Depression is CANCELLED
Let’s talk about something familiar, Depression! AKA “The Sads” - which is what I stated calling it because I used to have avoidance tendencies and would try to make things into jokes when uncomfortable.
When you’re depressed, your mind is running in circles thinking about the way things used to be, maybe the way YOU used to be, or the way you wish things were. This is a dangerous place to let your thoughts get trapped for long. (Speaking from experience.)
One minute you’re applying eyeliner when a song comes on that triggers some painful thoughts or memories... Next thing you know, you’re crying all that eyeliner and makeup off, hammering out a mopey text to your BFF, getting sadder and sadder with every word you type. But you just can’t help it. The Sads Vortex has you now. You’re down that depression rabbit hole, and the day is a write-off.
It’s important to vent and let it out - speaking from experience as a person who was able to suppress ALL FEELINGS WITH MECHANICAL PRECISION - that extreme is also unhealthy and self-destructive.
But... just think of what an energy drain this is - not to mention a waste of makeup. How different would life be if you devoted time to yourself, your goals, your health, and all the amazing things you actually have in your life right now? What if you could recognize that Sads Vortex coming, and dodge it?
Try this: turn off the sad song, take a deep breath and practice GRATITUDE.
Be GRATEFUL for whatever is making you sad - even if it’s out of your reach right now. I know that sounds crazy, but hear me out. If it was so amazing that it’s lack is making you cry every day, it must have been pretty fucking special and I bet a lot of people wish they could be so lucky to even sample a taste of it.
Focus on the positives of that experience - whether it was being the most fit you’d ever been and you wish you had that body back, or times you spent with amazing friends whom you’re now super blue missing, or that luxe vacation you had, being waited on hand and food by a team of enthusiastic servants on a tropical island, and now you’re back to the shitty every day, real life grind that feels like it’s sucking your soul from your eye sockets.
Combating the Sads with Gratitude takes practice, but the payoff for flexing this skill will blow your mind. Imagine! All that time you normally spend dwelling on the past, what if you dedicated that energy focusing on YOURSELF and what you love and what you can do to feel better? Imagine what you could accomplish?
We can’t change the past. But we can change our present, which changes our future.
The amazing thing you’re missing? You can totally get that feeling again. That’s not the last time you’ll feel that way! There’s more good to come!
BUT YOU WON’T GET THERE IF YOU DON’T STOP PLAYING “SHALLOW” ON REPEAT, GET OFF THE COUCH, SPLASH YOUR FACE WITH COLD WATER AND RE-APPLY YOUR EYELINER!
Fact: gratitude is the only antidote for grief.
It’s OK (and important and healthy) to grieve and to accept the emotion of sadness. But don’t dwell there for too long. Be present, be sad, and be grateful. Then think about what else you have to be grateful for - a warm bed, food in the fridge, friends who accept your miserable ranting texts...
And then appreciate the lightness that comes from releasing yourself from the grips of The Sads.
The more often you do this, the easier it gets, and slowly but surely, you will transform your life.
xo,
Krista