The art of people-pleasing is one factor that can contribute to the onset of depression or fuel your symptoms to become worse over time. While this behavior may seem like it’s for the greater good of others around you, you may actually be hurting yourself in the long run—and possibly the short term.
Many of us were taught not to listen to our emotions or our bodies, and that we were supposed to rule them with our minds. This cut many of us off from these sources of wisdom, guidance, and protection. Women are often told we’re too emotional and that’s why we can’t be in leadership. Men are often taught that being too emotional is a weakness. But from this perspective, couldn’t we take being emotional as a compliment?
If you have never discussed depression before, you may not even know what it is. Even if you know what depression is in the broad sense, you may not fully understand what it entails and how deep it goes. Specific terms may not be a part of your vocabulary. Certain cultural norms teach you that you work hard, you reach your goals, and maybe you don’t complain when things go awry.
EMDR research started with its use for PTSD treatment. There has been evidence showing positive outcomes with other psychological issues. Depression stems from negative or overwhelming life experiences. Some of these experiences can also be traumatic. So the tie-in here can be significant. Being able to identify the cause of the depression and reprocess how a person deals with those experiences can be helpful in overcoming the negative aspects.
There’s a lot of taboo when it comes to suicide, and people often fear that talking about it will “put the idea in someone’s head” or somehow make the thoughts worse. You may have encountered people like this in your family or community. However, research has shown that these fears are not helpful and ignoring the issue may actually cause harm in some cases.
Finding and choosing a therapist can be an exciting proposition. Therapy is also a great place to learn about our boundaries, our needs, and requests. Remember, your therapist is working for and with you, not you for them. If you have particular goals, needs, desires, or anything important to you you’d like for a therapist to know, the consultation is a great place to share.
It can be hard to watch someone you love battle depression. Ignoring the depression signs your partner presents will not make them go away. This is especially true if your partner engages in self-harm or suicide attempts. Even though you cannot cure your partner’s depression, there is always something you can do to help.
If negativity via self-talk is your tendency, you may be suffering a slow slide back into depression. Using hurtful language inside your own head fosters a poor relationship with yourself. Depressive thinking then develops from your own self-mistreatment. Fortunately, your recovering mind is not powerless.
To move from self-improvement to self-actualization requires support. Positive Psychotherapy can help with all of the aforementioned strategies and more. Check in with yourself. Tune in to your needs, talents, and eccentricities. Be you as much as possible and acknowledge when you aren’t being you so that you can examine why.
A depression counselor helps remind you that you have a right to feel better. Low self- esteem, self-imposed, and the colorless life you’ve been leading can make you feel like you deserve depression. A trained professional can encourage you and affirm your choice to seek more than a life sentence of depressive thinking and loneliness.
