We know exactly where in the brain depression lives and the exact chemicals/neurotransmitters involved in depression. And thankfully we know that there are proven strategies that help decrease the activity in the brain that causes depression, help increase the chemicals in the brain (especially serotonin) that lead to happiness and help decrease the chemicals in the brain that lead to depression. The proven, targeted brain strategies listed below, if used daily in conjunction with what you are currently doing, can help you learn how to cope with depression and even end depression. Learning how to deal with depression (and possibly rid from your life) is a skill you can master and do have control over. It takes daily practice and awareness.
Psychologists, therapists,
psychiatrists and scientist have proven that the physiological seat for
depression lies in a portion of the brain called the deep limbic system. The
deep limbic system is an evolutionary, older part of the brain that is
responsible for many important, vital functions that are critical for our
emotional and behavioral successes. We know that depression is a
living, breathing thing in our brains and thus we know we can learn to deal
with and cure depression.
We also know that the deep limbic
system as many important functions related to our happiness or depression. For example, the deep limbic system we know
has the mighty task of emotionally classifying (interpreting) our daily
events. If a depressed person with an overactive limbic system receives a
satisfactory rating at his job, he or she is more than likely to interpret that
event has negative. But a person with low levels of activity, a generally
happy person, receives the same neutral rating will know that they have done
some good and have room to grow.
The scan of a depressed person
shows high levels of activity in the deep limbic system. The scan of an
emotionally stable person shows very little activity in the deep limbic
system. In order to control and effectively manage depression, there are
proven behavioral techniques, strategies and skills we can develop that
decrease the level of activity in our deep limbic system thus making us happy
and able to learn how to deal with depression. The established, exact self-therapy
brain strategies listed below can help you learn how to deal with depression. Dealing with depression, even ridding from
your life, is a skill set you can master. You may feel helpless but you have
control over your depression. It takes
daily practice, steps and awareness. If
you need help with any of the brain based remedies below, simply email us at
howtodealwithdepresion2@gmail.com and we will help learn how to deal with and
overcome depression.
Brain
Power Remedy Number One:
How to Deal With Depression by Rewiring Your Thought Patterns |
Limbic Function for Depression:
- Establishes the emotional environment of the mind. Most depressed people have negative thought patterns that are self-perpetuating that lead to a constant depressed mind. In order to learn how to deal with depression, a depressed person must and can learn how to override their negative thought patterns with healthy, positive thought patterns.
- Utilizes internal feelings to judge external situations. Because depressed people see life through negative shaded lenses, they view many neutral and possibly positive situations as negative. For example, a depressed person may receive a Satisfactory Job Rating but view it as negative because of the constant flow of negative thoughts and energy that have developed and flow through their brains. Since we know that thoughts are automatic, we know they have developed automatic negative thought patterns that if go unchecked or challenged will continue to lead to depression.
Remedy Number One
6 Step Process to Learn to Overcome Automatic Negative Thoughts
and Rewire Your Brain to Learn How to Overcome and Combat Depression.
A depressed person sees the past, present and future
as all being negative because of their automatic negative thought
patterns. Automatic negative thought
patterns actually become self-fulfilling prophecies. If a person automatically thinks that they are
worthless because they received a Satisfactory Job Rating, they are more likely
to isolate themselves from others and thus feel more depressed; the vicious
depression cycle is in full force. One
way to overcome depression, is to learn to challenge, combat and change
automatic negative thoughts into positive, effective thoughts and thus learn
how to deal with depression.
Some frequent automatic negative thoughts could be:
“ She only
recognizes when I make mistakes.”
“I’m a
failure no matter what I do.”
“ My
neighbor did not say hello to me. I must
have done something wrong.”
“ You never
listen to me.”
“I will
never get a promotion.”
"So what I got a raise, I'm still not good enough."
Start to
think of automatic negative thoughts as cognitive distortions:
Cognitive
Distortion
|
Meaning
|
All-or-Nothing
Thinking
|
The
tendency to see everything in absolutes; black or white
|
Mental
Filter
|
Focusing
on only one aspect of a situation; usually one negative aspect
|
Discounting
the positive
|
Focusing
only on the negative and negating the positive
|
Overgeneralization
|
When
we use language like “always”, “never” “can’t” “impossible” “that’s just my
luck”
|
Jumping
to Conclusions
|
Mind
reading and fortune telling;
|
Magnification
|
Glorifying
or Magnifying problems and minimizing positive situations
|
Emotional
Reasoning
|
Evaluating
a situation based on how you feel: I feel… therefore I think…
|
Should
Statements
|
Thinking
in absolutes. Should statements are self-defeating because “they” assume we
are perfect
|
Labeling
|
When
we think the behavior represents the person rather than just focusing on the
behavior as a separate event.
|
Personalization
and Blame
|
Blaming
yourself or just one person when there are many factors that contributed to
the situation
|
Step 1: Become aware that thoughts are real, "breathing"
measurable things in our brains that influence every cell in our body.
