#depression recovery
It’s 2020, it’s time to stop putting so much importance and value on physical beauty. What is beauty, anyway? Everyone has a different definition of it. Stop judging others and stop judging yourself for their beauty not fitting into your version of it.
WE are beautiful and WE are radiant and no I don’t accept criticism
- Nonpathologizing
Not viewing the “problems” as the whole person.- Empowering
- Collaborative
- Focus
- Self
- Relationship
- Depth
- Good Therapy Is Imperfect
- Sometimes We Can’t Help
Therapists should understand that while they will never give up on a person, they may not always be the right person to help a certain individual.(Source: http://www.goodtherapy.org/what-is-good-therapy.html)
[Of course, anyone of any identity, including men and non-binary people, can treat themselves to a manicure, a bouquet of flowers, or a face mask. However, for a variety of reasons, some people may not feel comfortable with these traditionally ‘feminine’ self-care ideas. The following are ideas for pampering your body and mind that have little or no gender connotation.]
Stretch||
it’s a great way to start the day, to do during a break, or to wind down before bed. Stretch gently; never stay in a position that causes sharp pain.
stretching 101||7 basic stretches||stretches for neck pain||yoga poses you can do in bed||stretches to boost energy||
Create a luxurious sleeping space||
whether it’s closing the curtains, repainting, or trying a new pillow, there are lots of ways to improve your sleep. You can make it a project or just a couple of minutes.
light, bedrooms, & sleep||5 calming colors for a bedroom||mattress guidelines for good sleep||types of pillows & sleeping positions||
Experiment with texture||
Sensory play is often suggested for children and adults with special needs. But textures can be calming or stimulating for anyone. Have fun and see what works for you.
Homemade “theraputty”||homemade stress ball|| “sensory diet” for teens||12 ideas for tactile defensiveness||different kinds of textures
Self-massage||
Everyone has occasional aches. Even if nothing hurts, it can be incredibly relaxing to get a nice massage. If you massage yourself, you’ll get exactly what you want with no strangers or fees necessary.
3 ways to massage yourself||for muscle knots/triger points||4 common trouble areas and how to massage them||how-to: reflexology||reflexology self-help||11 ways to self-massage everything that hurts||
Dress in what makes you feel good||
It might be that pajamas make you feel comfortable with the world, or that you like putting your best foot forward in slacks and a button-down. Dress in whatever makes you feel good about yourself.
important aspects of pajamas||how clothing affects self-perception||link between clothes & emotional states||clothes affecting your mood||clothes, colors & mood||
Play||
Not just for kids anymore. Play is a powerful tool that can calm you down, pep you up, or just help you enjoy the day a little bit more.
the benefits of play for adults||importance of play||what constitutes ‘play’?||40 ideas||150+ ideas for summer||
Take in meaningful words ||
Whether they’re famous quotes, single words, or affirmations, meaningful words can be healing, empowering, or soothing. Find words, quotes or affirmations that work for you and return whenever you need to.
15 quotes to make you think||15 positive quotes||20 inspirational quotes||1000+ positive words||more positive vocabulary||list of affirmations|| 100 positive affirmations||5 steps to make affirmations work||
Mind your breath||
it’s natural and automatic, but it’s still important to think about your breath once in a while. More efficient breathing means more oxygen, which helps your mind and body feel and work better.
6 relaxing breathing techniques||mindful breathing||3 breathing exercises||technique to calm breathing during panic||3 types of deep breathing||relaxing breathing for depression||
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Little victories on depression
I need to shower so badly. This motivates me, I’m 50% there now to actually getting up and showering!
