Top 10 Ways to Kick Depression

Top 10 Ways to Kick Depression

First trick:

Get out of your head and into your
feet.

The body craves movement.

Exercise really works.

Let's not think of it as exercise
though.

Nothing is gnarlier to the depressed
person than imagining him/herself at the gym in ill fitting sweats,
panting on the stair master while svelte athletes are bopping around in
all directions.



As Woody Allen says, 90% of success is showing
up. Once we've got our walking shoes on, once we get endorphins
cooking, the doldrums have less power to penetrate .



Second trick:

Turn on music!

Now!

I recommend that my clients have an
arsenal of inspiring and fun music at their fingertips.

I have even been known to make CD's
for my clients.

When we're depressed, the smallest
task feels overwhelming.

If I can kick-start someone's joy,
then I am thrilled.



Third trick:

Turn on the light and sit in the sun.

Many of us work in windowless
cubicles or offices, and wonder why we feel blue.



This
time of year, when the sun sets earlier, we must 's dark out in autumn
and winter, get a light, get some sun, get some more sun.

And if there is no sun in your world,
then buy a full-spectrum light.

Get one cheap on E-bay.



Fourth trick:

Hang out with 4-leggeds. (Unless of
course, you're allergic)

Having an animal companion near can
instantly relaease oxytocin, that magical hormone that we secrete when
we fall in love, give birth, or are nursing.

It releases a feeling of goodwill, or
trust in the world.

OK, so not all of all are blessed to
be in love all the time, or be breast feeding, so I recommend my
clients find other ways to bring on the joy chemical.

Read on.



Fifth trick:

Change your thoughts.

Right now.

We have around 60,000.00 thoughts per
day.

87% of them are negative and are the
same thoughts we had yesterday.



Experiencing joy is a deliberate choice.

Joy takes practice.

Joy is hardcore.

I use realistic affirmations, which,
at times are posted all over my room.

Notice I said realistic.



We must remember that affirmations don't make something happen, they
make something welcome.

People tell me, "I put an affirmation
up on my bedroom wall, saying:"I am ready to meet a gorgeous,
successful, charming man who will adore and worship me." It's been 3
months. Where is he?"

I tell them; "You have made yourself
more open to meeting this human.

Finding him is another story. Sorry."



Sixth Trick:

Follow a joyous lifestyle.

Choose joyous entertainment.

Find a class, a workout, anything
that gets you in your body, preferably sweating a bit.



Seventh Trick:

Affirm joy with words.

Rudyard Kipling said "I am by calling
a dealer in words.

And words are by far the most
powerful drug in the world".

It may seem trite, but changing the
way we speak can be extremely influential in changing our moods.



Eighth Trick:

Grab hold of a goal.

Make it a do-able one.

Happiness and joy come from goals.

We mustn't put off our lives.



Ninth Trick:

Cultivate a relationship with the
divine.

We are whom our higher self wanted to
experience.

There is some truth to the pithy
phrase: There's no aetheists in foxholes.

Have a smidgens of faith and the
world can be a gentler space.



Tenth Trick:

Choose joyous companions.

When we are depressed, we take our
bored, sluggish selves wherever we go.

We need distractions.

We need company.

We need intimacy.

It is very important to be around
authentic people.

We need someone who believes in us.

No nay-sayers!