How to Stay Positive When Depressed: 14 Simple Steps

Depression isn’t just feeling sad; it alters your perception of reality, making the future feel bleak and hope seem unreachable.

So when people want to stay positive when depressed, there is often a quiet desperation beneath the question. A wish not to “be cheerful,” but to feel some sense of lightness, agency, or relief again. I get that.

At the well, we want to be very clear about something from the start. Depression is not a mindset problem. It is not a personal failure. And positivity is not something you can simply force yourself into.

Depression itself distorts perception. It tells you that nothing will change, that you are stuck, and that hope is naïve or unavailable. Understanding this matters, because it allows us to relate to our thoughts with a little more distance and compassion.

This guide does not promise quick fixes. Instead, it offers gentle, evidence-informed practices, grounded reflection, and lived experience - including insights from my own journey with depression and burnout - to support the conditions in which positivity can slowly return.

Rather than asking how to stay positive when depressed, a more honest question might be: How do we create small moments of agency, warmth, and connection when depression tells us none are possible?

Understanding Depression and Positivity

Clinically, depression involves persistent low mood or loss of interest in life, and it affects your thoughts, motivations, energy levels, sleep patterns, and sense of hope.

It’s also crucial to say that depression doesn’t mean personal failure. Often, depression distorts perception; it makes things look unchangingly negative, even when that’s not an accurate reflection of reality. This distortion can make strategies like “thinking positive” feel unattainable or even frustrating. Understanding this distortion can create a bit of mental space - a tiny window where change becomes feasible.

Most respected mental health organisations emphasise that positivity alone isn’t a treatment, but integrating supportive practices alongside professional help and evidence-based strategies is essential to recovery.

1. Find Professional Help

If you’re experiencing depression, one of the most important steps you can take is to seek professional support. This isn’t because you are incapable of helping yourself, but because depression is complex, multi-layered, and deeply influenced by biology, psychology, and your environment.

When people ask how to stay positive when depressed, they often underestimate the weight of what they are carrying. Depression is not simply “feeling down.” It affects sleep, appetite, energy, cognition, motivation, and the nervous system itself.

Working with a qualified professional, such as a GP, therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist, can help you understand what you are experiencing and explore the best treatment options for your specific needs and constraints. This might include talk therapy, somatic therapy, medication, lifestyle changes, or a combination of approaches.

It’s important to name something clearly and without shame. There are moments when depression cannot be navigated alone, no matter how resilient or reflective you are.

Encouraging professional help is not passing responsibility elsewhere; it is recognising when specialised care is needed.

Professional support can also help contextualise your experience. Depression often convinces people that their thoughts are facts - that their hopelessness reflects reality. A trained practitioner can properly and gently challenge this without invalidating your pain.

If you are unsure where to start:

• Speak to your GP or primary care doctor as a first step

• Look for therapists who specialise in depression or burnout

• Explore low-cost or community mental health services if access is a concern
  

Seeking help does not mean you have failed to stay positive. It means you are taking your experience and your mental health seriously.

And sometimes, that alone is already a deeply hopeful act.

If you’re ever in immediate distress, please access crisis resources in your area - for example, in the U.S., call or text 988 for urgent support.

Important Note: I am not a medical professional and I am not providing medical advice.

2. Challenge Negative Thoughts

One of the hardest parts of depression is how convincing its thoughts can be. The mind becomes an echo chamber of self-criticism, hopelessness, and certainty that nothing will improve.

When looking for how to stay positive when depressed, many people encounter advice that feels dismissive. “Just think positively” can sound like an instruction to ignore your lived reality.

Challenging negative thoughts is not about replacing them with cheerful slogans. It is about learning to see thoughts as mental events, not absolute truths.

Depression narrows perception and tells a very specific story: that the future is closed, that you are powerless, and that effort is pointless.

But recognising this pattern can create a small yet meaningful gap. Instead of asking, “Is this thought positive?” you might ask, “Is this thought shaped by depression?”

And this subtle shift matters. It moves you from believing every thought to observing them with a little more space and distance.

Some gentle ways to work with negative thoughts include:

• Naming them: “This feels like depression talking.”

• Softening absolutes: replacing “always” or “never” with “right now.”

• Practising neutrality instead of positivity.
  