Process:
A subconscious, automatic thought enters your mind. Chemicals are sent
within your brain to their proper destination making your thought become a real
thing that alters and impacts your behaviors and feelings.
Step 2: Notice how thoughts impact your body.
- Notice how an automatic angry thought makes your heart beat much faster, your face turn red, your muscles tense etc.
- Now, notice how positive thoughts impact your body. When you have a happy thought your brain releases the chemicals necessary for you to feel relaxed and at ease. Your breathing becomes slower and controlled. Your body is cool and you feel good.
- ·Finally, notice how every single automatic thought you have impacts your body in some way. Every thought you have influences the cells in your body to respond in a certain way. If you have an anxious thought, your body will feel nervous. If you have habitual negative thoughts, you will feel tired and depressed.
Step 3: Think of negative thoughts as
poison.
We know that
thoughts are automatic and extremely influential and powerful. Remember that thoughts impact every cell in
our body. Positive thoughts make us feel good.
Negative thoughts can make us have a stomachache, a headache, tired,
physically sick etc. Scientists firmly
believe that sustained, negative thought patterns that are associated with
depression can possibly contribute to cells becoming cancerous.
Just as
poison negatively impacts everyone who comes into contact with it, negative
thoughts can literally poison our body by negatively impacting and even
destroying our cells.
Step 4: Realize and understand that
automatic negative thoughts lie. They
are not always right. Learn to recognize
and challenge your thoughts.
Just because
the same automatic negative thoughts have crossed your mind for some time, does
not mean that they are telling the truth. Learn to recognize and challenge your
thoughts.
Remember
that our thoughts are automatic and when it comes to depression, many times
they are automatic negative thoughts that contribute greatly to our depression.
Click here to look at the vicious depression cycle.
Step 5: Learn to Stop and Go
Don’t Move!!
 |
Stop
Take a Breath. Feel your breath move in and out of your body.
Remember to practice your mindful breathing exercises daily!
|
Wait!
Not Yet.
 |
Observe. What
are you thinking? What is going on physically? What are you feeling? What are
your Surroundings?
Pull Back and Put in Perspective. Is it
out of my control? Is this a fact or just my perception? What would others
say or do? What are my thinking errors or distortions? Is this in my best
interest? What is the overall picture?
|
You’re
Ready!
 |
Go With and Practice What Works! Journal,
continue with your mindful breathing exercise, get out of bed, go to the
store, make that phone call, talk to that person, use your daily thought changing tools, challenge your thoughts etc.
|
Step 6: Click here for printable copy or use
the worksheet/chart below to recognize, challenge and change your thought
patterns into healthy, productive thought patterns that will ultimately help
you learn how to deal with and end depression or any unpleasant feelings or
emotions.
Example:
Situation
|
Automatic Negative Thought
|
Name
Your Thought/Cognitive Distortion
|
Healthy, Alternative Thought
|
My boss asked me to give a presentation in one week on our new
product.
|
“I never give good presentations!”
|
Overgeneralizing (See chart below of Cognitive Distortions)
|
“I’m not the best presenter, but I’m always prepared and do my best.” “I must give good presentations at times
because this is the third time in a year my boss asked me to present.”
|
Situation
|
Automatic Negative Thought(s)
|
Name Your Thought/Cognitive
Distortion
|
Healthy, Alternative Thought
|
Brain Power Remedy Number Two
How to Deal With Depression through
Bonding
|
Limbic function for depression:
·
The
deep limbic system is responsible for initiating bonding with other
people. A depressed person, who feels
worthless (automatic negative thought), will isolate themselves from others and
fail to develop or maintain positive, rewarding relationships that define us as
humans, make us feel important and help us develop positive, healthy thought
patterns. Developing positive, healthy
relationships with others will only promote happiness, decrease the likelihood
of being depressed and help you cope with depression when you are
depressed.
Remedy
Number Two
As humans,
we need and want positive bonding relationships. It begins as babies and continues throughout
our entire lives. We need people. We need support and bonding to occur. Think about the best relationship you’ve ever
had and how wonderful and connected you felt.
Now think about the negative relationships you’ve had in your life and
the negative influence they had on your thoughts, feelings, behaviors and just
your life in general.
Have you
ever been in a great mood until you came into contact with a negative friend,
coworker, relative or spouse? What
happened, your positive mood turned into a negative attitude because of the
mighty influence the other person’s negative attitude had on you. Negative attitudes are highly
contagious. We may not be aware, but
they are. So learning to cultivate
relationships with positive people, distancing yourself from negative people
and learning to develop relational boundaries will help you overcome and cope
with depression.
Think about
the people that are in your life now.
