Positive coping statements for depression is one tool that keeps me from circling the drain.
Having spent decades with unhelpful thinking, that was all I knew. And depression was right there to steer me away when I got near coping statements for depression. It often sent me time traveling. I spent more time in the future than Marty in “back to the future.” The future for me was filled with my own version of Fortune Telling. Time-traveling to the past introduced shame, guilt, and anxiety over everything I coulda, shoulda, woulda done. I was without any coping statements for depression.
Why does depression dislike coping statements for depression?
Is it because they show depression in its true, sneaky way? Depression hates it when I have a plan. Especially when I am avoiding the use of catastrophizing statements. When I begin to think “I can’t…” depression lights up like a Christmas tree.
A study reviewed in the US National Library of Medicine https://www.nlm.nih.gov/ and The National Institutes of Health https://www.nih.gov/ reveals patients using positive coping statements have better outcomes than those who use negative self-talk. Now that I understand the difference, it is clear that positive coping statements have a positive impact. Self-talk is just that. Our brain believes what we tell it. This is what the research shows.
The study involved measuring Quality of life and coping strategies of outpatients with a depressive disorder in maintenance therapy – a cross-sectional study
Read the study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5746068/
I take pride in saying one thing I have done consistently is not beating myself up verbally.
You will never hear me saying out loud that “I’m so stupid” or “I am not good at …” I know the harm that can cause, and I actively keep those thoughts from coming out. Now in my subconscious mind, what coping statements for depression I am using are different. By using shame, guilt and anxiety, depression has taught me how to avoid my core emotions.
My goal is to always use positive coping statements for depression.
Some of these include:
- I have depression, depression does not have me
- I can handle this
- I have done this before, so I can do it again
- Getting this going will reduce my worry about it
Some people have a journal to note when they use coping statements for depression.
I have learned about unhelpful thinking styles. It is amazing how many negative thoughts I throw at myself. I did not think I was doing that. I pride myself in not saying them out loud, but I am hearing them inside my head. And this was keeping me within depressions grip.
READ MORE: I promise not to should on myself today
And because I concealed my depression, even from myself, I could not hear myself using these thoughts to undermine my ability to lead a balanced life. I am so angry (which is a core emotion) at depression for not telling me the truth.
It told me when I use coping statements for depression, I will feel guilty.
Depression would toss in shame, or anxiety to reinforce its position that doing anything towards leading a balanced life was not a good idea. It cleverly suggested that negative coping statements such as “I cannot do this” would be in my best interest. After all, depression says, why get your hopes up if things are just going to come crashing down? You don’t’ deserve to be hurt like that.
What depression did not tell me was that it was my depression, in the end, that was doing the hurting.
The more I know how to use coping statements for depression, the more it hates the idea. And keeping up the pressure on depression, subjecting it today after day of standing up to unhelpful thinking, can cause it to retreat to the shadows.
I will live the rest of my life with depression.
However, I can use coping statements for depression to keep its influence small. In fact, there have been periods in my life where I did not hear from depression. One such period lasted for almost 15 years. And while others have been shorter, I have a track record of coming out of each depressive episode stronger and more focused.
It has been 15 months since I walked into the hospital and said, “I need the help of a mental health professional.” And I must add the 8 to 12 months before that where coping skills for depression were getting lost in my head. All told, this time, I have given up over two years of my life to depression.
I am ready to work with coping skills for depression to build my confidence and lead a balanced life with depression.
READ MORE: 10 self-care things I am doing to reduce stress
My path has been a roller coater of ups and downs. I am looking forward to spending time going up, and for the moment, leaving the abyss in the background. Yes, I know it is there and will always be there. But that does not mean I should focus on “what if triggers send me back to circling the drain?” I have tools that for 43 years, I did not have. And I have a support group that I never, ever had before.
Positive coping statements for depression is one of the most used gizmos in my toolbox.
The evidence is there. My Google search provided 100’s of studies linking positive coping statements with more successful outcomes from depression’s grasp. I encourage you to explore this research and add coping statements for depression to your gear for living a balanced life with depression.
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