The most glorious moments in your life are not the so-called days of success, but rather those days when out of dejection and despair you feel rise in you a challenge to life, and the promise of future accomplishments. Gustave Flaubert
"A pearl is a beautiful thing that is produced by an injured life. It is the tear [that results] from the injury of the oyster. The treasure of our being in this world is also produced by an injured life. If we had not been wounded, if we had not been injured, then we will not produce the pearl." —Stephan Hoeller
Be aware of your feelings
Take the time to recognise and think about your feelings, as they might help you to understand the source of what is making you feel depressed. Depression is often linked to events in the past, and sometimes there can be no explanation at all. Either way, becoming aware of these things is part of coping with depression.
Create a Support Network
When you feel depressed, you may have a tendency to hide away and bottle up your feelings. However, the best approach is to build a support network of friends, relatives or even dedicated support groups, who can help you address how you are feeling.
Stay Connected
Meeting up face to face is best but if not social media is a way
Look after your physical health Review your diet
No overeating or excess alcohol
Do things you enjoy
Walking Running Swimming
Creating art Reading listening to music
Challenge Negative Thinking
Feelings of pessimism and hopelessness are common symptoms of depression. Defined as ‘cognitive distortions’, these are thoughts that are irrational or unrealistic – but they can be overcome if you challenge them in the right way.
If you find yourself thinking in these terms, ask yourself some challenging questions like:
Is there an alternative explanation to this?
What evidence is there that what I think is the whole truth?
If a loved one thought this about themselves, what would I think? What would I say to them?
Helping others
The Journal of Happiness Studies found that those who volunteer receive a boost to their mental health and greater satisfaction in their lives.
PROFESSIONAL HELP
Embracing the mystery of depression does not mean passivity or resignation. It means moving into a field of forces that seems alien but is in fact one's deepest self. It means waiting, watching, listening, suffering, and gathering whatever self-knowledge one can-and then making choices based on that knowledge, no matter how difficult. One begins the slow walk back to health by choosing each day things that enliven one's selfhood and resisting things that do not. — Let Your Life Speak:by Parker J. Palmer
Sacred Text
Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 1Peter 5:7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4: 6-7
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelations 21:4
We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 2Corinithians 4:8
Story - Those in the Bible
Those of us who have a mental illness are sometimes told and also think that our mental illness is our fault because we lack faith. This is not the case. Mental illness is a biological disorder and can affect anyone. Let me tell you a story found in the Bible.
The people of Israel were worshipping an idol named Baal so the prophet Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a contest to see who could bring down fire from heaven to burn their sacrifice. The prophets of Baal went first; they prayed, shouted, and even cut themselves. Nothing happened. Then Elijah prayed and fire came down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice as well as the stones of the altar. Then Elijah had all the prophets of Baal killed. When this happened, Queen Jezebel said she would kill Elijah, so, in fear, he left his servant behind and ran into the wilderness where he sat under a broom tree and prayed he would die because he lacked faith. While Elijah slept, an angel woke him up, provided him with food and water, and encouraged him to take nourishment. Elijah ate and drank, but then he lay back down. Again, the angel told him to get up and eat so he could go on a journey to Mt. Horeb, the mountain of God. When he got there, he spent the night in a cave, and God asked him what he was doing there. Elijah complained that he had been very zealous for God, but the Israelites had rejected God’s covenant, torn down God’s altars and put God’s prophets to death. Elijah said he was the only one left and they wanted to kill him also. God told Elijah to come out of the cave and stand on the mountain because God was going to pass by. Then a powerful wind blew and shattered rocks on the mountain, but God was not in the wind. There was an earthquake, but God was not in the earthquake. Then there was a fire, but God also was not in the fire. Finally, there came a gentle whisper. God again did not rebuke Elijah but told him to journey back to his life, anoint a man to be the new king and anoint Elisha to succeed him.[1]
In 1998, shortly after she revealed that she was a lesbian, Ellen Degeneres's popular sitcom was axed. "Everything that I ever feared happened to me," Degeneres later recalled. "I lost my show. I've been attacked like hell. I went from making a lot of money on a sitcom to making no money. When I walked out of the studio after five years of working so hard, knowing I had been treated so disrespectfully for no other reason than I was gay, I just went into this deep, deep depression." But the comedienne persevered, continuing in the industry, and ultimately finding acceptance and happiness with an Emmy-winning talk show and an unforgettable turn as a fish with amnesia in Pixar's Finding Nemo franchise.
Lady Gaga hasn't been shy about too many things, least of all her long battle with mental illness. In a candid interview with Billboard, the pop star admitted, "I've suffered through depression and anxiety my entire life. I just want these kids to know that" But as you might guess, the "Born This Way" artist has beaten her depression, and has said, "I learned that my sadness never destroyed what was great about me. You just have to go back to that greatness, find that one little light that's left. I'm lucky I found one little glimmer stored away." Today, Lady Gaga works hard as an advocate for mental health. Her Born This Way Foundation seeks to empower youth, inspire bravery, and provide resources for young people dealing with depression, severe anxiety, and even bullying.
J.K. Rowling's life before Harry Potter is well known. Living in poverty, she was an unemployed single mother who spent her days writing in local cafes. But at the same time, she was also suffering from severe depression and battling suicidal thoughts. Shortly before beginning her famous series, Rowling even underwent cognitive behavior therapy in an attempt to improve her illness. Fortunately, Rowling is healthier and happier these days, but immortalized her bout with severe depression in Harry Potter. Her suicidal thoughts inspired the Dementors, terrifying creatures that feed off of the happiness of humans and wizards.
Science of Mind Reading
Poem: Sometimes by Lucy Petersen
Sometimes I can't find the words
That fill my messy head.
Can't find the effort to smile
Or get out of my silly old bed.
The world just sometimes feels like
I don't fit and don't belong,
And even when I make the effort,
A smile just doesn't last long.
I could pretend with all my might
That I am the happiest I can be.
Surrounded by the world, it seems
Lonelier I couldn't be.
Not sure what may be the answer.
Not sure if I'm really keen
To spend another day here,
Living this dreadful dream.
But I must find some courage,
Light a fire inside my heart
And find a love for life again,
And I know where I shall start.
I'll walk among the forest
And feel the crisp sea breeze
And lay among the meadow
And listen to all the bees.
I'll figure out the mayhem
And gaze at all the stars
And dance at every sunset
With a smile inside my heart.
Rumination
Whatever happens to you, don't fall in despair. Even if all the doors are closed, a secret path will be there for you that no one knows. You can't see it yet but so many paradises are at the end of this path...
Benediction
Mother Father God may we remember that
You walk beside us, each moment of each day. You know us by name, see each joy and sorrow. You created within us a gentle capacity to love and nurture. You gave us understanding and patience in a troubled world. You laid upon us the responsibility to carry and care for new life. You released us to run and dance, to sing and create. You crafted in us sharp minds that are able to solve problems and see possibilities. You desire each of us to live life to the full, embracing your love for us and extending grace to others. You gave your life so that we could walk free to build your kingdom on earth as in heaven. We lay our lives before you and trust in your unfailing love. Guide us, Heal us, Touch us, And lead us, To reflect more and more of you life within our own. Amen.
Song: Hulvey & Antoine Bradford Came for me