Depression Control

Depression can reoccur.  Does that worry me?  Absolutely.  But I have been given the tools to identify if things are going backwards for me, and what to do if they are. Thankfully, things have not headed in that direction yet, and I guess the real test will come if and when they do.

So how do I identify if my depression is returning.  When I first started getting symptoms many years ago I had no idea what was happening.  My biggest weapon in identifying a relapse is awareness.  I know what it looks like and I know what it feels like, but I also have to be wary of false indications.

In my post titled Finished Up, I touched on this, as after my IVIg treatment I felt awful, but this did pass.  Sometimes you're just going to have a bad day.  What needs to be done is differentiating between a bad day and a relapse.  For me the sighs are:-

1. Having negative emotions (anger, anxiety, sadness) for three days or more.
2. Waking up in a bad mood.
3. Withdrawing myself from social situations.
4. Procrastinating about things I have to do.
5. Not doing things I would normally want to do.

If any of these things are occurring, I have to stop and ask why.  If the reason is isolated I can deal with that and move on.  If it is bigger I can utilise the following tools to help:-

1. Think positive.  What we think effects the way we feel, and the way we feel effects the way we think.  I is very hard to change are emotional state, but we can change the way we think.  This allows us to reverse the trend and put us back in the right direction.
2. Make sure that any issues both now and in the near future are dealt with now.  Waiting, will only allow them to fester and breed negativity.
3. Remind myself of my achievements.  This allows me to feel useful.  This blog for example, allows me to feel productive and useful.
4. Go and see my psychologist.  If I can't figure it out by myself, I know I can always go and get some help.

Well that almost wraps it up now for me and depression.  There will be a couple more posts on the subject, but I will leave the exact nature of those a mystery.  Until next time, stay well:)

If you think you may be suffering from depression, go and see your GP.  They will be able to assess you and point you in the right direction to get help.  If you don't feel ready to see someone yet, type "depression help" into google and that will give you a list of resources you can use for help.  In Australia, Beyond Blue is a great place to start.  There website is:-

www.beyondblue.org.au