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Glass Half Empty

18:44 / 26.03.06

Ok, so I've always lent more towards the cynical view of life for as long as I can remember. All of the fine things about our world, the beauty, the art, the love, just doesn't seem sufficient enough to offset the evil and stupidity of the human race as a whole.

This bleak view becomes unacceptable when it gets to me to the point of me becoming sarcastic and snippy to those around me, generally when they don't deserve it.

Since the 'lith tends to have a fair few people who have been through similar bouts of depression, what do you find helps pull yourself through these horrible patches?

paranoidwriter waves hello

20:15 / 26.03.06

Baby-sitting / hanging out with my mates' kids helps me.

Last week, I went upstairs at a friend's house and heard hir three year old daughter bouncing up and down on her bed. She was supposed to be in the bed and when she saw me peering round the door, she dropped, pulled the covers up to her chin and pretended to be asleep. I couldn't help laughing, and, encouraged by my laughter, she immediately got up and started bouncing again.
"What are you doing?" I said, faking an authoritative tone. To which she replied,
"Help! I can't stop!"

I dunno, it may be a cliché, but children do help you remember a time when trust, hope, and fun were more than mere words.

Hope that helps.

20:25 / 26.03.06

Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best...

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...

If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing.

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...

For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin - give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow.

So always look on the bright side of death
Just before you draw your terminal breath

Life's a piece of shit
When you look at it
Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true.
You'll see it's all a show
Keep 'em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

And always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the right side of life...
(Come on guys, cheer up!)
Always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the bright side of life...
(Worse things happen at sea, you know.)
Always look on the bright side of life...
(I mean - what have you got to lose?)
(You know, you come from nothing - you're going back to nothing.
What have you lost? Nothing!)
Always look on the right side of life..

I can't say it better than that. Chin up!

20:29 / 26.03.06

Depression can seem like an inescapeable darkness that covers and distorts all of the things we can usually find enjoyment in.

Sometimes I feel that I actually benifit from the effects of a minor depression, kind of like the whole light and dark spectrum of human emotion. Sadness can help me apreciate the more enjoyable moments in life.

Finding empathy in sad music can go a long way to reach deep into the darkness and lead me back towards a more normal state of mind. The Smiths once got me through deep depression.

There are some good musical suggestions in this thread aswell as some great links. Sad music with beautiful, heart-breaking melodies

It is also often quoted that psychiatrists would recommend It's a Wonderful Life to patients suffering from depression. This was because it was such a well known feel-good movie, and it generated positive results. However, contemporary psychiatrists would probably scoff at this idea.

It's a Wonderful life (1946)

Plot Outline: An angel helps a compassionate but despairingly frustrated businessman by showing what life would had been like if he never existed

20:36 / 26.03.06

But don't you find "It's a Wonderful Life" terribly depressing even in its finale? If an uplifting Jimmy Stewart fix is needed I'd recommend Harvey. And if Stewart and invisible rabbits don't float your happiness boat...er...The Lion King?

paranoidwriter waves hello

20:42 / 26.03.06

Yeah, 'Harvey' is a classic. You could also try Mon Uncle: shows you how to laugh, rather than spit at Life's absurdities.

20:46 / 26.03.06

% World renowned depression psychiatrist Dr Petula Clark recommends %

'when your alone and life is making you lonely, you can always go downtown'

20:50 / 26.03.06

*echoes* downtown

Bubblegum Death

20:51 / 26.03.06

I love that song! That and "Runaway" are my two favorite "oldies" songs!

21:33 / 26.03.06

Things like meditation help me. Anything that helps you identify the fact that you're actually having a conversation with yourself, and that disrupts that conversation. Mediation stops you taking thoughts as a given, and gives you resources/opportunities to play around with them.

Try listening to the words and descriptions you use internally to get yourself into this state of mind - are any of them familar patterns? You can then disrupt or stop these with different focuses - focusing on silence for 10 minutes might make these thoughts shut up, paying close attention to the tone of voice might provide a different experience.

None of this is a cure all, I'm conscious as I write it might sound a bit "meditate the worlds problems away" but its stuff that's worked for me in the past.