A bout of depression can bring your life to a standstill. It may cause you to be unhappy for no particular reason and sometimes you might just not feel like doing anything and consider giving up on your life.

But you actually need to make a conscious effort and take an active interest in your treatment to fight the problem. You need to push yourself to help your treatment work for you. Try these tips:

1. Do not give up: Stick with it, be patient since any treatment takes time. Antidepressants can take up to six weeks to start showing results. Treatment won't work right away. Seek additional treatment through therapy session with a doctor.

2. Stick to your prescription drugs: Follow a routine when taking medication. Take your medicine at the same time every day. It's easier to remember if you do it along with another activity, like brushing your teeth, eating breakfast, or getting into bed. Keep a pillbox so that you don’t miss a dose.

3. Listen to your doctor: Just because you start feeling okay, do not stop your medication till the doctor gives you a clean chit. Stopping medication abruptly may cause the depression to return.

4. Make lifestyle changes: Eat healthy food, get a good night's sleep, exercise regularly, get a hobby and meditate to beat depression. Start slowly. Try taking walks around the neighborhood with a friend to refresh your mind.

5. Reduce stress at home and at work. Ask for help with some of the stressful things in your life. Cut down on your work if it is stressing you. Seek housekeeping help if managing a home seems too much to cope with.

6. Be honest: During therapy sessions do not hide any issue that is nagging you. Instead, talk about them openly with your therapist. Work out a new approach whereby if you aren’t comfortable with your therapist, say so. Be open to new ideas.

7. Give yourself time: You may feel hopeless in the beginning. But that is a sign of your condition, so keep going at it. Give yourself some time to register all the changes that is happening around you and within. This will make your treatment more effective.