The Calendar For People Who Suffer From Depression

“One day you will tell your story of how you overcame what you went through, and it will be someone else’s survival guide.” – Brené Brown

We dedicate this calendar to all people who suffer from depression to help them take action, find the meaning of this life and their purpose and learn how to self-reward themselves even for seemingly insignificant little improvements daily. Step by step, day by day! Indeed, it is a process; however, it is not just about us who suffer from depression but also about our family members and friends taking care of us and loving us.

Motivation and focus in depression come and go, don’t rely on them too much. Motivation might be helpful, no doubt, but please rely on discipline, action, and self-reward as much as possible on your healing journey. Motivation will come from your small actions and self-rewards in everyday life, gradually, step by step, day by day. All your healthcare practitioners should meet you at the stage where you are, not higher, not lower. Indeed, psychiatrists and psychotherapists are a good start in your healing journey; however, life couches and spiritual practitioners could be outstanding adjuncts in addition to your healing journey. It is essential to state that integrative psychiatrists will approach you uniquely and more comprehensively and will not treat you “as usual.” Each of us has a different genetic structure, etiology, and causes of depression.

Depression is probably the most complex disease affecting your mind, ego, emotions, soul, body…; it is multifactorial in its etiology, where we need to consider genetics, biology/physiology, past/present life traumas, past/current social and economic conditions and status, spirituality and many more! Depression is not just about your “brain chemistry” being messed up.

This calendar – 52 weeks is written from many years of experience dealing with depression, experiences of many people who suffer from depression, slight spiral ups, challenging downs, and even vicious circles when ”the snake eats its own tail” when everything looks hopeless and “total apocalypse.” But you are not worthless or useless…, you are just ill! Remember it! So, commit to working on yourself, for yourself, and for your loved ones. Healing has to start with you!

We are sure some things will resonate with you and others will not. It is expected, each person suffering from depression is different. Take one of the 52 “messages” for you every week and try to think how it might help you and how it resonates with you. Journaling is one of the sacred arts; it might help you to gain actions and self-rewarding. Helping is healing!

Glenn Close wrote the beautiful quote:

“What mental health needs is more sunlight, more candor, more unashamed conversation.” – Glenn Close

