Hi friends,
I love sunshine! At least before we reach the super-hot, muggy days of summer. I’m sitting here in front of a sunny window in my role as an ‘adult supervisor’ while my teenage son runs a Dungeons & Dragons class at our local homeschool co-op. There is lots of laughter and creativity happening here. 😀
I hope you also have sparks of joy wherever you are in the world.
Speaking of . . . I wanted to share a simple tip to help combat the doldrums brought on by depression and/or anxiety issues.
How to talk back to depression and anxiety in 10 minutes.
Many times our thoughts can pull our mood down or increase our stress by filling our head with ideas that cause those not-so-fun emotions.
If this is something you or someone you love struggles with and you’re looking for new ideas, I really like the techniques taught in “Feeling Good” or “When Panic Attacks” by David Burns.
The basic premise of cognitive behavior therapy is that we have thoughts that lead to emotions and if we can change the thoughts, the emotions will improve.
Example:
- You have a long list of tasks on your mental to-do list and looming deadlines.
- Thoughts running through your mind might be: “I’m never going to get everything done in time. I’m going to miss deadlines, get late-fees, and be in all kinds of trouble. Why even bother trying when I’m going to fail?”
- You feel disheartened, ready to quit and hopeless.
Simple exercise:
- When you feel down or stressed, stop for a moment and write down the thoughts in your mind (see #2 above).
- Then talk back with a statement you believe just as much as the disheartening one.
Example:
I’m never going to get everything done in time.
Talk back: I might not get everything done, but if I split them up into smaller tasks, I can get quite a few done. I feel a lot more calm when I have smaller tasks and a plan to do them.
—-
I’m going to miss deadlines, get late-fees, and be in all kinds of trouble.
I might miss one or two deadlines, but if I organize the tasks with the urgent ones at the top, I bet I could take care of the most urgent ones in time to meet the deadlines. Some of the tasks can wait until the weekend when I can schedule some time to finish them. If I’m getting close to a deadline, I can call for an extension. Even paying one or two late-fees isn’t the end of the world.
—-
Why even bother trying when I’m going to fail?
I know in the past, once I actually sit down to take care of a yucky chore, it tends to get done much faster than I anticipate and usually isn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Getting anything done on my list is better than nothing.
—-
And that’s it. As you replace the negative self-condemning thoughts with more realistic, positive ones, check in and see how your emotions have improved.
A few tips:
- Do this as a writing exercise, not just in your head. Engaging more senses by writing (touch, sight) makes the exercise more concrete. It also forces you to define the nebulous ‘bad thoughts’ into specific words.
- Write down your counter arguments. Same reasons as above. 🙂
- Short and frequent is more effective. Spending ten minutes for six days will have more impact than an hour on a single day.
- Find a friend and decide to do this together. Like any new habit, doing it with a friend will help both of you follow through.
How about you? Any simple tips you’ve found that help with depression and/or anxiety? I’m happy to include them in future newsletters.
Find a little sunshine and enjoy today!
______________________
Misty’s Writing Update:
I got some funny penname ideas from you like M. Zauggenaut and Zauggy Mist – LOL. I think I’ll stick with M. Zaugg. 😀
I have finally got most of the non-writing part done with this new series and am getting ready to brainstorm the plot direction for book 2 along with exactly what new spells and upgrades our MC will be able to acquire.
Not to mention he has a bunch of coin and rewards from the end of book 1 he gets to spend in the Academy store, so I’ll have to make a whole lot of tempting armor, weapon and spell items to choose from.
It’s always fun to give them the quandary of choosing when they really want all of it. 😀
Oh, and his pet will be leveling up and needs a fancy, stealthy type skill or ability. If you have an idea for something cool a ‘ninja’ baby star-nosed mole could do, suggest it please!
I’m planning on the MC using the pet as a scout to spy around the school and keep tabs on those working against him and/or get good intel to help him and his buddies’ progress.
So, this is a new writing skill for me, generating game-like content alongside the usual plot elements that I’m much more familiar with. Hopefully the ideas I come up are fun for my readers.
Thanks for your help and support!
Enjoy reading this week!
— Misty 🙂
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