Hi my name is Rachel and I'm a Poynton PANDAS Group Member.
I have suffered with depression a few times
in my life and I have mastered a few techniques which most certainly help fight
it and I hope keep it at bay. I’d like to share them with you so that hopefully
you might find some of them useful to your situation. Everyone is different and
what works for one may not work for another but I have found some basic
principles and tools which do seem to help and if it’s ok with you I’d like to
share them with you.
Although I didn’t actually get depressed
after having my little boy, the sleepless nights, hormones and the lack of
support made me at times very irritable with my husband and a nightmare to be
around which I’m not proud of. Luckily my husband could see I was unwell and
eventually accepted I needed help. But I got back on track and have been well
for several months now.
But I’m no stranger to depression or the
Black Dog as Churchill referred to his depression, when I think back I remember
those awful feelings, how it feels to want to hide away from the world, do nothing
and curl up in a ball. To basically feel like you are a stone statue unable to
move, it can be very debilitating. Coupled with anxiety it makes for a vicious
circle. Staying home in your house and avoiding people just makes the symptoms
worse – along with the fact that you have a little one wanting to go the park
or play means on top of all that you feel guilty. It’s hard. Anyone who sees
people as weak with this condition are just plain ignorant. Like any illness, we
just need the right tools to pick ourselves up and get well again.
BUT there is light at the end of the tunnel
– like thousands of others I’m proof of it – these are simply my thoughts and
tools I use – I hope you find some tips
from today and you come away with hope rather than despair. Feel free to ask
any questions.
1)
Depression is not a lifelong
prison sentence even if it feels that way right now – you can come out of it
and live a happy fulfilling life. You can enjoy life again. With the right
tools this will happen.
2)
Depression does alter your view
of the world around you, the way people perceive you and the way you perceive
yourself and others. Remember and accept this negative view is part of the
illness and not the reality. Be kind to yourself.
3)
When all you really want to do
is hide away under the duvet if you were to do that it would just perpetuate
the condition for longer and most likely worsen the symptoms. Think beyond how
you feel right now and visualize a time in the near future when you are well
again and happy – its not far away.
Tools for improving mood
EXERCISE
Light cardiovascular exercise – a walk in
the forest, a gentle run in the park with your kids, playing with your dog, a
half hour swim – it doesn’t have to be too strenuous to have an impact – but it
will release the feel good hormones, endorphins and automatically make you feel
slightly better even if you didn’t want it to. When the last thing you want to
do is some exercise – just think – this is going to help me and in half an hour
I’m not going to feel as rotten as I do now. In short, it works! Choose
something you like doing – maybe you could persuade your partner or a friend to
join you in a dance class every week – that would encourage you to commit to it
too.
I’ve been practicing yoga for many years
and find that very therapeutic too – it centres the mind whilst relaxing and
calming your thoughts. I feel focused and energized afterwards. As mums we
don’t have much spare time so other ideas are dancing round the living room to
some of your favourite music with your little one. My son loves it! Getting
away from the house on your own though has many beneficial effects – you need a
bit of me time each week.
HEALTHY FOOD
Everything we eat has an effect on our body
and on our mind. I find eating lots of slow releasing energy carbs such as
oats, quinoa, brown rice help balance my mood (and blood sugar). Along with lots
of fresh unprocessed foods – fruit and veg, cheeses, fish. Oily fish such as
salmon, trout, anchovies has EPA and DHA Omega 3 fatty acids which have been
proven to prevent depression and improve brain function – this is why eskimos
hardly ever suffer with depression. I eat salmon at least twice a week.
I drink very little caffeine nowadays
(which gives me spikes of caffeine highs followed by tremendous lows), I
instead drink Aldi decaff ( the best instant I’ve found!) or a Nespresso decaff
for a treat or chamomile and honey tea. I also drink lots of sparkling water. I’m
impressed by how good decaff in cafes is nowadays too and I don’t get that
awful shaky feeling afterwards.
