral, but it will help limit the episodes. Good routine is like a spell, it reestablishes your commitment to each day and provides you with energy. This is the same whether you have depression or a bout of sadness.

[systemtest]

As a person with DSPS, I don't agree with your first statement. Some people are night persons and can't help it.

[judaro13]

If you have depression you need a regular sleep cycle or the depression will be worst

[eljimmy]

People with DSPD can't have "regular" sleep cycles, it's thought to be a genetic disorder where their cycle is offset a few hours from a regular sleep cycle.

Couple that with society's 9-5 work schedule, you're in for a rough time unless you can find an employer who will accommodate.

[no_identd]

People with DSPD DO have a regular sleep cycle. Its off, however. You mixed up DSPD with Non-24.

[gain_sky]

0.17% of the population have DSPS.

[no_identd]

Prevalence 3.1% in middle aged adults, that's 31 in 1000. Data from 2005, Source: American Academy of Sleep Medicine. International Classification of Sleep Disorders, Revised: Diagnostic and Coding Manual. 2nd ed. Westchester, IL: AASM; 2005.

Prevalence 7% to 16% in teenagers and young adults, that's 7 in 100 to 4 in 25. Data from 2002, Source: Ando K, Kripke DF, Ancoli-Israel S. Delayed and advanced sleep phase symptoms. Isr J Psychiatry Relat Sci. 2002; 39(1): 11–18.

Please always provide citations and indicate whether you refer to incidence or prevalence; and to which bin you refer to, even if you refer to some global bin.

I'd provide newer & more data, but I'm on mobile right now.

[Raphmedia]

So, roughly one person out of 600? That's a lot. Especially online, you probably interact with such people a lot more often that you think.

[gain_sky]

I know how often I interact with such people precisely: 0.17% of the people I interact with have this, whether online or in real life.

[cweagans]

> 0.17% of the people I interact with have this, whether online or in real life.

I know it's pedantic, but that's not true. 0.17% of people have DSPS. It's entirely possible that you don't regularly interact with anyone that has DSPS.

[Raphmedia]

You responded statistics at a person claiming to have the syndrome. It looked as if you were suggesting that they don't have it because 0.17% is relatively low.

My point is that 0.17% is a sizable portion of the population. Your chances to encounter someone who has it are most likely higher in a thread such as this one. People click on articles they identify with. The same thing would happen if you went to a conference on the topic. I mean, there are signs of comorbidity between DSPD and depression.

[holmberd]

I generalized for the most common case, since there will always be special cases. But the tone of my statement could have been more understanding.