For example:

• “I will never feel better” becomes “I feel stuck in this moment.”

• “There’s no point trying” becomes “Trying feels exhausting today.”
  

Understanding that depression distorts perception can help you stop blaming yourself for what you see and feel.

To be clear, this is not about denying your reality. It is about recognising that what feels permanent now may actually not be permanent at all.

And that recognition, even faintly, can be a doorway back to hope.

3. Focus on Gratitude

Practising gratitude doesn’t mean ignoring pain; it means acknowledging what’s still good in your life, even if it’s small. Research shows that gratitude is linked with improved mood, lower stress, and higher life satisfaction.

But I understand that gratitude can be a difficult topic when you are depressed. It is often framed in ways that feel dismissive, as if appreciation should cancel out pain.

At the well, we approach gratitude differently. Not as a demand to feel thankful, but as an invitation to gently notice what still exists alongside difficulty.

It is about creating brief moments where attention rests somewhere less painful.

This might look very small:

• The warmth of a mug full of hot tea in your hands

• A moment of quiet

• A familiar song

• The presence of an animal or a gentle breeze
  

Even in bleak periods, there is often something left to love (even when it doesn’t feel like it). That something may not fix anything, but it can soften the edges of despair.

If this is feeling overwhelming, gratitude practice does not need to be daily or formal. In fact, rigidity can make it feel like another task you are failing at.

Instead, try asking:

• “Was there a moment today that didn’t hurt as much?”

• “Was there something that gave me even 1% relief?”
  

Over time, these small questions and reminders gently train the nervous system to recognise safety, warmth, or beauty - even briefly.

Over time, these moments accumulate. Not into happiness, necessarily, but into a sense that life is not only pain. And that is often enough to keep going.

4. Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness is often misunderstood as “clearing the mind” or achieving calm. But for someone experiencing depression, that expectation can feel frustrating or impossible - trust me on this, I’ve been there.

At its core, mindfulness is about presence without judgement. It is about noticing what is happening in the body, the breath, the moment - without trying to change it.

When exploring how to stay positive when depressed, mindfulness offers something subtle but powerful. It gives the mind a rest from constant rumination, a common occurrence with depression: the same worries, regrets, and fears loop again and again, often without resolution.

Mindfulness does not stop these thoughts from arising, but it changes your relationship to them (for the better).

Instead of being inside the thought, you notice that a thought is happening. And that distinction matters.

Simple mindfulness practices might include:

• Noticing your breath for 60 seconds

• Feeling your feet on the ground

• Listening to the sounds around you

• Observing sensations without analysing them
  

When I experienced depression a couple of years ago, returning to the body - through movement, art, and breath - allowed my mind the time it needed to rest.

Mindful, embodied awareness brings attention back down into the present, into sensation and presence. It is about creating brief pauses in the mental noise.

And in those pauses, something else becomes possible. Not forced positivity, but a little space.

Sometimes, space is enough.

5. Set Realistic Goals

Depression changes how effort feels. You may be feeling like tasks that once felt manageable suddenly feel insurmountable.

You’re not alone. People in your shoes often compare themselves to who they used to be. This comparison can quietly deepen shame and self-criticism.

Setting realistic goals means meeting yourself where you are, not where you think you should be. It is an act of compassion, not resignation.

It’s important to note that setting a realistic goal during depression shouldn’t feel like forcing yourself to perform or be productive. It should feel doable with enough time.

This might mean:

• Getting out of bed

• Drinking a glass of water

• Opening a window

• Responding to a text message

• Taking a shower
  

These actions may seem insignificant, but they matter. They remind the nervous system that movement and progress is still possible.

Remembering you have agency is a key part of healing. Depression tells you that you have none.

But small, achievable goals gently contradict that story. They show you that you can still act, even in tiny ways.

It can help to think in terms of “minimum viable effort.” What is the smallest version of this task that feels possible today?

Setting goals that are too ambitious often leads to discouragement. Meeting small goals, however, can quietly rebuild trust in yourself.

Positivity grows from experiencing yourself as capable again, not by putting overwhelming pressure on yourself.

And capability begins with showing yourself kindness.

If you are longing for gentle, embodied ways to reconnect with yourself - without pressure or expectation - check out our art-based practices designed to support creativity, connection, and well-being at your own pace.