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Tips for Those Who Find Self-Affirmation Super Difficult:
•Use other people to see yourself. Think about your best friends, favorite characters, etc who have flaws and think about how much you love them anyway. Think about how a friend or someone reading a book about you would describe you
•Take it slow. I love those posts telling everyone to think of themselves as strong beautiful precious land sharks or whatever, but some people aren’t ready to believe that yet and saying the words just feels like something you’re supposed to say and not something you mean. You can work up to big affirmations by starting with little ones; “I’m pretty good at math and I have nice eyes” might be easier than starting off with “I’m beautiful and a genius”
•Start off deconstructing negative thoughts. It can be hard sometimes to convince yourself that you’re great when your head won’t stop screaming “but I’m useless and gross!!” or whatever. Try to rephrasing those thoughts so you can continue to self affirm- remind yourself that most people aren’t completely awful and that there are many things that you do well
•Make lists. List your positive traits, and then think about one specifically and convince yourself of them one at a time. List your goals and then the ways that your positive traits can help you achieve them. List all the times in your life where you’ve felt proud or good about yourself and use them like little Patronus memories to ward off bad thoughts.
•Visualize your affirmations. It can be infinitely more effective to think about all the times you’ve been generous in your life than to merely say “I am generous.”
•Spend time around people who talk to you the way you should be talking to yourself. It sounds kind of dumb, but at times even people who insult you in a completely friendly way as a joke (“are you coming to the party bitch?” etc) can contribute to you being able to say those things to yourself, even if it’s harmless. Conversely, being around people who talk to you positively can really, really help it sink in.
•Figure out what tone best relays self affirming information to you. For some people, it’s the cute and non-threatening pictures of animals telling you to be kind to yourself. For some, it’s imagining the affirmations to be coming from a person or character you think of as wise. For some, it’s trying to make it sound as logical an argument as possible so that there’s no room for self-doubt. Sometimes you need them all at different times.
•If using words at all to self affirm is difficult or problematic for you, try other ways of reinforcing the information. Do things that make you feel good about yourself and highlight positive qualities you have, like volunteering or creating or whatever it might be. Reward yourself when you do something good or reflect on something that makes you good. You can even self affirm through movies and music.
•Sometimes broad definitions help. Try to remember that your definition of being a good person has to be flexible; it doesn’t hing solely on being a good parent or friend or boss or writer. For most people, being able to define themselves as a good person is the basis for their positive sense of identity, so try to remember that there are MANY different ways to be a good person that are not contingent upon never screwing up
I posted about relapse prevention previously, but the handout from IOP was too long for one post. So to follow up on what relapse is and how to identify your “relapse signature”…
Questions to Consider in Identifying Warning Signs and Relapse Signature
- What was the very first thing you noticed at the time?
- What happened to the days and weeks leading up to your relapse?
- When did you first know that you were unwell? How did you find out? Did anyone tell you they thought you were becoming unwell?
- Did you go to the hospital? How? Did you avoid going to the hospital?
- Were there any changes in your symptoms you noticed at the time? Were there any changes in your symptoms you did not notice at the time, but that you now think may have been warning signs?
- Were there any changes in your mood/behavior that you noticed at the time? Were there any changes in your mood/behavior you did not notice at the time, but that you now think may have been warning signs?
- What was the most obvious or severe change before your relapse?
- What changes did you make? What happened next?
Strategies to Cope with Warning Signs
Coping with warning signs or relapse symptoms means something different for everyone. It may mean you do or do not do something, but generally it involves stress management techniques and distraction activities.
- Reduce stress and stimulation
- Do some relaxation - relaxing activities, exercising, playing sports, stay clam
- Use self-talk
- Use a diversion - a distraction, music, earphones/earplugs, meditation, TV, talk to someone
- Initiate social contact
- Do some reality testing
- Note people’s advice
- Try suppressive techniques - wear and flick a rubber band on your wrist, say “stop!” to symptoms
- Seek assistance - tell someone, a friend, your doctor, therapist, case manager
- Think positively
- Keep taking your medication
- Get more sleep
- Plan your day
- Engage in your action plan
It’s always important to have an action plan. Think about which coping strategies have worked for you and some you are willing to try, and remember that some strategies won’t always work, so have backups. Talk to your mental health therapist about helping you develop an action plan.
(source: Providence St. Vincent IOP handout 2015)
Like the posts here on mentalillnessmouse, posts on these other tumblrs may be triggering, so peruse and enjoy at your own risk.
Eating Disorder Recovery Starfish
Psychotic Depression Border Collie
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Advice Animals
guys no one is texting me at 8:33pm on a random tuesday i have no friends
