Having the blues sucks and these days, it seems like there’s more and more reasons for the blues to overwhelm us. But having the blues ainn’t a joke: if not redirected, they can spiral into something far worse, like depressive episode or even clinical depression.

When it comes to disrupting the blues, I always turn to appreciation and gratitude. Life presents every single person with trials and challenges. No one’s exempt from hard times. To me, though, on average, people are quite fortunate here in the U.S. We may not all be one percenters, but there’s always good in life, even if it’s hard to see sometimes.

Usually, when I experience yuckiness, it’s because my life isn’t going EXACTLY as I want it to go, WHEN I want it to go a certain way. I have to step back and remind myself that things aren’t always how we want them to be at the exact time we want them to be that way. Once I accept that reality, I then look at the moment in which I find myself and I make it a point to find at least one good thing going on in that moment. Since it can be hard to find good in my own life during a dark mood, I look at someone else who may be experiencing a smile or a laugh or something else that’s sharing positive energy. Seeing others laughing and enjoying a moment is actually infectious for me. Really, I feel better and the doldrums tend to dissipate.

Once the dark mood has lifted a bit, I then turn my attention to the blessings of my own life. Really, I am lucky to be alive in this time of change. All people in all of time lived in moments of change, it’s the one constant of human existence: Change. We all live and make history and I feel an immense privilege to be a part of that historical record. I appreciate all that is good and strong and beautiful and I also appreciate the hard times for forging courage in my heart and for teaching me that time and again: Darkness will pass.

So, to get over a bout of the blues, maybe try to count your blessings, literally: Take out a sheet of paper and grab a pen and list your blessings. We all have a lot to appreciate in this life. we just need to remind ourselves of that, again and again. As a note, if you or someone you love is having suicidal thoughts, please call 800-273-8255 and/or visit the Suicide Prevention LIfeline.