HOW TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF WHEN YOU'RE DEPRESSED | RECOVERY 101

***OPEN ME FOR TIPS IN TEXT FORMAT***

Episode no. 2 in my Recovery 101 series! I've put together some tips that have helped me get motivated to get out of bed and do something with my day, screw you depression!
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TIPS-

1. Drag yourself out of bed and do what you can to get dressed, brush your teeth, wash yourself etc. TRUST ME IT MAKES YOU FEEL BETTER! you can always get back in/ sit on top of your made bed but at least you've done it! If you wanna go a step further and put makeup on thats great- I find when I feel shit and I do my makeup nicely I feel good. Even if you leave your bed to go to the lounge and sit with siblings or mum thats an achievement. At the end of the day WRITE DOWN YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS FOR THE DAY.

2. Quotes- pinterest, stick postit notes of them on your mirror, have daily reminders on your phone. You might be led in bed and they could motivate you to get out.

3. Write down/ talk about things you like & enjoy doing on a good day. (went to a group session feeling shit but talked about Lola, youtube etc. and the things I was good at and my mood improved) Brainstorm them and then schedule in doing these things more often!

4. Have a plan each day. Even if its chilling with your dog/ watching netflix its a plan. Makes your day feel more structured even if its not! Keep your mind occupied so you dont overthink- watch tv/ speak to a friend. Try to plan out either one or two weeks ahead of time and actually write the activities into your calendar with specific days and times. Spread them out as much as possible and make sure to stick to the schedule. AND make your goal to do it, not enjoy it. When you’re feeling depressed, it’s natural to lose interest in things that used to make you happy.

5. GET OUTSIDE! Go for a little walk- take your dog, go with your mum, get her to promise you a coffee or hot chocolate at the end. Connect to the world around you- often felt disassociated but just look at the sky, look at the trees.

6. Read self help books. THE ONES MENTIONED WERE-

When I was depressed my concentration was rubbish and I wouldnt even consider reading self help but when I got a little better I found they really helped. I actually built up my reading by reading magazines and then easy read childrens books to get my brain back engaged.

7. Cut yourself some slack, dont compare yourself constantly to everyone else because you're always setting yourself up for a fail. PRACTICE SELF LOVE. Depression thrives off negative energy and our aim is to beat it, so throw self love at it and it wont know what to do with itself. Every single morning tell yourself one thing that you love about yourself (can be anything) again could put sticky notes on mirror.

8. SELF CARE- its important to schedule in me time. Things you could do are: paint nails, fake tan, watch your fave film, make a cup of tea. pampering yourself is the total opposite to what you want to do to yourself but trust me it works!

9. Get help and use it- psychologist, phsychiatrist, therapist and FIND THE RIGHT ONE FOR YOU. If you're with CAMHS dont be afraid to ask to change but make sure you stay on their case. There are many different types and groups available. My fave was CBT but with the right psychiatrist. WRITE A LIST BEFORE YOU GO OR MAKE ONE WITH YOUR PSYCHIATRIST. Take a notebook/ file.

!!!Most important that you're honest or you wont get the most out of it!!!

10. My favourite coping mechanisms: all about identifying/ rationalising/ being aware of whats going on.

-Learn to identify your thoughts when you're feeling them and let them just pass by as if on a conveyor belt 'oh I'm feeling this' but DONT attach any significance to them. See them as annoying but overall harmless. Thoughts DONT ALWAYS LEAD TO AN ACTION.

-Mindfulnes in certain situations- attach your thoughts to a picture so it could be them as leaves floating down a stream, steam coming out a steam engine, balloons floating into the air

-Remember that your emotions are not facts!!! Learn to say 'I FEEL fat, I FEEL like a failure' this does NOT MEAN ITS TRUE!!! WE TAKE OUR EMOTIONS TOO SERIOUSLY

-Be aware of confirmation bias. When youre in a spiral of depression its so easy to seek out reasons to justify how you might feel. EG. You think everyone hates you, you text your best friend and they dont reply... immediately you link it to that when in reality they might be busy/ have no signal/ their phone died...