We all need to be heard for a little while.

seven-day-weekend

Gingernutty wrote: »

I am stuck in a depressive rut and need to do something to get out of it.

I need to get well, get back on track at the gym, get out more, cultivate some hobby or spare time activity and find some other means of employment.

I am paralysed with what needs doing.

It all seems so, 'big'.

As the dawn comes earlier and the evenings are getting lighter, all I can think about is the awful Summer I had last year.

Then there's the knotweed, the work on the house, having to move out at some point - all that work!!

I'm just waiting on the builder to get back to me about when he can start, the payment schedules, packing to leave, finding somewhere to stay.....

All I did all day today was stay in bed.

I feel so tired and low, how can I do everything that needs to be done and get well, get back on track at the gym, get out more, cultivate some hobby or spare time activity and find some other means of employment.....

How do you do it?

You don't try to do everything at once!

I read a book once by a psychiatrist about depression and he said he was always pleased if he called on a patient recovering from depression and the hoover was in the middle of the floor. He was glad that she had enough motivation to think about hoovering, and enough strength to try it, but also enough wisdom to realise she could not do it all at once and needed to rest frequently.

He said that people trying to do too much, too soon, is the main cause of relapse in depressive illness.

Bite size chunks, please!

seven-day-weekend

Waves_and_Smiles wrote: »

A lot involves your mindset at the time. When there is a lot to be done it is easy to think of yourself of a failure if it seems overwhelming, so you become more depressed at what you perceive as your inadequacies and withdraw even more. It is learning to be proud of the smallest accomplishment, what you didn't get done isn't what is important, try to focus on achieving one little thing and be proud of that. Remember what you managed to do and replay yourself doing it in your mind, realise what you managed to accomplish despite feeling down and overwhelmed rather than what is still to be done.

I have a friend who suffers from severe depression and she says that some days, the fact that she has got out of bed and got dressed is a huge achievement, even though she may have just watched tv all day.

What she often does is, gets up when her husband does, as he gets ready to go to work, gets dressed while he walks the dogs, and then he takes her to Wetherspoons (five minute's drive) on his way to work. She'll then sit and have a coffee, read her book, then maybe a bit of shopping, then catches the bus home. When she gets home the dogs are ready for their second walk, so she has to go out with them. By then it's afternoon and then she can sleep until early evening.

It structures her day and is a huge achievement for her.

heartbreak_star

Back after a busy weekend!

Didn't manage to get a newt photo - she kept hiding whenever I got the camera out Her name is Abe, after Abe Sapien in Hellboy, and she got named before I knew she was a girl!

HBS x

tea_lover

Happy Birthday code!! Hope you have a lovely day with lots of cake and lovely doggy cuddles xxx.

Morning all, how's things?

gingernutty - I too am feeling overwhelmed by the sheer size of the to do list at the moment. Like others have said... baby steps. We'll get there I am really hoping to get back to the gym after work today but that seems like a HUGE thing to manage so far.

Waves_and_Smiles

Happy Birthday Code! Do something nice for yourself today!

Awww, Abe is shy HBS!

jobbingmusician

How exciting! Code's birthday Have a great day! (Will try to post a piccy later on - must go to work now.)

seven-day-weekend

Happy birthday, Code

heartbreak_star

Happy birthday code!!

HBS x

Birdie85

Oh I love the Jelly Babies Tea! I've just had a lovely wave of nostalgia wash over me as I remembered that I had a collection of them that my Nana knitted for me when I was little!

Your friend sounds so lovely WaS, how wonderful that he wrote you a poem. People seem to forget that Valentine's Day is for all kinds of love, not just romantic love. I used to buy my friends little presents for the day but people thought I was odd so I stopped!

Happy Birthday Code! If you've got any cake leftover (ha!) send it my way!

I'm another one totally overwhelmed by to-do lists that I ignore everything and play on the laptop all night rather than do anything productive! My wardrobe is horrendous and I want to sort it, I keep saying that I won't bother sorting it until I've read the Marie Kondo book and I'm putting off reading the book because I know what it will lead to!

Pyxis

Birdie85 wrote: »

People seem to forget that Valentine's Day is for all kinds of love, not just romantic love. I used to buy my friends little presents for the day but people thought I was odd so I stopped!

That's a really nice idea! I admit, it hadn't occurred to me that St. Valentine's was for anything other than romantic love, but you're right! It shouldn't be!
It should be a chance to express affection of all kinds!