Dealing with Depression is Possible
I remember asking myself in front of the mirror one day, "am I depressed?" And then I had to laugh, because looking back at me was a face that I hardly recognized; 20 lbs overweight with the skin sagging beneath my eyes. I would feel exhausted everyday I wake up, and I would jump at any chance to take a nap. My hair has gotten quite long because I did not get a haircut for months, maybe even a year, and I did not bother to iron anything during that time either. I was depressed for sure, did I really needed to ask myself that?
I didn't immediately look for help. Who does? If you've ever been depressed, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. You convince yourself that everything will eventually blow over. That tomorrow will the day that everything is back to normal, and you will wake up, get off the couch, and do something productive.
By the time I figured it out, it was too late as I was already up to my neck in negative thoughts and depressed moods. Gloomy much? There should have been a picture by the word in the dictionary with my face on it!
I had no idea what to do. There was a problem all right, but what do I start looking at? What do I do to get out of the giant hole I dug myself in? Starting was difficult, but I did it, and my first step was joining the gym nearby my place. Having to pay a monthly fee helped with my motivation to get out the door and actually use the gym because I hate wasting money, and once I have committed I don't back out. It took a few weeks of continual (okay, three times a week) gym usage for me to start feeling like my blood was moving a little faster; to start actually finding things of interest instead of just living from day to day and from moment to moment.
My plan worked. Once I had gotten some momentum; once I had actually started moving, everything else began to fall into place. I found that it was much easier if I stayed away from negative people altogether and surrounded myself with those who had a positive attitude. While that may not sound like a very nice thing to do, I couldn't help myself. Why should I make things harder on myself than they already were? It seemed to help too, soon I wasn't just pretending to be upbeat, my energy was actually improving and I felt good about getting to work and getting out of the house.
Let me say that getting out of the house was not exactly a comfortable situation for me. I really did not want to leave my house. I would have preferred staying home and playing on my computer, hiding behind any number of busy tasks I had set for myself, none of which would actually bring me in contact with people. However, I pushed myself to get out there to socialize with people, to interact with them even though I rather be left alone.
I also started on things that I always wanted to do for myself, taking that "me" time that does not involve sitting down and brooding over life. I signed up for a yoga class and picked up some books on gardening and actually put in an herb garden. All of this took a lot of concentration, but it was for things that I enjoyed rather than the negative aspects of my depression.
I will admit that depression is no fun. Depression is a very lonely and alienating time, and it makes you feel worthless. But the thing is, you know yourself better than anyone else possibly could, which means that you will be able to tell which things work in helping to relieve the negativity and lift the shroud of pain. I looked in the mirror yesterday and asked myself the question again, "am I depressed?" and I was finally able to tell myself, no!
I didn't immediately look for help. Who does? If you've ever been depressed, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. You convince yourself that everything will eventually blow over. That tomorrow will the day that everything is back to normal, and you will wake up, get off the couch, and do something productive.
By the time I figured it out, it was too late as I was already up to my neck in negative thoughts and depressed moods. Gloomy much? There should have been a picture by the word in the dictionary with my face on it!
I had no idea what to do. There was a problem all right, but what do I start looking at? What do I do to get out of the giant hole I dug myself in? Starting was difficult, but I did it, and my first step was joining the gym nearby my place. Having to pay a monthly fee helped with my motivation to get out the door and actually use the gym because I hate wasting money, and once I have committed I don't back out. It took a few weeks of continual (okay, three times a week) gym usage for me to start feeling like my blood was moving a little faster; to start actually finding things of interest instead of just living from day to day and from moment to moment.
My plan worked. Once I had gotten some momentum; once I had actually started moving, everything else began to fall into place. I found that it was much easier if I stayed away from negative people altogether and surrounded myself with those who had a positive attitude. While that may not sound like a very nice thing to do, I couldn't help myself. Why should I make things harder on myself than they already were? It seemed to help too, soon I wasn't just pretending to be upbeat, my energy was actually improving and I felt good about getting to work and getting out of the house.
Let me say that getting out of the house was not exactly a comfortable situation for me. I really did not want to leave my house. I would have preferred staying home and playing on my computer, hiding behind any number of busy tasks I had set for myself, none of which would actually bring me in contact with people. However, I pushed myself to get out there to socialize with people, to interact with them even though I rather be left alone.
I also started on things that I always wanted to do for myself, taking that "me" time that does not involve sitting down and brooding over life. I signed up for a yoga class and picked up some books on gardening and actually put in an herb garden. All of this took a lot of concentration, but it was for things that I enjoyed rather than the negative aspects of my depression.
I will admit that depression is no fun. Depression is a very lonely and alienating time, and it makes you feel worthless. But the thing is, you know yourself better than anyone else possibly could, which means that you will be able to tell which things work in helping to relieve the negativity and lift the shroud of pain. I looked in the mirror yesterday and asked myself the question again, "am I depressed?" and I was finally able to tell myself, no!
About the Author:
Want to find out more about dealing with depression? Then click on this link today.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment