recovering
from depression
a guide to overcoming your self sabotaging tendencies and learning healthy coping mechanisms
Maggie Kelly
Recovering from Depression Copyright 2022 Maggie Kelly
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.
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Neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility or liability whatsoever on behalf of the consumer or reader of this material. Any perceived slight of any individual or organization is purely unintentional.
The resources in this book are provided for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the specialized training and professional judgment of a health care or mental health care professional.
Neither the author nor the publisher can be held responsible for the use of the information provided within this book. Please always consult a trained professional before making any decision regarding the treatment of yourself or others.
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ISBN (paperback): 979-8-88759-245-9
ISBN (eBook): 979-8-88759-246-6
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To get the best experience with this book, download the prompts here: 50 Self-Reflective Journaling Prompts. With this, you will be equipped to process and heal in your journey more efficiently.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Getting help is difficult. You dont want to admit theres a problem, because then it means you have to change. And change is hard.
Getting help requires changing your sense of identity and losing a part of it. For a long time, I thought I would always be depressed. It wasnt until after my stay in the mental hospital that I thought I could live without depression.
Youre going to be sad about this. Thats normal. Youre mourning a part of yourself. You need to say goodbye to it, but that doesnt change the fact that it was still a part of you.
Thats what this book is about. And if youve got here, Im so proud of you. Im so proud of you for taking the first step in your recovery. It takes guts.
It is by no means easy to reach out for help. You will resist. However, once you push past the resistance, you will open yourself up to a brighter future.
Youre struggling and you dont know what to do. You feel lost, trying to find your place in the world.
Youre convinced that your mental illness is going to take you out. Youre convinced youre going to die, that youre not making it out of this war alive.
It feels like its the end of the world and youre going down. You keep thinking this is your life and nothing is ever going to change. Youre going to be stuck feeling this way forever.
I see you. I used to be exactly like you.
I started struggling with depression when I was 13. It was horrible. It followed me around for years, clinging to me like a backpack.
I couldnt get rid of it. There were seasons of my life that brought me down to my knees with depression. There were periods of my life when I could barely drag myself out of bed. But I still got up, every day.
I knew there was more to life. I couldnt feel this way forever. This couldnt be my life. I was determined to climb out of the hole depression had thrown me in.
I did it. And now, I want to show you how I did it.
A Personal Congratulations
Youve just made your first positive choice.
You woke up today, alive, and youre reading this. Thats amazing. The fact that you are reading this shows how strong you are.
You picked up this book because you want help. Just now, youve empowered yourself to make positive choices in the name of mental health.
Now that you have that help, Im here to tell you: youre okay.
Not only that, but youre a survivor. A fighter. A warrior.
Living is one of the hardest things you have to do, and youre doing it. This life is not easy, but youre getting through it, day by day.
Every day you manage to get through is another day you get to put in your win column. Its another day that you beat your mental illness. Congratulations on making it to today.
You Have the Mental Fortitude
Youve put up with the worst of the worstyour own thoughts. They keep coming after you, trying to get you down. Sometimes, they succeedbut sometimes, they dont. And thats key. They havent won.
For a long time, I thought things like:
Youve been fighting a battle against thoughts like these for a long time now. While the end may not be in sight, you do have the strength to get there.
All the bad thoughts youve had so far, youve been able to combat. Every single one of them. The darkness continues to threaten to take over, but every day you make it out alive, youre winning.
Right now, youre stuck in tunnel vision. Youre driving through the tunnel, and all you see is darkness. The tunnel is so long, you cant see through to the light on the other side. You may not be able to see the light, but know its there.
Youre stuck in your depression. The darkness is all-encompassing, but you know there has to be something better.
Hang on to that hope. The dark tunnel isnt going to last forever.
The Bad Days Wont Win
Youve made it through 100% of your bad days. Norm Kelly
Depression will drag you to the depths of Tartarus and make you feel like youll never get out. It feels like youve been stripped of your will to live.
You have already made it through all the most difficult things in your life. You can get through this, too.
In college, I used to count down the hours and minutes, waiting for them to pass by. I wasnt counting down to anything particular. Counting the time was a way for me to get through. Getting through was my one and only focus.
Every time you thought you wouldnt make it, you came out on the other side. Youve battled your worst days and got through them. You can get through the rest of them, too.
The One Constant You Can Count On
The one constant of the world is change. If theres one thing you can count on, its that nothing stays the same.
You may feel hopeless now. But you wont always feel this way. Feelings change, if you give them time. Feelings dont stay the same. In fact, nothing stays the same.
There is nothing you can count on in the world. There are no guarantees in life. The only two guarantees are that life will change and, eventually, you will die.
Theres no need to speed up the timeframe of your life. You can find joy in your life. Depression doesnt have to rule your life.
