Motivation in Depression
We live in an era where life has to face multiple challenges irrespective of the social background one belongs to. These challenges are manifested in terms of depression, anxiety and sadness most often. Anyone who has struggled with depression would appreciate how difficult it is to get through the challenging situations of mental battles.
One of depression’s many notable features is a lack of drive to do anything. To have some days be more difficult than others is normal but consistent stress due to anything causing loss of drive to work or depletion of energy to get along, can be very harmful.
To cope with the ongoing situation, one must focus on the present moment as much as possible and not worry about what lies in future. The good news is that you can use mental skills and strategies to reawaken the drive to live a fulfilling life gradually.
Following six practical ways to be motivated in Depression out of so many would help you fight this situation to mitigate the quantum of depression and you may live a happy and healthy life.
Know Your Feelings and How to Be Optimistic
Although it may seem unsound, you must give in to your emotions as they arise and accept that you are depressed. The more you try to suppress, ignore, or otherwise deal with your unpleasant emotions, the worse they will make you feel. In addition, the more time you spend trying to hide from your bad emotions, the more guilty and ashamed you will feel.
You’re putting extra strain on your mental and emotional health by forcing yourself to endure it for longer and longer. This makes the matter even worse rather than curing it.
Instead, give yourself the approval to acknowledge the range of feelings you’re experiencing. Just let yourself feel them, and remind yourself that they will surely pass. Cry it out if you need to. Get away from everything and focus on yourself if you feel the urge. Accepting depressive episodes as they occur is one of the most effective methods to deal with them right now.
On the contrary, the more you push to deny the situation would aggravate with diminishing hopes of recovery. So! accept and stop the self-denial of your being under the heavy loads of depression. This would help you rather.
One Thing at one Time
Encourage yourself by telling that this is the only thing you have to do at any given moment. Instead of taking a load of the whole project at once, dissecting it into manageable chunks can be quite beneficial. Focus on the now, even if your aim is as simple as preparing three healthy meals for yourself today. Right now, the only thing that matters is that it’s breakfast time.
Stop wasting time on what shall be your plans for lunch or dinner. If you divide your daily duties into manageable chunks, you can focus on each one more effectively and have a more relaxed day overall. Don’t put undue pressure on yourself by setting unrealistic goals; it will only make you feel like a failure if you don’t achieve them in time.
Moreover, while keeping bigger tasks in mind, you may avoid start thus waste time. Remember, that even the smallest of steps is better than none. It makes no difference if the job takes all day. Don’t overload yourself with minute details. Just remember that you have more resilience than you give yourself credit for.
Select Little Targets and Celebrate when Achieved
As depression takes away your motivation, a deliberate effort is inevitable to replace it with something better. This process begins with the establishment of intermediate objectives. You may like to organize your closet, for instance.
If you’re able to accomplish this, treat yourself by making your go-to dinner or catching up on the newest episode of your favorite show. A series of small victories and rewards can restore energy and drive.
Gradually increase the complexity of the goals as you feel better. You could, for instance, go for a long run and then treat yourself to a bite-sized snack afterward. It clears the way for success, which is always satisfying. If you find yourself becoming task-saturated, it’s time to take a step back and assess your goals.
The ultimate objective can be as daunting as mastering a brand-new talent or doing a previously leftover project. See what happens when you try various things.
Do Not Fuel The Beast, Recognize
Negative emotions only aggravate the problem at hand. Self-pity, self-doubt, and worries are all negative feelings that feed (and grow) depression. While you can’t completely silence negative thoughts, you can train yourself to recognize them when they arise. When in doubt, do the opposite!
Motivating oneself with words of wisdom from inspiring talks or movies can be a great way to boost your spirits and learn new things. A short collection of inspirational quotes can do the trick if you don’t have time to watch a full video. Even if you hear ten thousand negative comments, just one positive one can change your mind. Something can completely change a day by spending just a few minutes thinking positively.
Look at these few instances:
I have an unwavering love for myself.
Yes, I am a STRONG person!
That is the finest for me, is what life wants. I am content with my current situation.
The way I feel is important, so I try to prioritize the things that make me happy.
Despite my challenges, I have opened doors to better possibilities.
I decide what I think and how I live my life.
Doing Stuff Before Being Motivated.
There is a widespread misconception that we need to be in the mood to take action. And that simply isn’t the case. Imagine getting out of bed on a boring Monday, filing your taxes, or calling the cable company’s customer service line as examples of activities you do that you’d rather not do. We continue to carry them out.
You might think you need to motivate yourself before you can get started, but in reality, you don’t. The same idea applies to tasks that aren’t as unpleasant but are difficult, such as going to the gym, sitting down to study, or cleaning the kitchen. You can just pretend to be motivated by doing the things you normally would do anyhow. However, did you guess what? Momentum builds once you get started, which in turn alters your disposition. In other words, don’t wait till you’re in the mood to start working on something before you do. At that point, your disposition (and drive) will have caught up. Doing something that is rewarding makes us want to do it again and again.
If you’re feeling down, it’s important to keep moving forward, even if you aren’t fully devoted. Once you see results from your hard work, your motivation will increase, setting off a domino effect of positive outcomes. No, it won’t be quite as inspiring as feeling as you can take on the world, but it will get you closer. It is in nature that seeing the destination closer adds energy to the depleted body.
Achieving short objectives leading to success would re-energize you to do more and more. So keep moving. Surely this will get your energies channelized and you shall achieve your desired goals and develop the mood to do more.
Value yourself
While dealing with depression, just getting through today is a huge success, never undermine that. You are always battling every moment so the time spent in peace is a great achievement, celebrate it.
Having the opportunity to vent out by yelling it on rooftops, avail that, do not feel shy. Be contended what you have achieved in life, not everyone can be the happiest person in the world, and comparing your success with others will waste your time only, refrain from it. Appreciate others when you can, you would feel satisfied and happy.
Doing things when are feeling down is challenging. So aligning your approach and collecting the right resources as per your objectives would lead to success. Believe in yourself and remember! I surely believe in you.
