Today I Hate Everyone

Today I hate everyone (except you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_T04rO50po

I also hate perfect people (except you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVG85sUAG4I

Don't drag me down (not you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy6iJGqRA48&feature=fvw

There is something wrong with me (and you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-ZVPECQCOM

I want to ride my bicycle (with you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpy4xNAnWzM

Managing Anger with ACT

A little while ago I came to the realization that my anger was consuming me. I was tired of being angry all the time and it drained me of so much energy. So a bought a book on anger and read it. So far, it has really helped me a lot. I've been like a buddha for the last week. The book is “ACT on life not on anger” by George H. Eifert, PH.D., Mathew McKay, PH.D., John P. Forsyth, PH.D.

ACT is acceptance and commitment therapy. It involves accepting your angry feelings instead of struggling to change them and making a commitment to focus your energy on the things that matter most to you life. You can't control what you think or feel, but you can control what you do about it. You don't want to spend your time on this earth being angry.

I summarized the importnat points of the book here:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/managingangerwithact.html

Depression Medication: Taking Your Meds is Crucial

I take 2 medications; one is a mood stabilizer and the other is an antidepressant. About a month ago i ran out the antidepressant, which I was taking at a low dose of 5 mg, and didn't get anymore. I thought that it wouldn't matter if i stopped taking it because it was such a low dose.

Now that I look back on it, my mood was very low and angry for the past month. I recently saw my doctor and got more of the medication. My mood has improved significantly over the past couple of days. I feel like a dumbass for not renewing my prescription.

When i saw my psychiatrist she said something that was so obvious but i had forgotten it for the past month. She said, "You have a chemical imbalance". We all have chemical imbalances and no amount of therapy or self help can help us if we're not getting the right medication at the right dose.

It is crucial that you keep taking your medication or get a better medication if you don't like yours. There are tons of medications out there and there has to be one that helps you get by without brutal side effects.

You can learn more about depression medication here:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/depressionmedication.html

If you're having trouble sticking to a medication regiment, check this out:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/depressiondrugs.html

Your Self Esteem Won't Raise Itself

So many people with depression have low self esteem and this makes fighting depression that much harder.

It is your responsibility to figure out if you have low self esteem and fix it, because life sucks when you don't feel good about yourself no matter how much money, success, or friends you have.

Go here to find out if you have low self esteem:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/symptomsoflowselfesteem.html

Go here for exercises that will raise your self esteem (The 6 Pillars of Self Esteem):

http://www.depressiondodging.com/selfesteembuilding.html

Do yourself a huge favor and invest 10-20 minutes a day in developing your self esteem. You'll quickly notice how different you'll feel everyday.

Controlling Anger by Staying in the Present Moment

An effective way of controlling anger is by staying in the present moment.

Anger and depression often come together. People that are depressed often miss the underlying anger that is fueling their depression. People with bipolar disorder often switch between intense anger and depression.

Often we’re angry because of things that happened in our past. You can’t change your past and being angry about it just makes the present and future worse for you.

You can read the rest of this article here:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/controllingangerinthepresent.html

Fight Depression with Sunshine

We get vitamin D from sunlight and you should try to spend as much time as possible outdoors this spring and summer to fight depression. Vitamin D deficiency is why people with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) get depressed during the winter. When we’re depressed we tend to stay inside and isolate ourselves when we should be doing the opposite.

In civilized countries (like in the Caribbean) people don’t work from 12pm-2. Its called a siesta and people use this time to go outside, take a nap, or stay inside and have sex. No wonder they’re so happy and we’re so depressed. I want to live in the Dominican Republic during the winter sooo bad.

“The man” likes to scare you with skin cancer talk, but that’s just his way of keeping us depressed and obedient here in North America. I’m not saying you should spend every day naked at the beach without sunscreen, but a little sunshine every day is good for you.

Ideally, you want to have a siesta, but if your schedule doesn’t allow it, then try to get outside for lunch or even after work. Personally, I like to wake up and go play some baseball for an hour.

Go here for the rest of this article and ideas on how you can get outside more:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/fightdepressionwithsunshine.html

Managing Depression: Its Not Your Fault That People suck

You need to realize that most people are idiots and it doesn’t matter what they think. When managing depression, anger, and irritability it is important that our sense of self worth is independent of what people think of us. The only thing that matters is that we respect ourselves.

Take a closer look at your depression and anger. Are any of these feelings caused by ignorant assholes that don’t know how to treat people? Chances are that they are. Don’t let other people make you suffer.

Go here to do an exercise that will make you feel better about yourself:

http://www.depressiondodging.com/depressionselfhelpimawesome.html

Coping with Depression: Every Adversity is an Opportunity to be Great

I have had a rough couple of days coping with depression and anger, but I had a eureka moment as I was watching some show on National Geographic Channel. A plane crashed in the Andes mountains and not only did 16 people survive the crash, they survived in the freezing mountains for over 70 days! They had no winter clothing and they had almost no food (they had to eat dead bodies to survive). Search teams gave up on them but they didn’t give up on themselves. This got me thinking about adversity…

When we’re coping with depression or bipolar disorder we are faced with adversity daily, because even the simple things in life seem difficult. It is harder to get along with people, to enjoy things we used to enjoy, to get work done, etc.

When we’re depressed we dread adversity and see it as just another way that life is fucking us over. We need to realize and stay aware of the fact that adversity is not a curse. Every adversity is an opportunity to be great. Adversity isn’t around to make life hell, it is around so we can become better, stronger people. Your depression or bipolar disorder is just another adversity.

You can read the rest of this article at http://www.depressiondodging.com/copingwithdepressionandadversity.html