Small Steps You Can Take to Feel Hopeful

Anxiety and depression can make hope feel like an unrealistic work of fantasy, but hope can return to us even through the smallest of steps. You don’t need to change who you are to start finding hope, you just need to start looking for it. The more you train yourself to look for hope, the more likely hopeful situations will find you.

“Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” – Jonas Salk

How To Find Depression Relief Through Hopefulness

Depression can make you feel like hope is a distant memory. This is especially devastating because when depression is the sickness, hope is the medicine. Hope is not about denying your struggles—it’s about discovering small ways to remind yourself that healing and growth are possible. Hope is not charging forward ignorant of  the brick wall ahead, it’s seeing the brick wall and remembering to look for a door.

• Dare To Create Something. When depression feels heavy, creating—even in the smallest ways—can invite light back in. Whether it’s writing a sentence, sketching a shape, or planting a seed, creation reminds you that you still have agency. You don’t need to produce a masterpiece; the act itself can shift your perspective and rekindle a sense of possibility.
• Practice Distress Tolerance Skills. Hopefulness doesn’t mean ignoring your pain. It means building the ability to endure it without being swallowed by it. Distress tolerance skills like exercise, change in temperature (both hot and cold work!), or grounding yourself through the five senses can help you move the big feelings in your heart with your body. 
• Be Your Own Friend. Depression often brings self-criticism, but to break free you’ll actually need the opposite. Treat yourself the way you would treat someone you love—with gentleness, patience, and forgiveness. Being your own friend means allowing yourself to rest when needed, celebrating small victories, and reminding yourself that you are worthy of care. Hopefulness grows when you speak kindly to yourself, even in moments of struggle.

The Therapy Of Being Outdoors

“One thing that gives me hope is nature. Getting my feet back on the ground. There is research that shows even having an image of nature when you don’t have direct access to nature creates similar neural pathways in the brain.” – Dayna Wood, LMHC, REAT

Spending time in nature can be a powerful way to restore hope. The rhythm of the natural world is something that we are inextricably apart of, and when we reconnect with nature, we reconnect with that rhythm. Even if you can’t spend a day at the beach right now, there are plenty of accessible  ways to harness the psychological power of nature.

• Feel The Sunlight On Your Eyelids. This one is dependent on clear skies and sunny days, but finding that should be easy enough if you’re living in St. Petersburg, FL. Stand in direct sunlight with your eyes closed and focus on the physical sensation. Our hearts, minds, and bodies need to feel the sunlight, and sometimes we don’t realize how much we miss it until we’re standing in the middle of it. 
• Check Out The Beautiful Nature In St. Petersburg. A genuine sense of peace is something we’re all desperate for, but we don’t always know where to look. Going to an outdoor yoga class, spending a day at the beach, or even just taking a walk in the park can recharge your batteries and give you a spark of hope. 
• Just Look Out The Window. Maybe it feels like too much to leave the house right now. You have my express permission to be too depressed, too sick, or both. There is still nature that is accessible to you. We are all apart of nature. Even our most well-constructed houses are built on a foundation of dirt out of trees and rocks.Open the nearest window if you can, and take a little peek. 

What St. Petersburg Therapist Accepts My Insurance?

Beginning therapy marks the start of a new chapter—one filled with possibility, healing, and hope. While it’s natural to feel some uncertainty or worry at first, we believe these moments of transition are also invitations to grow. Every step you take toward therapy opens the door to resilience, relief, and the chance to build a life that feels more grounded and fulfilling.

When you schedule your intake at Integrative Counsel, you won’t be facing change alone. We’ll walk beside you, guiding you through each step—whether it’s exploring in-network options, using a sliding scale, submitting a superbill, or connecting you with another trusted provider. Our goal is to make the beginning of your journey feel steady and supportive, so you can focus on the hope that lies ahead.

Counselors Who Accept Aetna Insurance. If you’re beginning therapy with Aetna coverage, we help you enter this process with confidence. Our trauma-informed, in-network therapists make it easier to step into care without added financial stress, so your energy can go toward the healing and transformation therapy makes possible.

Therapists Who Accept Cigna Insurance. Searching for a Cigna-covered therapist can feel overwhelming, but it’s also the first step toward hope and recovery. At Integrative Counsel, our compassionate, in-network providers specialize in trauma recovery, making it easier for you to release the burden of paperwork and focus on the brighter path ahead.

Therapy for People With Optum. Whether your coverage is through Optum Oscar, Optum Oxford, or United Optum, we’ll help you find a therapist who meets you where you are—emotionally, financially, and personally. Each step in this process is a chance to rediscover your strength, lean into support, and see that even difficult transitions can carry you closer to meaningful change and renewed hope.

DIY Therapy For Finding Hope 

Hope doesn’t always arrive in grand gestures or perfect solutions, it often grows out of small, intentional choices you make each day. When you approach your own healing with curiosity and compassion, you can begin to nurture hope in practical, down-to-earth ways. 

• Embrace Change. Change can feel uncomfortable, even frightening, but there is no escaping it and if there was you wouldn’t want to. When we are in denial of change, we make ourselves miserable by cursing the nature of life itself. When we accept it, we create space for something new and keep our hearts open to all the joy that change can bring. It takes conscious effort, and changing your attitude around change takes time, but every small adjustment you make is evidence that you’re capable of growth.
• Acknowledge What You Can’t Fix. Trying to control the uncontrollable often leads to exhaustion and despair. By naming what’s outside your influence, you give yourself permission to redirect energy toward what is within your reach. Radical acceptance isn’t about giving up, it’s about understanding what’s worthy of your time. You don’t have to like the things you can’t change, 
• Stop Gazing At The Glowing Rectangle Of Despair In Your Pocket. Constant scrolling can pull you deeper into comparison, negativity, and madness. When you’re making time for multiple hours of screentime, you’re not living, you’re feeding an algorithm that profits from your attention while draining your energy, creativity, and peace of mind. Every hour you hand over to the scroll is an hour you’ll never get back, and the trade-off is almost always worse than you realize.

Looking for hope amidst changes and transitions? Alli will be offering a six-session therapy group in October that offers a safe, guided space to explore transitions through creativity, movement, story, and ritual.

If you’re navigating change and feeling stuck between old and new, or just wanting to strengthen your resilience for change and create more self-awareness with others in your community, this group is for you.

Sign up here.

Sunny Ebsary is an educator, multi-modal artist, and writer specializing in the intersection of myth and mental health. Sunny’s writing walks the line between poetic and logical, giving readers a chance to interface with the mind and imagination. Sunny’s been putting pen to paper since he was a child, writing everything from albums, novels, and plays, to essays, interactive games, and of course, many articles! While studying both psychology and writing, he realized his real passion in life was helping others unlock their creative spark. Whether he’s leading a D&D game, directing a production, or diving deep into the brain, you can be sure Sunny will be ushering you toward finding meaning in your life.