6. Plan Activities That Bring Joy

Depression often removes the feeling of joy, even from activities that once brought pleasure. This can make the idea of “doing enjoyable things” feel pointless or exhausting.

Yet when exploring how to stay positive when depressed, gently reintroducing joy is important. Not as a requirement to feel better, but as an experiment.

Sometimes it shows up as neutrality, softness, or brief relief.

In my own journey, creative practices were not about producing something beautiful or impressive.

They were about process. About moving from “nothing” to “something.”

Art, music, movement, and play reintroduced a sense of agency. They reminded me: I can still create.

This matters because depression often tells you that you are powerless. That’s why creative activities are so important. They remind you that you still have agency.

Joy-supportive activities might include:

• Drawing or working with clay

• Dancing without choreography

• Listening to music and letting the body respond

• Reading fantasy or fiction

• Playing games with children or animals

• Singing your favourite song

• Playing a board game with friends

• Baking a new flavour of cookie
  

These activities do not deny how hard things are in your life. They coexist with difficulty.

Here at the well, we see creativity as nourishment, not achievement. It is a way of filling your own well, even when energy is low.

Joy does not need to be loud. Sometimes it whispers, and that can be enough.

7. Break Down Overwhelming Tasks

Overwhelm is a common companion to depression. Tasks blur together, and everything feels equally urgent and impossible.

It can quietly sabotage hope. Because if everything feels like too much, positivity feels irrelevant.

Breaking tasks down into smaller, more manageable components is a practical and self-compassionate strategy. It reduces cognitive load and makes action feel more accessible.

Instead of asking, “How do I do all of this?”, ask yourself “What is the next smallest step?”

For example:

• Instead of “clean the house,” try “clear one surface.”

• Instead of “reply to everyone,” try “reply to one text message.”
  

This approach respects the reality of depression and it does not assume unlimited energy, motivation, or capacity.

Each small action you can take towards what you want to achieve is a reminder that you can still influence your environment. And that you can tap into positive energy and action.

Over time, these small steps accumulate. Not into perfection, but into momentum.

Breaking tasks down also reduces self-judgement. You are no longer failing at a large goal; you are completing a small one.

Positivity often follows action, not the other way around. And action becomes possible when it is made gentle and reasonable.

8. Recite Positive Affirmations Every Morning

Affirmations can feel awkward or artificial, especially during depression. If they are too far removed from your lived experience, they may feel invalidating.

When used thoughtfully, however, affirmations are not about forcing belief. They are about offering alternative narratives.

When exploring how to stay positive when depressed, affirmations work best when they are realistic and compassionate.

Instead of:

• “I am happy and confident”
  

Try:

• “I am allowed to take this one day at a time.”

• “My feelings are valid.”

• “I am doing the best I can with what I have.”
  

These statements do not deny pain. They soften the inner voice that often becomes harsh during depression.

Repeating affirmations in the morning every day can gently shape how you meet the day. Not with optimism, but with permission you’ve given yourself.

9. Surround Yourself With Positive People

Depression can be isolating. It often convinces people that they are a burden or that others would not understand.

To feel more positive even though depression, social connection is a crucial part of the answer. Not because it fixes everything, but because it reminds you that you are not alone. This makes a huge difference.

Positive people are not those who insist on cheerfulness. They are those who listen without judgement.

This might include:

• A trusted friend

• A close family member

• A therapist

• A supportive community
  

Based on my depression journey, I know that shared experiences reduce shame. Being seen by others in your humanity matters.

And connection does not need to be constant. Even occasional moments of understanding can make a difference.

Positivity is hard to cultivate in isolation.

10. Reduce Negative Media Consumption

The world is heavy. As a changeworker for several years now, I know how much the news can affect people. News cycles, social media, and constant updates can intensify feelings of despair and hopelessness, which are the exact opposite of what your surroundings should be.

Reducing media consumption is not promoting ignorance. It is about protecting your nervous system.

When exploring how to stay positive when depressed, boundaries matter. Your capacity is not infinite. You can’t pour from an empty well. And negative media can act as holes in your well, siphoning out previous energy and attention.

This might look like:

• Limiting news intake to specific times of the week

• Muting certain social media accounts

• Choosing online content that soothes rather than agitates, like good news recaps
  

Of course, it’s important to not gaslight yourself about the state of the world. It’s true that things are difficult.

