Quick update (and a shout of Thanks to Sandy Sue and other terrific supporters for your words of wisdom!):
– Depression beater 1 million: an hour deep tissue massage. Use a Groupon or online coupon. Hurts like heck during it, but could actually move and stretch again after a few hours. A bit sore today but not unbearable. Don’t be cheap, go for the hour to really hit all the knots depression hides in.
– Projects Help: A Lot!: continuing painting in the dining room and, even without doing trim work, is starting to look pretty amazing. Benefit: a mindfulness exercise, low stress, get in some exercise, but have to pay attention. Which keeps me from obsessing over…well, everything. Also went out and bought fabric for next big stitching project. Last one took 4 solid months. This one looks like about 8. Another mindful, mindless project that yields results to be proud of. Some people garden, cook, do woodwork – I sew.
– You May Gain A Bit of Weight, But You Probably Will Be Able to Lose It: Depression eating isn’t new, heck, many of us overindulge when we’re not depressed. But it’s only during an episode that I’ll make a 9″ pan of brownies and eat it all. We won’t talk about the brownie or cookie dough runs. However, after the initial “food medicating” is past, it takes a bit but one can get back on the horse, and with some initially hard work, lose that weight. Yes, it sucks. Yes, we initially feel even crappier thanks to the scale monster. Yes, we can do this…again. I gained almost 5 pounds in about 2 weeks and lost about .6 in 1 day through heathier eating. Imp: Results may not be typical!!!
– One Sure Fire Sign You’re Coming Out of It: ok, more than 1. You showered today and brushed your teeth. You were able to go back to work. You are back on your healthy eating program. You can stretch, move around, and want to get back to exercising, doing errands, and all that other life stuff. You may not FEEL 100% but you’re moving in the right direction. I’m at the “doing self care, eating better, and ready to get back to exercising”. Yay!
Only you know your “depression remedies” – and hopefully your significant other/support system in case you need reminding. As a rapid cycler, mine are horrible but short lived. If your main diagnosis is depression or you’re a BP1, your episodes may be much longer and require different remedies and much more time for you to see relief. That’s why it’s always so important to contact doc asap to discuss your plan and what you can do to get through this one and help make future one’s shorter and more manageable. I’m not a doc myself but after 14 years on this merry go round, have learned a tad bit. Hope this helps any of your out there or at least was an interesting read!
Related articles
- 6 Ways to Clean House When You’re Depressed (everydayhealth.com)
- Exercise as a Mood-Lifter (everydayhealth.com)
- Common Treatments For Depression (answers.com)
- Winter Preparedness. We Really Will Make It Through! (thecordovatimes.com)
- How to Get Out of Sad (freetobemetoo.wordpress.com)
- Re-set (lookingca.wordpress.com)
Lara: On the Weigh Down 
Little markers along the way really help me keep perspective (I showered *and* got dressed—HooHoo!). The impulse for me is to try to make up for lost time—do all the chores, finish all the projects—when I’m not quite there yet. I keep a little Dr. Seuss mantra running to help with that. “Left foot, right foot, red foot, blue foot.”
And, oh, that massage is heavenly. My body aches so much during an episode.
So glad you found your pony, Lara, and are back in the saddle.