Charlie Wardle - A Practical Guide to Beating Depression

First published 2020

Copyright Charlie Wardle 2020

The right of Charlie Wardle to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the copyright holder.

Published under licence by Brown Dog Books and
The Self-Publishing Partnership, 7 Green Park Station, Bath BA1 1JB

www.selfpublishingpartnership.co.uk

ISBN printed book: 978-1-83952-111-9
ISBN e-book: 978-1-83952-112-6

Cover design by Kevin Rylands
Internal design by Andrew Easton

Printed and bound in the UK

This book is printed on FSC certified paper

Table of Contents

A quick introduction

Wouldnt it be nice if there was a magic wand or a magic pill that could instantly make you feel happier and not be depressed? Unfortunately there isnt, but then again if there was then that wouldnt be as interesting or rewarding as understanding, and then beating, depression for yourself!

Many people will experience depression in its various forms, and for many reasons, yet most will never really understand why. They wont know why they feel, think, and behave the way they do, or what are the reasons and triggers for depression. But you can! Moreover, with the knowledge and understanding and the control that brings, you can beat depression forever.

I strongly believe that everybody can beat depression if they have the understanding and the tools and techniques necessary to manage and prevent it but that isnt easy and sometimes you need a helping hand, and I am here to give you that hand. However, before I do, lets go back to what I need from you throughout this book:

Effort You get out what you put in. So live, breathe and embrace this book over the next few weeks you will see the rewards.

Patience As the saying goes, a little patience goes a long way.

You may start feeling improvements from day one; you may not realise them until the end. However, either way, if you have the patience and perseverance, you will get there.

Practice Practice makes perfect and it is key to beating depression. Practice the techniques throughout the book in order to reinforce the thoughts, beliefs, and actions. The more you practice, the easier it becomes and the greater the results.

Desire I already know you want this because you have read this far. If you have the desire, you will get the results. So never forget why you turned to this book in the first place. You can beat depression, and think how much better your life will be in the future.

I know you wont need it, but good luck! If you get stuck, have questions, want to provide feedback, or just want to let me know how you are getting on, contact me via the website www.climbyourmountain.org.

I wish you the very best. Now go for it!
Charlie Wardle
Founder of Climb Your Mountain (CYM)
www.climbyourmountain.org

How to Use This Book

This book is split into eight chapters and it is important to ensure you read through and understand each chapter to get the full benefits and therefore give you the best opportunity to beat depression for good.

I know that depression can be very difficult to deal with, and the thought of beating it is an exciting prospect, but rushing through the book quickly may mean that you dont gain the full benefit of the information, exercises, and time to think and reflect.

I also know that life is busy and can get in the way, but dedicating a few hours per week to reading the content, and a few minutes a day to practising the exercises, means that you will have every chance to beat depression and significantly improve your life as a result.

The book has lots of questions, exercises, and reflection time as well as information. Make sure you complete all of these and give the exercises your all. Be honest with yourself and your answers if this means that you would rather not write something down, that is fine as long as you are truthful with yourself. Take your time to really think about any questions posed and your answers and, although it is very much about your own thoughts, it may be useful to ask a close friend, partner, or family member their thoughts, so that you can gain a different perspective. You never know, their answers might surprise you.

Spread your commitment to this book however best works for you, but commit yourself to making that time, and make that commitment now. You already know this, but it will be reiterated throughout the book, that the more you put in, then the more you get out. The effort will be rewarded and the more you learn, understand, apply, and practise, then the more your confidence will grow in beating depression once and for all.

Each chapter starts with the objectives, and before you proceed to the following chapter make sure that you feel you have fulfilled those objectives. If you cannot do this it may be that you need to complete the exercises or that you need more time to absorb the information presented. Dont worry if this is you; some chapters will be harder than others.

If you do get stuck please feel free to contact me via the website www.climbyourmountain.org or proceed to the next chapter but make a note to return to that pending objective later on.

Introduction

Many people will experience depression. There are many different types of depression and many reasons why it manifests itself. There are many people who do not realise they have depression, and some people who think they have depression but in fact they do not. Depression can be the cause of many other issues and it can also be the result or effect of many other issues. There is no doubt that it is complicated, and most people have very little knowledge or understanding of what it is, why it happens, and what they can do to overcome it.

However, my belief is that in most cases it can be understood and can be overcome. It will take effort and time, and the most effective way to ensure the best results is to understand it yourself and work out why it happens and what you can do about it for you. You can beat depression!

I say this based upon several years of research, reading about it, talking to people, thinking about it, understanding it the best I can, PLUS I have had my own experiences of depression. As I have already said, there are many types of depression, varying degrees of severity, and many particular reasons and factors involved as to why it occurs. However, I am happy to share my particular story and I hope that, like myself, you can understand, gain the knowledge, develop the tools, and then beat depression so it no longer has to play any part in your life again going forward.

My story

October 2003 was my lowest point, where I felt so empty, numb, and alone. I couldnt believe what was happening and how I was feeling. My life wasnt supposed to be like this, and if this was my life, then what was the point? I had put so much effort in, worked so hard, done everything I could and yet I was in this position. It wasnt right, it wasnt fair, and I didnt understand it.