CWD Daily

January 25, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Depression Army is a great blog and website – and although it may not be updated anymore, it is still up. The entries are written by numerous contributors who suffer from depression themselves.

Some article titles have been I Don't Want Your Help, Social Anxiety, and Why I Hugged Rock Bottom.

Surge of Student Suicides Pushes Las Vegas Schools to Reopen

"The reminders of pandemic-driven suffering among students in Clark County, Nev., have come in droves.

"Since schools shut their doors in March, an early-warning system that monitors students' mental health episodes has sent more than 3,100 alerts to district officials, raising alarms about suicidal thoughts, possible self-harm or cries for care. By December, 18 students had taken their own lives.

"The spate of student suicides in and around Las Vegas has pushed the Clark County district, the nation's fifth largest, toward bringing students back as quickly as possible. This month, the school board gave the green light to phase in the return of some elementary school grades and groups of struggling students even as greater Las Vegas continues to post huge numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths."

- nyt.com

CWD Daily is written by Julie Aiken, a layperson whose only authority lies in 40 years of coping with depression. Nothing in the newsletter should be taken as medical advice. Please do no self-diagnose or self-prescribe. Above all, please get help if you need it.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 24, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip-of-the Day

Schools closed or hours reduced? Get help.

“Student anxiety, depression increasing during school closures, survey finds...

“More than half the students who responded to the survey said they’re in need of mental health support since the school closures began in mid-March [2020]...

“'We were calling this a mental health crisis before the pandemic. Now it’s a state of emergency,' said Amir Whitaker, policy counsel of the ACLU of Southern California. 'Our youth are really struggling... When schools reopen, we’re going to have to re-tool them significantly to address this.'”

CLICK HERE for the full article.

CLICK HERE for School Counseling and School Reentry During COVID-19.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 23, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Nature calms anxiety.

HERE is a live webcam of Hawaii's Pipeline ocean waves.

Scroll down the webcam page for links to other webcams – Hawaii, Alaska and more.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 22, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Sometimes your day is extraordinarily stressful for no apparent reason. Sometimes you just want to cry.

Even having socially-distanced, al fresco dinner with friends can be hard.

If you have a dinner out during a particularly stressful time, try to eat healthy and not have a sugary dessert. Wait – Yoda would say there is no try. So definitely have a healthy dinner and skip dessert!

(Or have dessert – just don't feel guilty!)

Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

If just the words “de-clutter and get organized” fill you with anxiety, relax! There is help you can take in baby steps.

Flylady has a simple, step-by-step, little-by-little system to get you organized! No, really. It works. And it's free!

Give it a try. Take your first baby steps by checking out flylady.

And, if it just stresses you out more, then don't do it! See how this works?

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Take a page from the AA Big Book and focus on what you can do today.

It's so easy to fall short on long term goals, and probably fine to do so, as our needs and desires change.

Don't set yourself up for failure – set yourself up for success! What will you do today? Be realistic.

“Today I will get out of bed and have one healthy meal” may be what you know you can do. That's fine. Focus on short-term goals.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 19, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

“Severe mental illnesses (SMI), including major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia, are associated with increased inflammation. Given diet’s role in modulating inflammatory processes, excessive calorie-dense, nutrient-deficient processed food intake may contribute toward the heightened inflammation observed in SMI.” (Frontiers in Psychiatry, May 15, 2019)

Anti-inflammatory foods include:

salmon
tuna
flax seeds
tart cherries
oranges
strawberries
curry
edamame
green tea
whole grains
tomatoes
olive oil
blueberries
green, leafy vegetables
nuts

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 18, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

“King realized that to solve the problems of human life, especially the deepest problems – like racism, poverty, and war – we have to become, in a sense, abnormal. We have to stop going along; we have to stop accepting what everyone else believes. We have to become maladjusted if we are at all to become creative...

“King knew what it meant to be maladjusted, psychologically, because he was not normal, psychiatrically. He had multiple periods of severe depression, and twice made suicide attempts as a child. Near the end of his life, some of his staff tried to get him into psychiatric treatment, but he refused.”

Read the whole article from Psychology Today HERE.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

January 17, 2021

CWD Daily

Tips for Coping with Depression

If you are in a suicide crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline -
1-800-273-8255.

Tip of the Day

Get help.

If you are depressed, have been chronically depressed, or are in a crisis of depression and suicidal thoughts – please, get help.

You deserve to feel better. You deserve to get your life back on track. And you can and you will. You may just need some help from someone experienced in helping.

So, talk to your doctor or your spiritual advisor, minister or rabbi. Talk to a guidance counselor or teacher or trusted friend. Talk to someone and ask how to get the help you need. And then get it.

You deserve it.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com