1. If you are depressed, please seek help! Talk to someone. Start with your family members or a good friend, then try to find a good therapist (please, do not get discouraged, you will find the perfect match, it takes time). Postponing and avoiding is not an option for those suffering from depression. Just say I need help!
2. You are not worthless or useless…, you are just ill! Remember it! So, commit to working on yourself, for yourself, and for your loved ones. Healing has to start with you! Nothing is wrong with changing therapies; eventually, you will reach one that works for you; keep going! Sometimes, depression is like an exhausting marathon, and you feel you will never reach the target.
3. Believe me; you will turn depression all around, with a slight spiral up and challenging down, left and right side, in the circle… But try to avoid a vicious circle when the “snake eats its own tail.” Help is out there!
4. Eventually, you will realize you do not know how strong you are until staying strong is your only option. Ask spiritualists about depression; they will tell you; you are an outstandingly strong soul. The Universe, the God, the Divine brought you challenges in this life, such as (for example) learning selfishness vs. selflessness, ego dissolution, gratefulness, gratitude, unconditional love, and spiritual awakening after the dark night of the soul.
5. Motivation and focus in depression come and go; we know that; don’t rely on them too much because they do not exist objectively in depression. Motivation is helpful, no doubt, but please rely on discipline, action, and self-reward as much as possible. Motivation will appear after your initial small actions and self-rewards in your everyday life.
6. Depression is not called being weak, not at all; it is called staying strong for too long or far too long than any other person will ever experience. Remember, you are a strong soul.
7. My best coping mechanism is keeping “busy” as much as possible and having a consistent schedule as much as possible. Some days it works, and some days it does not work. I keep my mind, soul, and body “occupied.” I tire myself out from the moment I get up in the morning until the moment I go to sleep in the evening. Well, it doesn’t cure anything, believe me. Sometimes, it just helps me cope with depression day by day.
8. Depression will beat you down only if you succumb to unprecedented high pressure. It is a pressure pot; thus, resistance and avoidance of this high pressure are welcome. Be ready to find a strategy to checkmate depression. Your therapist will help you set up a suitable treatment and probably do pharmacogenetic tests, which can tremendously benefit your treatment (from personal experience). That would be a checkmate to depression.
9. Be honest with everyone in your life, express your feelings, and share how your pain is unbearable; someone will find a way to help you, but some people will go away, which is fine, do not worry. In depression, there is nothing to hide!
10. By making small positive steps every day that get you somewhere, you can improve your well-being. Be proud of the minimal positive efforts you have made every single day. Reward yourself even for minor accomplishments!
11. You have to permit yourself to do a little, very little, and apply shortcuts for all your activities, including laundry, personal hygiene, cleaning…every possible everyday errand. It is not cheating; it is an action you will be able to reward yourself with after all. Even a small self-reward after an activity will positively impact your depression. Living with depression day by day includes even learning how to do laundry in a totally new way. It is nothing to be ashamed of!
12. Asking depressed people to live an everyday life is like asking people with broken legs to participate in a race. Each day is substantially different, with our ups and downs…
13. I know you feel unhappy, isolated, hopeless; you feel worthless and useless…even you think it is immoral to like the Sun or look at yourself in the mirror, but please do one simple, beautiful thing for yourself every day, just for yourself! Do not forget to reward yourself! By rewarding yourself at the moment and each day, your brain evokes strong positive emotions, leading to the realization that your efforts result in a positive reward. It is a really healing effect.
14. The most challenging thing about depression is when people expect you always to be OK. You are so used to pretending to be happy and OK all the time, but you are so broken and damaged inside, and no one notices. It is so cruel that you feel forced to keep going when you are hopeless and have nothing going for you. Stop doing that!
15. Living with depression day by day is tough, but getting through it and healing is even more challenging. So please share it with someone! Many healthcare professionals specialize in mental health; sometimes, a good psychotherapist can help you, or a life coach and a social worker, with more practical insight into finding resources for support and your healing journey. From the spiritual point of view, many psychiatrists, psychotherapists, and other mental health professionals are souls who came into this Earthly life to be healers; their souls accumulated many previous lives experiences and memories of suffering from chronic diseases, even depression, and now it is their turn to be healers; of course, if you believe in the concept of reincarnation, an immortal soul and spirituality.
16. I had not cried for a long time and broke down. Because I have been pretending for too long. I admit I need help. Stop “torturing” yourself and “be you.”
17. Each depression is unique; please do not let your therapist place you on one shelf designated for depression cases; make a mutual agreement and ensure your therapist understands all aspects of your depression. Be honest with yourself and your therapist. It is an essential part of successful therapy.
18. Those seemingly insignificant little improvements day by day have the most significant impacts on us who suffer from depression.
19. Today is a rainy day; please do not forget above the clouds is sunshine, beautiful and bright, and tomorrow the Sun will be visible to you again!
20. We need to “normalize” feelings of sadness and depression, and hopelessness. Then, we must share the tools to go through and pull ourselves out of these dark places. Take a little time and listen to music, get out and take a walk, dress nicely (pajamas are not the only clothes you have), and finally, put on your favorite perfume…do simple and nice things just for yourself! Music therapy, such as flamenco, has proven benefits for depression and many other neurological and psychiatric diseases.
21. Some days, you will only take a shower, and that’s it. Sometimes you might not even do that, and that’s absolutely OK. However, routine is so essential in depression even though it is so difficult to reach, but never give up because you are loved and precious.
