Gift Ideas for Someone with Depression

It is sad to see someone you love or care about dealing with depression. This is a condition which not only takes away all joy and hope but worst of all erodes any sense or meaning from one’s life.  While your love and support can mean the world to a depressed person, surprising him/her with the perfect gift can be a great way to cheer them up. Here are a few gift ideas for someone with depression that are sure to lift the gloom, albeit for a short while.

A memory book/box

If you happen to know the person well, giving him/her a book or box full of happy memories can go a long way to make him/her feel better. Put together a scrapbook with photos, cards, notes, letters, and anything else that recalls the wonderful times you shared in the past. Even a restaurant bill from a favorite dining spot or an entry ticket to zoo that you had visited together will be great for recalling happy memories. This can help your loved one in two ways – one it will assure him/her that he/she is special to you and that you care enough for him/her to have put this together; secondly it will bring back happy memories and give him/her the motivation to look at the future with optimism. However these effects can only take place if the depression is not severe and more so if the person is simply in a funk rather than suffering from full-blown disorders. But even in case of the latter, your gesture of love and affection can be invaluable to support mainstream treatment or therapy.

Cash certificate

If you wish your gift to have immediate practical value, try to think up of ways you can help financially. People with depression offer suffer from a double whammy – on one hand they have to spend extra in terms of medication and therapy while on the other they are probably earning less due to loss of working days. So a great gift idea for someone with depression would be an offer to pay off some bills, a phone/internet card, gift coupons for the local grocery store or simply some cash to spend as needed.

Salon services

One of the symptoms of depression is that people start caring less for their appearance – in severe cases, even the act or brushing teeth or the daily bath can seem a chore. So one of the most wonderful gifts you can gift someone with this condition is a day spent in pampering him/herself. Your loved one can get a manicure, pedicure, facial, massage – the works; in fact certain scents and massage techniques have been known to alleviate stress and anxiety so maybe the salon can choose services which would be most beneficial for your loved one. Another of the great things about this gift idea is that you can tailor it according to your resources – it can range from gift coupons at your local salon to a full day of indulgence at a well-known spa.

Housekeeping service

This is another of those gifts whose practical value will be greatly appreciated by the person going through depression. During such times, one of the first things to be neglected is the home environment with the result that dirty dishes and soiled clothes may pile up to the extent that the unkempt environment may push a person further into negativity. Thus if you arrange for housekeeping services for your loved one, you will not only be getting done something very important, but actually helping him/her to feel better since a clean living environment is one of the best motivations to thinking and working in a positive manner.

Therapeutic aids

There are many kinds of gifts which can help a person cope with depression. One of the best-loved in this category is books – these can range from self-help ones, if you feel that the person is capable of getting him/herself out of this condition – to biographies and motivational ones which can inspire the person to beat depression and thus offer added support to treatment and/or therapy. Alternatively you can simply go for humor or light travel reading which will take the person’s mind off his/her condition and help to put him/her in a lighter frame of mind.

Relaxation CDs could make another useful gift idea for someone with depression. These usually come with soothing sounds, chants or music which help to ease stress and anxiety. On the other hand if you know the person well and their choice in music, you could also gift them CDs of their favorite band, singer or instrument as long as these are not too excitable or mournful. Indeed music has the amazing gift of conveying emotion without saying word. It has the power to express how someone is feeling when they aren't able to verbalize and thus such a gift could help the person work out through their emotions and feelings.

Yet another way your gift could be meaningful to a person with depression is to help them put down their thoughts and feelings – a blank journal would be great for this purpose. Writing one's thoughts and feelings in a journal can be very therapeutic. Many blank books are available which have beautiful covers and inspirational quotes throughout. In fact these days even guidebooks about journaling are available which are geared towards individual interests -  you might include one of these with a blank journal to inspire them to start writing.

Nighttime comfort

Insomnia is one of the most distressing conditions associated with depression – a depressed person not only finds it difficult to fall asleep but the lack of sleep then further deepens the depression. If your loved one faces such problems, apart from relaxation CDs you can also gift him/her a pastel-hued comforter or high thread-count, good quality bed sheets. Scents like lavender have been known to have a soothing effect and perfumed candles or essential oils of this sort can make other charming gifts.

Finally all gifts need not be material. Gestures with which you can cheer up your loved one would be equally appreciated by a person suffering from depression. On a fine day, you can simply whisk away the person from bed and take him/her for a long drive – pause at places which have happy associations for him/her and maybe stop for a hot cup of cocoa at his/her favorite café. Alternately you can invite your friend over for a day and cook him/her favorite dinner – all these would not only show how much you care but help your loved one to feel special and worth making an effort to get better.