Mental Health Without Medication

Matthew Feroz

HST 401 - A

Professor Horgan

2/28/2024

Mental Health Without Medication

The topic of mental health is something that always makes me cringe when I write about it. It’s such a deeply personal topic, so nuanced, and definitely out of my league when finding a general solution to the millions plagued by depression, anxiety, and any other debilitating mental disorders. I also have loved ones I have lost to these disorders. These memories are painful to bring up and I am certain that countless others feel the same. 

Thus, how do we as a society fight this crisis of declining mental health? It can’t be possible that there is no way to beat mental disorders, specifically depression. I will go over some scientifically proven methods of improving one’s state of depression and weigh the benefits with the amount of effort required. 

Before you laugh about the premise of the statement above, I acknowledge I am privileged. I understand that some scenarios feel impossible to overcome due to societal burdens and the general tragedy of the world around us. I will do my best to be respectful and keep these methods reasonable.

Exercise is one of the ways that I keep myself in check in so many ways other than just mental health. It is not only one of the most cost-effective ways of improving your mental health, but it is also scientifically proven that aerobic exercises of any kind reduce both anxiety and depression (Sharma). Move in any way you possibly can. It doesn’t have to be intense. It doesn’t even have to feel like you’re doing exercise. You can pace around your room while looking at your phone. You can help around the house doing chores. If you can do anything that will get your body physically moving, you will bolster your mood and overall physical health as well (Sharma). If you can’t physically exercise, there are ways to move while bed or chair-bound to increase blood flow to your limbs. If you have someone you know who is feeling down, try doing some activity that gets them moving in some way. 

Pursuing hobbies that involve creating and not consuming content is another method of battling depression that can be beneficial. Studies have proven that having a hobby is associated with fewer depressive symptoms (Mak). Further, countries with higher hobby engagement also find greater life expectancies. My personal experience has been as long as I am creating something that I am proud of, the hobby is worthwhile. 

This leads me to my favorite alternative, creative work. Being creative helps me free myself from feeling overwhelmed especially when I feel depression mounting up. I feel like some people have misconceptions when it comes to hobbies though, not all hobbies are the same. Video games are a good example of this. Some make you think a lot creatively and make your brain put things together and keep you focused, but many games are predatory as they can overtake someone’s life with microtransactions or a sense of false belonging. You don’t produce anything with video games either, so it doesn’t fit the original definition that I set in place earlier. So if you are going to try a hobby, try something new and walk away with something when you’re done with it, that way you can always look back and remember those good times.

This paper is meant to inspire those who feel like they can’t help themselves without the aid of antidepressants or feel like there are not any actionable items to improve their quality of life. There is always a way to solve a problem, one must take action. Even typing this it sounds harsh but I think it needs to be said. The pharmaceutical industry is a predatory market and the efficacy of most antidepressants isn’t something I would bet on as researchers continuously have to reel in the expectations of users (Moyer). Keep active, keep busy, and keep going.  



Work Cited

Sharma A, Madaan V, Petty FD. Exercise for mental health. Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry. 2006;8(2):106. doi: 10.4088/pcc.v08n0208a. PMID: 16862239; PMCID: PMC1470658.

Mak HW, Noguchi T, Bone JK, Wels J, Gao Q, Kondo K, Saito T, Fancourt D. Hobby engagement and mental wellbeing among people aged 65 years and older in 16 countries. Nat Med. 2023 Sep;29(9):2233-2240. doi: 10.1038/s41591-023-02506-1. Epub 2023 Sep 11. PMID: 37696932; PMCID: PMC10504079.

Moyer, M. W. (2022, April 22). How much do antidepressants help, really?. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/21/well/antidepressants-ssri-effectiveness.html 


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