Depression

"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" and you know where you've heard that before. President's Day, a good day to spotlight depression. I'm going to post something about depression every day for a few days. Today's post will surprise many, but chronic depression takes its toll on your brain in a very bad way.
When depression lingers for months into years, the resulting effect is that our brain cells are damaged. Chronic depression can damage your brain.

If I were your therapist, the first thing I'd put on your schedule would be an eight week MBSR (mindfulness based stress reduction) workshop. These are available at most medical university hospitals, and hospitals that are affiliated with medical universities. They often have sliding scale fees for people with low income. The MBSR at UNMH (University of New Mexico Hospital) has been known to entirely wave that fee. Hope you will check into this.

You can learn, understand, and begin using the MBSR tools with Jon Kabat Zinn's cds for beginners. It is available from most larger online bookstores, such as amazon.

If you, or someone you know, is experiencing excess or prolonged sadness, take this assessment. The site will score it immediately after you complete it. Your scores are confidential. What do your scores mean? If you score between 10 and 15, you are mildly depressed. If you score between 16 and 25, you are moderately depressed. A score above 25 is significant, and you should see your doctor ASAP.
http://counsellingresource.com/quizzes/cesd/index.html

It's a fact, over time, depression takes its toll on your brain cells. I have found an online program which will help you assess how you are doing cognitively. This game is partnered from very reputable universities (Stanford, UCSF, Harvard, and Columbia). Also, it is FREE. Go to the website, create a free account, and you will be able to see how well your brain is working. This is NOT an IQ test. This is a cognitive training program, and I encourage you to set up your free account, which lasts for five days (after five days, there are some free exercises you can continue to work on). What will you learn? You are going to see a profile of your performance in areas such as memory, flexibility, speed, attention, problem solving. When you are depressed, your skill level in all these areas drops. The good news is, YOU can pick hobbies or tasks that will help you exercise these skill areas, and you can restore (and even improve) your cognitive abilities: http://www.lumosity.com/

It is my opinion, if you have the right tools, you can develop skills to walk yourself out of mild or moderate depression without medication. Your commitment must be to do the hard work; and doing it is the primary factor. Here is another effective tool for use in recovering from depression: http://www.createwritenow.com/journaling-for-health/

I am an occupational therapist, a counselor, and a much published author of both fiction and nonfiction. I believe in writing, and I believe in the benefit of proper journaling. One more website that I highly recommend follows. You can learn the lasting benefits of journaling by finding specific journal exercises, and I prefer those you can learn from Dr. James Pennebaker: http//www.utexas.edu/features/2005/writing/

Depression isn't something you can "talk" out of your life. Talk therapy has its value, but it won't walk you out of depression. This is a condition most people get themselves into because of their personality traits, their ways of dealing with self and others, their ways of thinking, and their behavior. You must change all of these to really walk yourself into more comfortable territory. Sorry, no quick fixes with this one. Having a coach is a good idea. A coach is someone who keeps you on track, guides you in the right direction, gives you homework, and knows what they are doing. Some therapists are a lot better at this than others. Can't help you pick one. You might ask others who've recovered from depression who they recommend. You need someone who deals more with how your brain works, than someone who jumps around in the theoretical arena. I wish you the best, and luck has nothing to do with it. It's hard work. If you want to be happier, you will do the hard work of getting there. Happiness will never be all the time, everyday. That's not realistic, but you can find a lot more tranquility and enjoyment in your life.