From Survivor to Thriver

How Exercise Can Improve Your Mental Health with Nita Sweeney

November 01, 2022 Erik DaRosa & Marc Fernandes Episode 84
From Survivor to Thriver
How Exercise Can Improve Your Mental Health with Nita Sweeney
Show Notes

When you are struggling with things like depression, anxiety, or other mental health issues, you may need more than just your therapist, psychiatrist, and medication to feel better.  It may be that you need to reconnect with or find something new that brings you joy. 

In this episode of From Survivor to Thriver, we sat down with Nita Sweeney to talk about her personal mental health struggles and how she found happiness in movement. As Nita says, depression hates a moving target, so getting up and moving can make a world of difference in your mental health journey. 

Nita Sweeney is the is the award-winning wellness author of the running and mental health memoir, Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running with My Dog Brought Me Back from the Brink and co-creator of the writing journal, You Should Be Writing: A Journal of Inspiration & Instruction to Keep Your Pen Moving

Her upcoming book, Make Every Move a Meditation (available for preorder), was featured in the Wall Street Journal. A certified meditation leader, mental health advocate, ultramarathoner, and former assistant to writing practice originator Natalie Goldberg, Nita founded the groups Mind, Mood, and Movement to support well-being through meditation, exercise, and writing practice, and The Writer’s Mind, to share using writing practice to produce publishable work. 

In today’s episode we cover: 

  • Nita’s experience with depression
  • How exercise helped Nita’s mental health
  • Outdoor activities with community
  • How anorexia impacted her life
  • Having multiple tools in your toolkit
  • Why the reason for depression isn’t always clear
  • Meditation
  • The importance of finding your thing

We hope you found this episode inspirational and helpful. If you want to learn more about Nita, make sure to check out her website and read her books!

Thanks again for tuning in. We are so grateful to each and every one of you. Please remember to leave a rating and review of our show. It helps us grow and reach those who need it. Also, make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode! 

Visit Nita’s website

Connect with her on LinkedIn 

Follow her on Facebook 

Follow her on Instagram 

Check her out on YouTube 

Follow us on Facebook

Follow us on Instagram

Follow us on TikTok

Get in touch: amgits.reverse@gmail.com

“Sometimes just getting out of bed is the best you can do and the cure.” -Nita

“Depression happens in those moments by yourself and you don’t know why.” -Marc

“You can do anything for one minute.” -Erik