CWD Daily: March 2021

March 31, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Getting rid of things you don't need any more makes room for new memories.

It's a simple anti-depression technique, as well.

CWD Daily is written by Julie Aiken, a layperson whose only authority lies in 40 years of coping with depression. Nothing in the newsletter should be taken as medical advice. Please do no self-diagnose or self-prescribe. Above all, please get help if you need it.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 30, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

TRIGGER WARNING: This is a particularly upsetting subject.

There is help for suicidal thoughts and urges, but when you're feeling that bleak you can't believe there is hope or see any way to go on.

The website OC87 Recovery Diaries presents “stories of mental health, empowerment and change.” Many of these are first-person accounts of climbing back from suicidal periods and suicide attempts. Reading about others who have been there may calm, reassure or inspire you.

Stories such as “Dear Mom, I Want to Kill Myself” by Tree Franklyn”: “No one understood. In a world of six billion people, I was alone."

With first person essays, short films, interviews and reviews on topics from addiction to schizophrenia, you will find stories you can relate to.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 29, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad.”

It is simplistic, to be sure, but writing down or speaking aloud a list of your favorite things can be an effective technique to turn your mood around.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 28, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Get help. Parents – there is help available.

“...approximately 2% of children and at least 4% of adolescents suffer from depression at any given time. By the end of high school, approximately one young person in five will have had at least one episode of depression.

“Children and adolescents who are under stress, who experience loss, or who have attentional, learning, conduct, or anxiety disorders are at a higher risk for depression... The good news is that depression is a treatable illness.”

CLICK HERE for the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s online depression resource center.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 27, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“You're gonna' be nowhere, the loneliest kind of lonely.
It may be rough going;
Just to do your thing's the hardest thing to do.

“But you've gotta' make your own kind of music,
Sing your own special song.
Make your own kind of music
Even if nobody else sings along.”

Mama Cass – Make Your Own Kind of Music

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 26, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Trees can bring you joy. Plant them. Decorate with photos and paintings of them. Have picture books of trees on your coffee table.

HERE are some traditional associations with trees, according to House Beautiful.

Olive – peace
Oak – power and courage
Palm – peace (the trunk bends w/out breaking)
Birch – new beginnings
Elm – intuition and inner strength
Maple – sense of balance and promise
Cedar – healing
Japanese Maple – peaceful retreat

Like most evergreens, you might think of a fir as a Christmas tree. However, it is a symbol of rebirth and springtime.

Other trees that symbolize happiness:

Cherry, wild plum, wild pear, myrtle, wild apple and fig.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 25, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Depression is not about what's going on in your life, it's about how you think about what's going on in your life.

Catching self-abusing thoughts and turning them into rational assessments of a situation is key.

Try to remember to react to automatic thoughts with rational responses, and write it down: list automatic thoughts on the left half of a piece of paper and the rational response to each thought on the right side.

Even when you're so depressed you can't see the solution, try this technique, pioneered by David D. Burns, whose books are fundamentals in the field of depression.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 24, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

HERE is a yoga YouTube channel, Yoga with Kassandra, with truly easy stretches, breathing exercises, yoga tutorials, and more. Kassandra is down-to-earth and clear, and her exercises are super-doable.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 23, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“In the eye of a hurricane
There is quiet
For just a moment.
A yellow sky.

When I was seventeen a hurricane
Destroyed my town.
I didn’t drown.
I couldn’t seem to die.

I wrote my way out”.

– from Hamilton

Journal.

Make lists of things you've accomplished.

Write automatic thoughts and then rational responses to them (David D. Burns). Write down the automatic thought depressing you right now – not what you are feeling but what you are thinking. Then write down a rational response to that automatic thought.

Write your way out.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 22, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Sit with the wind and see if you can feel its energy, its freedom and unpredictability. It brings messages. Listen for them. Hear the lessons of nature, of the eternal breath.

It is the breath of life, the wind of change. Anything is possible. You can change. You can become whatever you dream. The answer is blowing in the wind.

“It is also the intangible, the transient, the insubstantial and the elusive. Winds serve as messengers of the gods and can indicate the presence of divinity. Cirlot notes that it is held to be the primary Element (of the four elements earth, air, water and fire) by virtue of its connection with the creative breath of exhalation. Jung in Symbols of Transformation points out that in Arabic (and paralleled by the Hebrew) the word “ruh” signifies both “breath” and “spirit.””

– from Symbolism.org

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 21, 2020

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Get help.

“Coaches have a vital role to play here. They can help their athletes process what is going on, discuss their feelings, try to come up with ways to make the seniors feel special – even if they never play another game. I promise you, coaches are already doing this.

“Something else coaches are doing – they're checking on their athletes who they know can be in vulnerable positions. As soon as Governor Roy Cooper announced the statewide closure of schools, I saw numerous coaches on Twitter offering to help kids get food and meals, bring them school supplies, help them find Internet connections, or offer other types of help as needed.”

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 20, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

In the Northern Hemisphere it is now officially Spring!

The days are getting longer and the sun seems warmer (when it's not raining).

Take advantage of this and grab some of nature's antidepressants. Take a walk, get some fresh air, sit in the sun! Plant flowers or pick flowers for your dining room table.

Celebrate Spring!

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 19, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“Pandemics are unlike other disasters due to their broad scope and prolonged, fluctuating timeline. COVID-19 (caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus) is shaping up to be unlike prior coronavirus infections, impacting multiple organ systems, not just the lungs, causing widespread problems related to blood clotting abnormalities and inflammatory reactions.