At the same time, constant exposure to distressing information can deepen hopelessness. So, balance is key. For everyone.

You are allowed to unplug and rest from the world. Especially when feeling depressed.

11. Practice Grace & Self-Compassion

Self-judgement is often one of depression’s sharpest edges. People blame themselves for struggling, for not coping “better” or “getting over it”. You may be experiencing this.

But self-compassion is not indulgence. It is a necessary condition for healing.

When exploring how to stay positive when depressed, self-compassion shifts the question entirely. It moves from “What’s wrong with me?” to “What do I need right now?”

Recognising how depression shapes perception allows for gentler self-relation.

Giving yourself grace means:

• Letting go of unrealistic expectations

• Allowing rest without guilt

• Speaking to yourself with kindness
  

You are not behind. You are human.

And you deserve care.

12. Try Somatic Exercises to Release Negativity

You may not know this, but depression lives in the body as much as in the mind. Tension, heaviness, numbness, and fatigue are physical experiences.

Somatic practices (aka intentional movement) are scientifically shown to release stored stress, anxiety, and tension. They offer an alternative route to positivity - through the body rather than through thought.

My own experiences with creative movement, dance, pottery, and music therapy illustrates this beautifully. These practices were not about performance.

They were about presence.

Somatic exercises might include:

• Five minutes of shaking out your arms and legs

• Jumping up and down

• Progressive muscle relaxation

Even though they might feel silly in the moment, these practices have been shown to release pent up negative emotion. With less negative emotion, you can open up space for positivity.

13. Talk to People You Trust

I know that speaking about depression can feel vulnerable. But silence hurts you more in the long run.

Talking to someone you trust does not require solution-finding. It only requires kindness and presence.

Sharing your experience can:

• Reduce shame

• Strengthen connection

• Offer perspective
  

You do not need to explain everything perfectly. Being honest is enough.

Positivity means allowing the people who care about you to show up for you when it matters most. Of course, not everyone has trusted people they feel comfortable talking with.

In that case, I recommend sharing honestly and openly with a licensed mental health therapist.

14. Take Care of Your Basic Needs

Basic needs are foundational for every human being. When they are unmet or unsatisfied, emotional and mental health worsens.

Depression often disrupts sleep, appetite, and movement. But supporting these areas can stabilise your mood over time. And it reminds you that you’re worth taking care of. You deserve to be shown kindness and care.

This does not mean strict routines or discipline. And by no means am I encouraging you to apply pressure on yourself - that would backfire.

I encourage you to start small, with what feels doable today.

Simple support might include:

• Sleep: Stick to a routine where possible. Sleep regulates mood and energy.

• Nutrition: Balanced meals fuel your brain, making emotional regulation easier.

• Movement: Even gentle activity like a 30-minute walk releases endorphins and improves mood.

• Socialisation: Connecting with others reduces feelings of isolation and loneliness.
  
  

Of course, these practices do not cure depression. But they create conditions where healing becomes more possible and more achievable.

I recommend prioritising your basic needs before trying to take care of other, less important tasks. If all you can do is cook a warming, healthy meal for yourself, that’s the best place to start.

When you’re ready, you are warmly invited to explore our self-paced, supportive workshops and creative spaces. These are judgement-free places to rest, replenish, and gently fill your well again.

“Staying positive when depressed” isn’t about denying reality or insisting life feels brighter than it does. It’s about cultivating a sense of resilience, agency, and space for possibility in a state where those things feel absent.

Depression is complex, and recovery is rarely linear.

Positivity - in this context - means:

• seeing some good in your life

• acknowledging that feelings are temporary

• building habits that support your health

• being compassionate towards yourself in the process
  

There truly is always something left to love, even if it feels buried under pain and exhaustion. And importantly, you don’t have to walk this path alone.

If you’re struggling, please seek support from a qualified professional alongside these practices.

If you are searching for how to stay positive when depressed, please remember this: positivity is not something you owe anyone.

It is something that slowly returns when you are supported, understood, and cared for.

There is always something left to love. Sometimes it is small. Sometimes it is quiet.

But it is there.

And you are not alone.

Hi there, so lovely that you're here! Looking forward to connecting with you. - Nora