Playing Games.

Playing games is a valuable enterprise to help in all aspects of mental health and can help you recover from depression.

You'll have to listen to the talk to know why there are pictures of baby animals here.  :-)

A Ted talk by Jane McGonigal.  This highlights a way to use a game to experience post traumatic growth.  That's one phrase you don't ever hear.    Go, watch this Ted Talk.  Do what she says and then, just for fun,
visit Deep Fun by Bernie DeKoven and find a game to play with someone  that will enhance your relationships and enhance your very life.  Play is so important.

14 Mood Lifting Tricks from Prevention.

Prevention magazine has an article on things that you can do right now to feel better and boost your mood.  Some of them, we have looked at before, such as writing things down and taking a walk, but they have expanded on these a little.  When talkign about writing, they say you should quickly make a list of good things about the person or the situation that is getting you down.  Here's a quote:

"Turn your thoughts into a race—it can lift the blues in minutes, says Princeton University psychologist Emily Pronin, PhD. For example, when your mother-in-law is driving you crazy, give yourself 30 seconds to make a list of all the ways she's been helpful to you in the past—you'll feel better fast. (If nothing nice comes to mind, quickly jot down other ways she bugs you; speed thinking negative thoughts can still improve your mood, Pronin found.) Researchers believe that rapid thinking may release feel-good brain chemicals—or it could just be a helpful distraction. "

And there are some things I've never heard of on this list. 


For example, they recommend looking at pictures as something that will give your mood an 11% mood boost.  I had not heard of that as a mood booster, thought it makes sense.  I might want to stay away from this one during periods of grieving but it might help you to look at happy pictures of times past.

Another one they mention that I had not heard before is chopping vegetables.  Interesting.  Presumably, not onions.  :-)  

Go read the article.  Prevention.  

My hope is that you and I will internalize these lessons and learn to use these coping skills so that our winter blues or all the time blues or clinical depression will be a thing of the past.  Hang in there.  

More about journaling.

There's a great article about journaling, heBusiness Insider.   It not only lets you know (again) how journaling can be helpful, it has a writing prompt to use and explains why it is so helpful.  (As good as an antidepressant without the side effects!)  One of the things it says is to really write about what is bothering you and why this helps so much ...

re on
"The foremost reason is disclosure. Psychologists are basically in agreement that avoiding or inhibiting unpleasant emotions or suppressing your thoughts makes makes your body tense, your mood negative, and your cognition impaired. But if you access, express, and process those blocked-up emotions, you'll feel better, in all of the ways. For the same reason that talking about your breakup with your best friend makes you feel better, journaling about getting fired lets you process it."  

So dig in, start journaling.  Write the bad stuff out and then if you don't want to keep the notebook around, throw it away or burn it.  Get that stuff out.  

You will feel better.  

Posture!

Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are!  Go now and watch this video.  I'll wait.



Now spend 2 minutes adopting one of the power poses that make you feel more powerful and able to take on life's challenges.  It's worth 2 minutes of your time to try isn't it?

If for some reason you can't watch the video, here it is summed up.

Wonder Woman Did It Right

Here's a quote.  "Our body language is always influencing how others perceive you, but more importantly, it changes how YOU feel. Amy Cuddy’s research showed that not only does your posture change how you feel, but it also changes your hormone levels in a significant and meaningful way. "

First Things First

If you are feeling down, see a doctor.  If medicine is not working, check out this excellent article  about things to consider when your depression is not getting better, despite treatment and this article about things this writer does every day to fight her own depression, including prayer, meditation, laughing and practicing gratitude.  She's got more but I won't spoil it .... go read it!  I personally use laughter, art journaling, bible study and prayer, and want to, over the course of the next year, add in exercise and make some changes in my home that will help keep me on a more even keel like getting rid of clutter.  As we go on this blog, we will discuss all of these methods and use everything we can find to focus on the good.

Starting the journey ...