FROM BOTH SIDES - March 1, 2000
Kathy Greenberg, Ph.D.
Coma/ TBI Survivor
COPING WITH DEPRESSION OR JUST FEELING BLUE
Let’s face it. Life can be a bowl of cherries full of pits.
Sometimes, life is not fair. Bad things, horrible tragedies can happen to good
people. A traumatic injury certainly falls into this category. The issue is how
you cope with it.
STEP 1
The first part is acknowledging the feelings and the inner
turmoil. This may sound simple, but sometimes it is the most difficult thing.
Unless you are masochistic most people want to avoid pain and depression. Also,
family dynamics, sex difference, cultural and ethnic background can make step 1
virtually impossible. There are several ways of assessing if you fall into this
category. If you find that your most difficult moments are during your free
time. Your daily routines involve keeping yourself so busy that you do not want
down time to think and feel. When you do have a moment of down time, you become
agitated and lack focus. In a private moment you find yourself fighting tears.
NOW THAT YOU HAVE GRADUATED FROM STEP 1, WE CAN MOVE ON TO
STEP 2. REMEMBER, THESE ARE POSSIBLE SUGGESTIONS. EVERYONE IS THEIR OWN UNIQUE
INDIVIDUAL.
- Allow yourself to cry and go through a box of tissues with the tears
running down your face. I do not mean in front of an audience. This is your
personal private moment. Some people feel better both mentally and
physically and find it a cathartic experience.
- Make a list of the good things in your life. It becomes too easy to focus
on the negative. If you spend all your time on what is wrong with your life,
of course you are going to be depressed.
- Forget about the past. Find something, anything that you can succeed at
right now. There is nothing like feeling you have accomplished or succeeded
to feel good and avoid depression.
- Get involved with a group or others who are in the same position. Have you
ever heard of the expression misery loves company. It can be very useful.
The idea of meeting and sharing in a safe environment can decrease the
psychological burden, and in turn help cope with depression.
- Be good to yourself. Buy yourself a little present. It does not have to be
big or expensive. It can be anything that will make you feel better.
- Try to engage in physical activities that are within your physical,
financial, and time limits. Walking, stationary bicycle, and low impact
aerobics are a few that are a part of my routine. Physical activity is not
only good for physical well being, but your psychological well being. Common
sense dictates that improving your psychological well- being, will decrease
depression.
- Wake up everyday with a purpose, meaning and some activity. Inactivity, no
focus and no plan is a definite prescription for depression.
Again, these are all suggestions from either personal experience or
psychological theory and practice. Feel free to incorporate one, two, or all of
these in to your own life.
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