22. Depression is feeling alone, like the odds are stacked against you, feeling as though things will never get better, feeling as though the world doesn’t need you, and feeling you aren’t worth the trouble! Well, it is time to find help; the support is out there. But please, do not get discouraged if your therapist and you are not a good match. Your healing journey will require multiple attempts until you find a “perfect match.” After all, it is absolutely normal and acceptable.
23. Depression is something you cannot just overcome; it is not something you can pull yourself out of; it is not something you see someone to fix! Unfortunately, there is no surgery for depression. So the only true way to live with depression (as there is no absolute cure) is to have support, not the kind of support where they try to make you feel better, but the kind of support you know they care about you.
24. You have people you can trust, but once you get hit in the heart by a family member or friend, you feel like you cannot trust them anymore. But, it is not as it looks to you. Do not think you will be alone; you have others here for you. So, do not listen to them; listen to your heart and that potential that you have yet to unlock. Do not let them take control of your life; whatever you need to do, go for it and remember that the goals you cannot achieve right now will be completed once you grow into the person you hope to be today.
25. Remember, it is OK not to be OK. You are loved. You are not alone. You will get better.
26. You do not know the meaning of pain until you look at yourself in the mirror while tears stream down, and you are just begging yourself to hold on and tell yourself that you are strong and everything will be fine… You deserve love. Yes, you deserve to be loved…
27. I know, just saying being strong is not the answer, but accepting, not resisting, breathing, and taking what life is in this moment.
28. You have to walk through darkness to appreciate the light. So do not give up when things get rough. Things will get better. The wheel of fortune is spinning.
29. After Dark Night of the Soul, it’s coming a Spiritual Awakening!
30. Remember, your soul speaks the language of your body. Depression is trying to escape from the present. Think about what is wrong in your present life. Find it, name it, work on it, and let it go! Try to learn how to forgive, release and let it go.
31. Depression sometimes looks like an inability or refusal to observe and see things as they really are, or not wanting to look at something, unable to see the whole picture. So find it, name it, work on it, and let it go…
32. Ask your body and soul what they are trying to tell you, listen for the answer, acknowledge and be thankful for the answer, take action on the information received, and enjoy your new course of action in your life.
33. Think about what you are trying to withdraw or escape; find it, name it, and let it go!
34. The biggest problem with depression, I have found, is when you go through it, you feel there is no way out. There is no other feeling but being down, really down. No matter what you hear, who you are with, or what you do, you cannot feel anything else. That’s the worst and most dangerous part. So journaling every day and expressing your gratitude might help you. I am grateful to Mr. K, Dr. P., Dr. T., Dr. B., and myself; without them, I would never reach small actions and learned self-rewarding that eventually will induce motivation and focus on my healing journey.
35. A warm hug goes out to anyone dealing with depression. It looks like fighting with windmills, telling the story of Don Quixote. Write down what you are dealing with now. It is absolutely healing.
36. Set small, objective, and manageable goals every day. Then, please write them down in your journal. Thinking and memorizing your thoughts is not a good option for people suffering from depression. But, once they are written, they have magical power.
37. Get out of bed and out of your pajamas; it is your first victory for today. But never give up; your brain processes whatever thoughts you create…
38. Congratulate yourself for every goal you complete; it does not matter how small it is.
39. Please write down your routine, stick it on the wall, refrigerator, or somewhere you will see it clearly and use check marks when you’ve completed tasks. Accomplishing daily tasks will promote well-being and inspire you to aim higher daily.
40. Helping someone in desperate need will improve your mood and motivate you to get out of bed. Choose positive and healthy relationships, let people know to socialize with you when you feel suitable for it (not easy, right), and give volunteering a chance, at least during your healing journey.
41. Take things in your everyday life one step at a time, and do not try to do more than you can.
42. Celebrate even small victories. Do your best to think positively. You are laughing now; it reminds you of psychotherapy, and you think nothing positive is in your life. But it is not true; think about how many positive things you accomplished in your past before you got depressed.
43. Reward yourself for every step forward. Hence, the lack of self-reward characterizes much of depression, which underlies your lack of motivation.
44. What did you do and accomplish when you were not so depressed? Make a list and notes of all the activities you can think you engaged in, and start planning those for the next week, little by little.
45. Choose your purpose and actions; rather than ask about your motivation, ask yourself about your purpose or your goals and then on taking actions that lead to those goals.
46. Actually, action creates motivation. So you could reverse the vicious cycle of depression into a virtuous activity cycle and more inspiration. It is really healing! I know it is not easy. Doubts will come and go like the ghosts in a haunted house, but a beacon of hope will always come unexpectedly from those who care about you.
47. You don’t need to wait for motivation actually to do something. Instead, commit yourself to small actions and values rather than hopelessly waiting for the motivation to show up to you. Motivation and focus in depression come and go, and you cannot rely on them too much. On the other hand, gradually increasing actions will bring inspiration and motivation!
48. Motivational quotes for depression sufferers are not the ones that tell you to get up and move or to be happy. Instead, the best motivational quotes for someone with depression meet you where you are. For example, “Depression is not a personal failure, not at all.”
49. “And if today all you did was hold yourself together, I’m proud of you.” – Anonymous
50. Depression is a complex disease that cannot be treated with motivational statements.
51. Try granting yourself a little self-compassion and kindness every single day.
52. “One day you will tell your story of how you overcame what you went through, and it will be someone else’s survival guide.” – Brené Brown

You are loved,

Holistic Healthful