Depression and Me |
6 Comments |
|
About 10-12 years ago, when I was a sophomore in college, I got depressed. By depressed, I’m mean Margaritaville depressed - for all the same reasons as the famous song. When I look back on it, it seems that I must have either slept for 18 hours a day or just avoided the light for that long. I couldn’t even tell you if went on for 3 months or 18 months. I was lost and I didn’t know how to get out of my funk.
Today, I am a much more knowledgeable person about depression. When I think back about how I handled the situation, I did the exact opposite of what I should have done. Here are some mistakes I’ve made:
- I lived in the dark - Since light therapy helps those with seasonal affective disorder, perhaps it would have helped my mood as well. I realize that wasn’t the cause of my depression, but it can’t hurt to get rid of any contributing factors.
- I didn’t exercise - There are approximately 427 bazillion studies showing that exercise triggers endorphins in the brain. Endorphins make you happy. In a lot of cases, exercise can be as good or better than prescription medications.
- I didn’t see a doctor - While we are on the topic of prescription medicine, I should have seen a doctor. I have a personal fear of doctors. Unless I’m losing a lot of blood, I don’t want to go to them. It’s a phobia that I’m working on for the next year.
Why do I bring this up now? A couple of months back, I lost my day job. I’m taking a shot at working from home and starting a few side businesses. While money is not a big issue during this time (thank you Energi Gal), the feeling of accomplishment that I got with the day job is starting to be something that I miss. It’s not too hard to imagine how this could develop into depression. However I think I can avoid this with a three-pronged approach:
- Get Plenty of Natural Light - I will not miss the fluorescent lights at my old office. Would you?
- Get Plenty of Exercise - With more time at my disposal, I have been putting in regular gym time. I definitely come back happier, even if it’s just because I realized I did something good for myself.
- Set and Accomplish Goals - This is a little difficult for me. Some days I want to do one project and the next day it could be an entirely different one. Still, if I can put together a plan and some goals, hitting them should give me the sense of accomplishment that I had at my old job.
What do you think? Is there anything else I should add to this list? Let me know in the comments.
Featured Information
This post deals with: ... and focuses on:Psychology
StumbleUpon
Reddit
Digg
Del.icio.us
PropellerNext: What If We Didn’t Need to Sleep?
December 31st, 2007 at 3:42 pm
I would add having someone to talk to, that’s likely another “Thank you Energi Gal”. Happy Blessed New Year to you and yours!
December 31st, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Do some of the things that genuinely make you happy. Especially if they aren’t cool. Talk to as many people as possible - presumably since you aren’t handicapped by being English, you’ll have more success with this than I do.
January 3rd, 2008 at 4:02 pm
You might add this to the list of helpful activities…
Go out to lunch with friends
January 3rd, 2008 at 7:54 pm
OK - I can’t cite anything, but I read that fish oil supplements (Omega-3/6) are helpful for mood elevation. I have been taking them for a long time and I find they help my mood quite a bit. I suspect it’s a placebo - I expect them to help my mood so they do - but whatever the reason they seem to help. Relationships with other people help a lot, as well. I also think that having outside interests help a lot. Football is a dumb, silly sport but it engages my interest, makes me excited for Sundays and gets my attention every time; that keeps me too engaged to be depressed.
January 3rd, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Great advice- especially beneficial here in the Pacific Northwest. Great post.
January 21st, 2008 at 4:42 pm
One of the benefits of having a psychologist MIL is that we got her clinic’s old sun lamp. Just as a random “You kids could probably both use this” gift. And it’s quite useful!! I wonder if other people can get them by calling around to clinics and seeing if they have any they’re not going to be using.