You cannot know how timely this is for me. I'm going thru a bad spell. A
lot of losses I can't seem to get my head around, poor health, a little help
from some nasty medication and the season have all ganged up on me at once.

I must say I am grateful for and thankful for being older and having been
here before. It was so much harder when I was young and didn't really know
there was light on the other side.

I'll be OK. I'm weaning off the bad medicine. And seeing my doctor Monday.

The sun is out today and I will go out and sit in the light if I do nothing
else all day.

We are having an unusual cold spell, and plans for the next trip to the
store include warm socks and gloves to be dropped off at the rescue mission.
We have a large local population that just kind of camps in the
riverbottoms. Usually it isn't all that bad for them but it usually isn't
this cold.

I wish I could take you up on the talk. Part of the loss is the loss of my
hearing. I was scheduled for a cochlear implant in July only to have it
yanked away by my insurance on the day before surgery. Now I have been on
disability long enough to get Medicare and I understand they will cover it.
Next appointment with the hearing doctors is December 8th.

Jo
"CatNipped" wrote in message
...
Baha's recent post inspired this. For those of you who don't want to talk
in person (and that is one of the symptoms of depression - we don't have
the energy to make the effort to get help), I'm putting down here some of
the things to watch for as the early signs of depression (the earlier you
catch it, the easier it is to overcome - and as strange as it may seem, we
don't always recognize it when we begin to feel depressed), and some tips
on what you can do to help yourself get through.

Signs to watch for:

- Feelings of lethargy, not wanting to put forth the effort to do
anything.
- Changing your normal routine without apparent cause.
- Feeling alone or isolated from the rest of the world.
- Loss of appetite (or, for some, eating much more than you normally do).
- Sudden weight loss or weight gain.
- Wanting to sleep, not wanting to get out of bed or, adversely, insomnia.
- Sudden bursts of weeping for no apparent reason.
- Memories of bad things that happened to you that seem to stick in your
head.
- Dwelling on the loss of someone or something important in your life.
- Wanting to hear sad songs over and over again.
- Feeling annoyed when someone around you is acting happy, bubbly,
excited, etc.
- Feeling angry about something that wouldn't ordinarily make you angry.
- Feeling "clingy" with partners or pets or, adversely, not wanting to be
touched.
- Shutting yourself off from others by going to another room to be alone,
or going driving alone.

(And lots of others that may be specific to an individual - learn to
recognize your own signs of depression.)

Things you can do to help get yourself through to the "other side" of your
bouts of depression. These are *IN ADDITION TO* getting help from a
doctor or psychiatrist. [PLEASE - don't be ashamed or afraid to seek
professional help. Society tends to stigmatize people with mental health
issues ignoring that fact that there are *MILLIONS* of people who suffer
from these problems. The only shame involved is when you know you need
help but refuse to seek in.]

- Smile! This is weird, but it works and I'll tell you why it works.
B.F. Skinner showed us that we have physiological reactions - real
physical changes to our bodies - when using repeated, or "learned"
stimuli. Just as his dogs salivated when he rang a bell, our bodies
"learn" that certain actions are associated with certain reactions and
will automatically trigger physical responses to associated actions. From
the time we are born we smile when we feel happy, loved, secure, and
comforted. What makes us feel those things (or maybe because we are
feeling those things - cause and effect here are a bit tenuous), is that
endorphins are being released in our brains. Endorphins are very powerful
hormones equivalent to morphine. They help to ease pain and they make us
feel good. For all our lives our bodies have associated the physical act
of smiling with the release of those endorphins. Even if you are feeling
terribly depressed, *FORCE* yourself to put a smile on your face and
consciously *FORCE* yourself to *KEEP* a smile on your face. After a few
minutes your brain will start releasing endorphins and you will begin to
feel better. This really does work, try it even if you're not feeling
depressed and note the difference in your feelings!
- DO something. Rearrange the furniture, clean out a closet, and if you
don't like housework, just pack up the kids and take a walk. This
accomplishes two things. First of all, the physical exertion will help
wash out of your bloodstream the hormones and chemicals that are
associated with depression. Secondly, just the act of doing something,
anything, helps get rid of that feeling of helplessness. You are taking
charge of something, no matter how small, and this leads to confidence
that you can take charge of the larger things.
- Exercise (along with or in addition to the above for the same reasons).
- Find a friend to talk to. Even if there is nothing they can do to help
you out of your situation, it will at least keep you in contact with a
"saner" perspective on things (providing you pick a sane friend, that is
; ).
- Help someone else in need. An act of kindness or charity will make you
feel better about yourself and might also help you put your problems into
a better perspective. Caveat: don't choose someone whose problems are
similar to your own, don't get into a hopeless situation that will depress
you further - you want something that will take you out of yourself and
get you involved with something other than your problems. Choose someone
who *CAN* be helped, not a "hopeless cause".
- Rent the funniest movies you remember seeing, things that you know will
make you laugh in spite of what you may be feeling.
- Put on fast-paced, upbeat music and get up and dance (pick up a kitty
and dance with him/her.
- Play! Play with the kitties, go to a park or playground and swing on
the swings. Let yourself enjoy the physical sensations and the freedom of
acting silly no matter who might be watching.
- Stand in front of a mirror and make funny faces at yourself - stick out
your tongue, wiggle your ears, do something to keep from taking yourself
too seriously, show yourself that that your can make fun of yourself and
your problems.
- Think about, and make concrete plans for, something fun in the near
future (like a special treat for Valentine's day or your or your honey's
birthday. Write down all the things you want to do to make the occasion
festive.
- Have sex (even if it's just with yourself ;). Make your body feel
good and get reconnected with life.
- Eat chocolate. It's been shown that chocolate affects the same area of
the brain that sex does, especially in women.

I hope that some of this helps whoever is out there who may be dealing
with seasonal depression. Again, feel free to email me your phone number
and I *WILL* call you to talk about whatever it is that is making your
feel depressed and try to help make you feel better (it's my repayment for
being given a second chance at life - see below).

As for me, I am so grateful that I did not succeed in taking my own life
28 years ago. Back then I thought I would be so much better off dead,
life meant nothing but pain and I could *NOT* foresee things *EVER*
getting better. Looking back it takes my breath away when I think about
the unbelievably happy, joyous things I would have missed had I
succeeded - meeting my current DH who make my life *SO* sweet; seeing my
kids graduate; seeing my kids get married; seeing my grandbabies being
born; the wonderful kitties I've loved since then - more happy things that
I could ever list here, and none of those things would I have experienced
had I be successful in my efforts. I am thankful every day of my life
(even the ones when I am battling depression) for the second chance I was
given. Life is *NEVER* so bad that we can't get through it and there is
*ALWAYS* something better that will happen if you can just stick it out
and get through the bad times.

Hugs,

CatNipped