Step 2 Is To Help Yourself

Once you're on medication can you do things to help yourself. Medication alone will not save you and keep you happy.

- You can build your self esteem. Low self esteem can have brutal consequences on your life. It can stop you from advancing at work or having satisfying relationships.

- You can change your lifestyle. You can't be happy until you stop abusing alcohol and drugs. They just fuel depression

- You can find purpose in life and spend your time on things that are important to you. Finding a job or hobby that is meaningful to you can keep you depression-free.

etc

Everyone's depression is different. Everyone gets depressed from different factors and shows different symptoms. You need to be aware of what fuels your depression and find strategies to deal with those things, whether its low self esteem, a stressful job, problems with relationships or all of the above.

You can help yourself as much as any therapist can help you, but you have to be willing to things to help yourself every day if you want to be happier. Many of the strategies and exercises I have on my website don't take more than 10 minutes or a lot of effort to do. Doing simple exercises at the beginning of your day or when your symptoms flare up adds up. Not only will you feel better now, but you will be building your ability and toolkit to deal with any symptoms that arise in the future.

You can find exercises and coping strategies at my website www.depressiondodging.com