I haven’t been on here in a couple months, I got on here to seek some support from others and I definitely got the support but I was wanting more. I wanted to help myself and not think I was in a constant rut of anxiety and or depression. After doing some of my own research I eventually stumbled upon CBT or cognitive behavioral therapy. After discovering this I found a famous psychologist named David Burns. He is accredited with coming up with hundreds of techniques to defeat depression and anxiety and have lasting, long term results from this. Probably sounds to good to be true, and I thought the same thing. I read his book Feeling good and then his book Feeling great. They are work books that help you do actual writing and techniques that help you while you are reading. I am currently reading his book specifically on anxiety called When Panic Attacks. I promise just reading these books will not fix the things you want to change, it takes work, you have to do the work and put in effort, it’s not the easiest thing in the world but Dr. Burns really lays everything out for you and makes the process as simple as possible. This is our mental health, what if it’s just a little tough in the beginning and then gets easier as time goes on? Food for thought. Dr. Burns also has a website called Feeling Good and free podcast called Feeling Good. So there’s a lot of networks to take a look at. At first I was a little discouraged when I started reading his books because he talks a lot about immediate change and fast recovery. Which is totally possible and I have seen a drastic change in my own thinking in just about a month. But I wasn’t feeling as great as I thought I would and felt sad about it. But with my therapist help he reminded me that the techniques, homework and new things I’m learning are not always going to provide an overnight change. Some things can, but you also will need to put in consistent work. Keep in mind I am also seeing a therapist and doing other CBT techniques everyday that he has me do. But things really are changing for me. I’m not where I would like to be but I know overall that I’m getting better. I now have hope that I will get to where I am feeling very good about myself. Even on my tough days when it feels like life doesn't want me to be happy I fall back onto my techniques I’ve learned and know that I am making a change for the better. I really hope that I can give people who take the time to read this some hope that you can feel better and get to a better place mentally. I promise it won’t be easy, but I promise it will be worth it when you start to feel better. Any questions please ask, if I can help I will. Even if all of this sounds bogus or you think it’s not possible for you to feel better just know I felt and thought the same way. I thought I was defective. I now know I’m just like the other billions of people in the world and have a chance at feeling great about my life and who I am. I may not know your situation but I know you’re human and you have felt sad, depressed, alone, angry, frustrated, hopeless etc because I have felt the same way. Please give one of his books a try and do the work as you read. I just remembered he gives a lot of examples of patients he’s worked with and there personal stories, it gives you hope that someone else has felt the same way and has recovered. I hope you find your hope and learn to love yourself like I’m learning. Be patient with yourself, take your time and put in the work. It is worth it!
Here are links to his books, website and podcast. I would start with his book feeling great and go from there.
amazon.com/Feeling-Great-Re...
amazon.com/Feeling-Good-New...
From Claire Weekes' Hope and Help For Your Nerves
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