What has helped you relieve your symptoms?

[InspireHope]

Being in the throws of depression, anxiety, or any other mental health challenge, it is easy to focus on the symptoms and the suffering. And if that is where you are right now, there is hope and there is help! This is a community designed to support each other through the challenges of "mental illness". But, if every one is solely focused on the suffering, where is the hope?, where is the help?

I urge those who have encountered any kind of strategies that have given them relief and success to share with this community what has worked for you. By focusing on a solution, you not only are taking your focus off of the suffering, but are giving other people hope. It serves your own well being and the well being of others. This is the strategy I choose to share with you that has helped me relieve my symptoms of major depression and generalized anxiety. Sharing with others strategies that have worked for me gives me a purpose that was missing in the throws of my depression. What has worked for you?

[Hidden]

What has helped me through numerous head injuries,stroke,ptsd,severe depression,anxiety n etc is "laughter".Maybe I'm just plain nuts,BUT I have found turning a negative into a positive with laughter changes everything.Ive been disabled since I was around 26 years old.Ive tried tons of meds that only covered up the problems n never solved them.Along the way I tried pretty much everything anyone mentioned with no luck for what ailed me.When I was diagnosed with Dystonia..my world crashed for 2 years,THEN I found ME n listened to people laugh at nutty things I said,so I ran with it.I try to help others that have,or r where I am n I add my crazy off the wall humor,to help them through there day or etc.Music n my pup r also my saviors.

So..if ur struggling n need a laugh I'm the right chiki for the job.No use crying about stuff u can't fix.i always say..better to laugh ..then cry n look like a shar pei dog.😁

[InspireHope in reply to Hidden]

wow, Hippolove1! You are in pain regularly and yet find the strength to laugh. That is amazing! What sources do you use to find and develop your humor? I bet that would be an incredibly useful tool for many.

[Hidden in reply to InspireHope]

I think all my head injuries n stroke made me just say...keep laughing cause if I start crying I won't stop n I'll wrinkle like a raisin.Plus I don't like raisins,lol and who wants wrinkles,lol One of my conditions keeps me trapped in my body n not able to use it at times,so I have tons of time to think of crazy stuff n that's where my brain always goes.Some may call it denial,I call it "living with the med stuff ur dealt with" 🙄 n helping another laugh with ya.

[InspireHope]

Great indervir! I'm so glad mindfulness meditation helps you. Will you explain how it has helped you?

[InspireHope]

Hi ChavivLeon, what I'm hearing from your post is that you are moving towards an acceptance of the way things are and letting go of the way things were by focusing your attention on what you CAN do now. I commend you for that. That is a really hard thing to do. It's kind of a grieving process I would imagine and you're moving towards the other side. Something that helps me with my thoughts in general is to think "is this thought helpful or hurtful?", meaning does my thought support me in this moment and move me towards my best possible self or does it bring me down? If it is unhelpful or hurtful, then I simply acknowledge that it is and refocus my attention to the present moment (mindfulness) and the thought passes. The more I do this, the more I retrain my brain to be present.

Another thing I hear from your post is that you don't see yourself as young and healthy. While you can't change or prevent aging, the concept is relative. You are young compared to many and old compared to many. So, it's pointless to compare, even to your younger self. But age has little to do with how healthy you are. You can be "old" and healthy, even with physical limitations. If you value being healthy, then you can act on that every day. "It's important to me to make healthy choices because I value my health and vitality?" The more you make healthy choices, the more you identify as a healthy person. Hopefully this is helpful.

[Penguin13]

Exercising has been essential in my recovery. It’s one of the most difficult things to do when you are not feeling motivated but even going out for a 10 minute walk always makes me feel better.