I find chamomile brilliant for reducing
anxiety- the sister of depression as many of us know. Valerian tea is
apparently even more effective at reducing depression but I’ve not tried it
myself yet.
If you are one of those girls who rushes
for chocolate when feeling down (and I still love chocolate!) then try
something equally as sweet like mango, banana or berries and melon – these are
going to give you that sugar hit but do you a lot more good in the process. I
invested in a juicer which is really good as I love the sweetness of the juices
and it curbs my desire for mounds of chocolate later on. Equally if you can
manage a small amount of chocolate and it makes you feel better then perhaps
use it as a reward for doing one of the other healthy actions. I found dark
chocolate and slices of pear quite nice and hits the spot!
If you are feeling anxious light foods such
as melon, berries, steamed veg are good for calming you. Avoid any spicy foods
which could make you feel worse.
Unsurprisingly cutting out or dramatically
reducing alcohol (a depressant) and nicotine ( a mood de-balancer to say the
least) will definitely help. I gave up smoking eight years ago after reading
Easyway to give up Smoking by Allen Carr- no gimmicks, no nicotine replacement,
no cravings. Best thing I ever did.
MINDFULNESS
This is doing an activity where you are
100% absorbed in that activity and don’t have chance to think bad thoughts – it
is brilliant! Different activities work for different people of course and
choose something you love doing. For me I cook, knit, jog and practice yoga.
All of them help me to switch off. Mindfulness can also be being aware of all
your senses – for example a walk in the forest – listen out for different
birdcalls, smell the pine trees, listen to the dog barking etc.
This article is proof that knitting and
other textile making hobbies really do calm anxiety levels and help soothe.
AROMATHERAPY
For relaxation and to curb anxiety, I find
lavender and basil oil excellent at reducing stress levels – I put a couple of
drops of one or the other on my pillow at night and I forget all about my
worries. Equally I put about 5-10 drops in total in the bath which also works
well. Chamomile oil and rose oil are good although personally I’m not keen on
the smell of the former – bit of a haystack!
You can blend them with carrier oils such
as jojoba or almond oil and put them on a tissue to carry around if you need
to.
ACUPUNCTURE
One particularly bad bout of depression
affected my sleep pattern and I became an insomniac for the first time – I was
waking up 5 times a night (worse than after having my son!!) so after going to
the GP who could only offer sleeping pills which I didn’t want to take, I was
walking past a Chinese acupuncture practice where the sign – “cure insomnia”
suddenly caught my eye. It was a complete revelation and within two sessions I
not only slept normally again but I felt like a light had been switched on in
terms of mood – I felt my old self again – definitely worth it – personally I
would recommend a Chinese acupuncturist rather than Western one as they train
for seven years in China and you can find a list of recommended practitioners
with TCM online.
In acupuncture, depression occurs when the
liver (responsible for mood) is not functioning properly and the acupuncture
rebalances the chi (energy) in the body and mind and strengthens the liver.
SUPPORT
It’s amazing how important it is to have a
good circle of friends around you that understand what you are going through.
Sometimes if your partner is not being as supportive as you would like a
friendly ear is just what you need to keep going.
As well as in the real world, social
networks can be useful occasionally – on Facebook I discovered a page called
Project Happiness which has some brilliant advice and posts.
BEING GRATEFUL
I write three positive things that happened
to me each day at the end of the day. It makes me realise things aren’t as bad
as I sometimes think they are.
I rest when I can – I no longer overdo it –
I have to accept I can’t do everything I want to do and I realise that for me
this works and keeps me well which as a mother and wife is my responsibility.
In
summary these are my tools that I use to keep depression at bay – I hope some
of them will help you too.
.......
If you would like support in managing and overcoming depression please come along to our drop in group on Mondays at St George's Church in Poynton.
Email: psppoynton@aol.co.uk
Or visit
www.facebook.com/poyntonPANDAS
