Depression is a major problem. More people are diagnosed with depression than ever before. Because of this epidemic, many people are taking medications to help cope with feeling chronically depressed.
These medications only mask the symptoms of depression, doing nothing to cure the cause of depression. Furthermore, depression medications carry extremely heavy side effects, including more depression, suicidal tendencies, and even death. If you don’t believe this, I invite you to read the paper insert that comes with any depression meds – you will see this clearly stated.
Instead of covering up the symptoms of depression and masking the issues at hand, we must dig deep and heal the root cause of depression.
This article will shed some much-needed light on the dark world of depression.
Joy Appreciates Sadness
Some people occur as naturally happy all the time while others seem to live in misery. Happiness and joy are essentially the same things. When you are genuinely happy, you tend to show this through your communication, emotions, and expressions.
Happiness is contagious, and unfortunately, so is misery. If you could choose to affect a room of people, wouldn’t you want them to be full of joy instead of misery? Misery may love company, but happiness appreciates the solitude of sadness.
Key Is To Let it Go
Joy comes from within. It’s an expression of your soul. Surrounding yourself with joyful people and situations help create a life of balance which can make a significant impact on depression.
Toxic people and situations create toxic emotions! Toxic emotions lead to depression.
Do you think it’s realistic to be full of joy all of the time?
We’re human and deal with the same ups and downs on the rollercoaster of life. It’s okay to let yourself feel pain, sorrow, and sadness sometimes.
However, when you dwell in these emotions, they will surely steal your joy. Acknowledge the not so happy emotions, understand the lesson they’re teaching you, and then let them go.
This can effectively create a space for joy to crowd out any sadness that may come up. You may think this is easier said than done; so to better illustrate this concept, I will give you an analogy …
Beyond The Gray Sky, There’s Always Sunshine
Think of it this way; the blue sky is your ultimate state of bliss, and negative emotions are rain clouds. Some days will be sunny and some will be cloudy or rainy. If we had clear skies all the time, we would lose appreciation for how amazing blue sky and sunshine feels.
You must remember that the clouds and rain will always pass. The same goes for any negative emotions you experience. They’re a temporary blockage of your happiness, not your permanent state of being (depression). This is a natural cycle and normal ebb and flow of life.
Many people identify with their cloudy/rainy days and become a slave to their misery. Perhaps this is why so many people are diagnosed with depression. There’s a blue sky beyond the gray clouds and if you embrace the rain, you can ease your pain.
Do This Every Day For At Least A Month
Feeling and experiencing joy is another key element to healthy and balanced living. Maintaining happiness is an area I still tend to struggle with sometimes as well. To counterbalance this, I remind myself of everything I’m grateful for… every day of my life.
What I recommend to my clients and like to do myself is keep a daily gratitude journal.
Write at least 3 things you’re grateful for every morning.
- Are you happy that you have eyes to read or ears to hear this article?
- Do you enjoy having arms and hands to hold this Smartphone?
- Are you grateful for your children or parents?
These are some of the things you need to remind yourself about when you start focusing on what you don’t have. Similar to the law of attraction and abundance, the more you focus on happiness, the more happiness you will create. Same concept goes for sadness, anxiety, jealousy, anger, and yep, you guessed it … depression.
Stop Being An Ungrateful Brat!
Beginning your day with gratitude and acknowledgment can help to keep you in a state of joy even through a stressful period.
Doing this rewires your brain. It has you gradually shift your focus from lack to abundance. In my opinion, depression is caused by focusing on what you don’t have instead of acknowledging what you’re grateful for.
When you become present to the amazing life you live, happiness and joy will start flowing abundantly. I also like to remind myself of all the hardships I’ve been through and happy memories of loved ones I’ve lost. That usually has me feel and express joy instantly.
Trust me, I can relate… and empower you to reach for greatness. I wrote this article because I’ve walked the talk and want to support others who struggle with depression. I identified with depression for a long season in my life.
Over the course of a year and a half, I lost 5 close family members, experienced a painful divorce, and dealt with food, cigarette, and alcohol addictions. Through those adverse circumstances, I was forced to have powerful breakthroughs in areas of life that were extremely difficult to deal with.
Looking back, I became incredibly strong and earned extraordinary wisdom from my experience. Coaching people in this area is just one way of many that I like to give back for what life has taught me. Now is always the time to live your life with abundant joy!