The people you have the most contact with. Are they supportive? Do they put you down or build you up? Do they believe in you? Are they negative about life? Are they negative towards you? Do they love you unconditionally? Use the chart below to list the top ten (or
as many as you have) most influential people in your life. The people you spend the most time with and
rely on. Be sure to complete all 4 Parts
of the chart. Click here to download and
printable version.
Remember
that the relationships we have, have a direct and powerful influence on
depression. The attitudes, personalities
and overall attributes of the most influential people in our lives are so
contagious that they affect us in so many ways including the part of our brain
responsible for depression. Have you
ever gone out to eat with a friend and before you met your friend, your
attitude was great; you were happy. But
as soon you sat down, the first words out of your friend’s mouth were negative
and continued to be negative throughout dinner.
And guess what happened to your mood; you became down, depressed and
possibly angry.
You have the
right and choice not to spend time with people who have negative attitudes and
treat you negatively. It’s not their
fault, but it’s your life and your choice to spend time with people who will
lift you up, make you happy and help you live the best life possible.
If you don’t
have anyone positive in your life, seek out a church, self-help group etc. You may even use our trained counselor to
develop a positive, bonding relationship that will help you learn to overcome
and cope with depression. You need to
find an individual or group wherein you can develop healthy, positive bonds. Remember that as humans we need bonding to be
happy, we know that when we have healthy, positive relationships the portion of
our brain responsible for depression decreases thus making us happy.
One last
thought before you fill out the form below (printable;click here) and move into action developing
healthy relationships and thus learning how to deal with depression, anxiety or
any discomforting feeling: Think about the massive success of groups like AA
(Alcoholics Anonymous). They are hugely
successful at helping people because they give people the platform to be truly
themselves and loved just the way they are.
They give them confidence by being super positive and loving unconditionally. So, fill out the worksheet below(printable;click here) and figure
out who you need in your life or need to get rid of in order to overcome your
depression and live the best life possible.
Part 1
Name and relationship to you
|
Part 2
How much time do you spend with
them?
|
Part 3
Answer the following questions
about them
|
Part4
What actions do you need to take
based on your answers to Part 3
|
1.
|
Time:
|
Do they support you?
Do they put you down?
Do they have a negative attitude?
Do they make you feel good?
Are they affectionate towards you?
|
If they support you, build you up, make you feel good, are
affectionate and positive; you need to spend as much time with them as
possible. Develop a schedule to spend
time with them or if you live with them, be them daily.
If they put you down, make you feel bad or have a contagious negative attitude; do one of
the following:
A.
Stay away from them. They are not good for your depression and
overall mental and emotional state.
B.
If you need them in your life,
you need take the steps below to cultivate and develop your relationship.
|
8 Actions/Steps to Help Strengthen
your Relationships.
(If used
daily and with patience, they have been proven to help develop positive bonding
relationships that lead to happiness, less depression and the ability to cope
with depression when it arises.)
- 1.) Take responsibility for keeping the relationship strong. You can change another’s behavior by the way you act. Do not play the blame game. Look at each relationship you need to strengthen and determine what you can do to make it better.
- 2.) Never take the relationship for granted. Relationships are hard work that requires constant, daily attention. Write down a list of what you want in a specific relationship and what you can do daily to nurture and make it better. For example, if you’re in a spousal relationship, be sure to compliment or thank the person daily if not weekly.
- 3.) Remember that relationships are delicate, easily fractured, and you must learn to protect the relationships that are the most important and beneficial to you. Just like you do not like to be debased (degraded), put down, or treated negatively; neither does the person on the other end of your relationship. So, make your relationship strong, build a wall around the fragile structure, by complimenting, building them up and being super positive to them.
- 4.) Never assume or jump to conclusions. It’s easy to assume, and if you do assume; assume that the person is doing the best they can. Never assume they are doing something intentionally to harm you. Always assume the best in them; focus on the good not the bad.
- 5 ) Keep your relationships abuzz, fresh, vibrant and lively. It’s easy to get stuck in the same old routines. If you find yourself getting stuck, do something different and out of the ordinary. This will add a spark and create excitement in your relationships. It will conjure up old, happy memories which will only help the relationship remain exciting and positive.
- 6 ) Make sure your communication is open, honest, constant and transparent. Be an active listener. Take time to completely give yourself as they are speaking. Hold on to their every word. Make sure you completely understand what they are saying; attempt to walk in their shoes. If you are not sure, ask clarifying questions. It’s estimated that about 100% of relationship problems arise from faulty communication.
- 7 ) Sustain/defend and safeguard/protect trust. Be truthful in all endeavors and communications. If trust is broken, relationships tear apart but can be put back together. Once trust is broken, it takes much time and effort to rebuild, mend. But by all means, maintain trust through your actions and words.
- 8 ) Control and take care of difficult, rough and challenging issues. Do not avoid conflict; deal with it head on with kindness, honesty and openness. If you let conflict go unnoticed, it will develop into something bigger and more explosive. Deal with it as soon as it occurs. Work through conflict do not let it go.
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