First…
You are love.
At least, love is what each of us is supposed to be.
Even if your mind reacted to “You are love” by saying “Bullshit!” or “Oh, here we go again!”, it’s still true.
When you are love, depression has no power over you.
You may have to repeat “I am loved and I am love” 200 times a day for months before you start to believe it. That’s because the negative thoughts of depression have been repeated hundreds of times a day for months or years. It takes time to reprogram. But it can be done.
Choosing love takes the greatest amount of courage, especially when every fiber of your being is telling you to stay down and not care and not try because nothing will ever get better. Choosing love is the exact opposite of what depression wants you to do. It feels weak and vulnerable. You feel afraid that, by choosing love, you will only be hurt again and again and everything will continue to go wrong.
Love is your strength. Love brings positive change. Depression does not.
Second…
See a mental health professional. And stick with it. Keep attending appointments, meetings, and sessions. You have nothing to lose by talking with one. They’re not there to cure you. They there to help you find your solution and power.
Dealing with depression on your own is so, so hard. Start by talking to someone who can help: a counsellor, a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a teacher, a friend, a family member. Just talk to someone. Anyone who can help guide you to take some steps on a better pathway.
The best option, of course, it to talk to professionals. Even if you can’t afford a therapist, there are excellent counselling lines you can call. DO IT. Professional mental health people undertook masses of training just so they could help YOU.
Don’t expect an instant cure. Therefore, don’t give up after one or two sessions. Do cancer patients give up after one or two treatments? No! It takes time to find the causes and turn them around. It takes time to make improvements. It’s a process, not a solution.
Asking for help is a courageous thing to do. There is nothing weak about it. Do it. You are worth it.
Third…
The most important person is… YOU.
Your depression does not need to control you. Maybe it controls you right now. But within you lies enormous power – the power to change. Depression is telling you that things need to change.
The power to change and live a happy life is within you, nobody else. If I sound like I’m trying to convince myself, you’re totally right. I have to believe it. I’m still on that journey because I still have days when I fight it or look for it to be wrong. But I know it’s true.
To help with your depression, you have to do the work yourself. People can guide you and help you, but they will not do the work for you. You must attend appointments. You must repeat the mantras. You must take the medication. You must exercise. You must eat differently. You must learn to release, forgive, and love.
You must persist. Especially when your depression says you can’t. You can. Everything you need in order to work on your depression is already within you. Maybe it needs to be revealed or coaxed out, but it’s all there.
You know the pathway depression takes you down. You know the places it takes you. They suck. Choose a different pathway and different places.
I believe in you.
There’s always hope. Even when every part of you says there isn’t. Even when everything says it’s hopeless and nothing will get better. There’s always hope.
I know. I’ve been there. I still go there.
DEPRESSION SURVIVOR 