Work With What's Working

One of the first steps to overcoming depression is to work with what's working. I know, it seems pretty simple, but when you're suffering from depression it can be difficult to even recognize what's working in your life, let alone work with it! The other day in my post Break Through Depression, I asked you to make a list of what's working in your life. Some people misinterpreted the question to mean "what works to help you get through or avoid depression?" All the suggestions I received were very good and many happen to be covered in my upcoming posts on this topic. However, if you were one of the people who misinterpreted the question, what I mean is: what do you have or do in your life right now that you are satisfied with?

There's an old saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water." Depression will trick you into believing that your whole life is a waste and there's nothing good about it, but that isn't true. Even if your "what's working" list is short, there are some things that you've got going on in your life right now that are good. If your depression really has a hold on you, it's quite normal for the "what's working" list to be short because depression robs you of the ability to see your life clearly.

The chances are pretty high that the things which are causing you pain and sadness are things you are powerless to change. They're things out of your control, and things you just have to learn to live with. It takes time to be okay with those losses and disappointments, but the only way you'll be able to learn to live with them is if you start living again! In order to do that, you need to recognize your right to enjoy life and then actively seek positive experiences.

Now that you have your list, even if it's short, the next step is to explore how you can maximize your enjoyment of these things, and what other opportunities for enjoyment they provide. If your job is something that's really working for you right now, you may not be able to work more hours to get more enjoyment, and that might not be healthy anyhow. However, you can explore the opportunities available to you because of your work and you might find additional ways to maximize enjoyment. For example, does your work provide opportunities for travel or meeting new people? These are things you could take advantage of to increase your enjoyment of life overall. Take the things on your list and seek ways to increase your enjoyment of them and ways to celebrate them.

Don't tell me that it's selfish to become a pleasure seeker. You need to realize that you can't be as good a friend, parent, or employee while struggling with depression as you can be when you're happy and healthy. You need to take care of yourself before you can take care of anyone else. It's time to take charge of your life again and refuse to let depression rob you of any more positive experiences!

~*~Monica Who~*~