“In particular, the virus crosses the blood-brain barrier, resulting in myriad neuropsychiatric problems ranging from depression and anxiety to psychotic reactions to delirium and cerebrovascular accidents (strokes) to chronic executive dysfunction. The mental health impact of COVID-19 is of increasing concern. In addition to the direct effects on the brain, the COVID-19 pandemic is causing unprecedented psychological distress, threatening a “crashing wave” of mental health problems.”

COVID-19 presents a unique array of depression symptoms, collectively known as COVID Stress Syndrome. Mention to your doctor or psychologist if you think you're suffering from anxiety or depression or any mental health effects of COVID – not of “having” COVID, but of coping in a world where fearing and guarding against COVID is a daily reality.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 18, 20201

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Wind chimes are a delightful spring mood booster.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 17, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Wear the mask.

Eliminating some of the fear, worry, dread and helplessness we feel in the age of COVID-19 would be so much simpler if everyone wore a mask.

There’s an app for that!

Parade.com has an article on mental health apps; here is a summary of their list:

30 of the Best Mental Health Apps, Because We All Deserve to Feel a Little Better Right Now

NOTE: Not all of these apps are free. This list does not imply endorsement.

Moodfit
Sanvello
Happify
Rootd
SuperBetter
WorryWatch
Headspace
Calm
DARE: Break Free from Anxiety
Ten Percent Happier
Colorfy
Breathe2Relax
Sleep Time
Noisli
Slumber
Relax and Rest Guided Meditations
Nature Sounds Relax and Sleep
My Life Meditation
ReGain
Smiling Mind
BetterHelp
What’s Up?
MoodKit
LifeSum
Lumosity
MoodMission
Peak
Cognifit
Pzizz
Talkspace

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 16, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Sometimes you just have to order pizza – all major food groups and deliciousness with no cooking, no clean up, and no guilt.

Things that Make You Go Hmmmm...

“That's the thing about depression: A human being can survive almost anything, as long as she sees the end in sight. But depression is so insidious, and it compounds daily, that it's impossible to ever see the end.”

– Elizabeth Wurtzel, Prozac Nation

Sometimes it does feel impossible, but you CAN regain hope.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 15, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Those of us with mental illness had a fierce advocate in actor and author Carrie Fisher.

She made it OK to be depressed, bipolar, or otherwise mentally ill.

“We have been given a challenging illness, and there is no other option than to meet those challenges,” Fisher said. “Think of it as an opportunity to be heroic – not ‘I survived living in Mosul during an attack’ heroic, but an emotional survival. An opportunity to be a good example to others who might share our disorder.”

– Carrie Fisher interview for The Guardian

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 14, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Get help.

You may experience increased stress during this pandemic. Fear and anxiety can be overwhelming and cause strong emotions.

Get immediate help in a crisis.

Call 911.

Disaster Distress Helpline: 1-800-985-5990 (press 2 for Spanish), or text “TalkWithUs” for English or “Hablanos” for Spanish to 66746. Spanish speakers from Puerto Rico can text “Hablanos” to 1-787-339-2663.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline:
1-800-273-TALK (8255) for English, 1-888-628-9454 for Spanish

National Domestic Violence Helpline:
1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text LOVEIS to 22522
They also have a chat service online: HERE

National Sexual Assault Hotline:
1-800-656-HOPE (4673)
Crisis chat support is available at HERE

For more resources: CLICK HERE. (Resources are mid-way down the page.)

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

May 13, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

– Elizabeth Wurtzel, Prozac Nation

Sometimes it does feel impossible, but you CAN regain hope.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 12, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

To stave off depression, look outside of yourself and engage in the world.

Help someone else. Give blood. Talk to a senior citizen.

No need to make a big commitment that may feel overwhelming.

Do something – no matter how small it seems to you – that is not about you. Acts of service can fend off depression.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 11, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Create regular eating habits to ease depression.

There can be relief in simply not thinking about what to eat for dinner every day, and not foraging throughout the day, but rather having a simple, regular plan.

There can also be significant physical relief as digestion becomes more regular.

When carbohydrates are regularly decreased, especially simple sugars, and vegetables are increased, there is often a mood stabilizing effect. That is a lot easier to accomplish when you have a plan and have created a habit instead of grabbing things on the fly.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 10, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“Rumination is... a preoccupation with perceived mistakes, losses, slights, actions taken or not taken, opportunities forever lost. The feelings associated with obsessive rumination are guilt, regret, anger and envy...

“Rumination is often accompanied by harsh judgments, criticism, grudges, toward both self and others, and the overwhelming belief that if things had only been different then existing and future misery could have been avoided.”

HERE are some tips to stop rumination:

Think about the worst-case scenario... and ask 'Can I handle that?'
Let go of what you can’t control.
Look at mistakes as learning opportunities.
Schedule a worry break.
Mindfulness.
Go for a walk.
Try therapy.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

March 9, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

For a quick boost anytime, list 5 things you're proud of.

1. I survived cancer/divorce/losing a spouse (fill in your triumph)!

2. I'm a responsible employee. I show up when I'm supposed to, calling off sick only once in a while. I usually work through depression, but will take off when I have something contagious. I go above and beyond most of the time.

3. I'm generous. I don't have much, but I do give to people who have even less.

4. I am constantly learning new things and examining my point-of-view.

5. I spend a lot of time with my elderly parents and help them when they need it.

You get the idea. Give it a try!

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com