CWD Daily

April 21, 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

One of the many depression-fighting benefits of getting outside is getting fresh air. Oxygen is not only vital to human life, it's also crucial to overall health. Including mental health.

Learn to breathe deeply so that you maximize your oxygen intake.

And get outside, into fresh, un-circulated air (which is also safer to prevent transmitting COVID-19).

Take a deep breath. And another.

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

April 20, 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

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.”

You've seen and heard it a million times, usually in reference to Alcoholics Anonymous.

Whatever your religion or philosophy, think about whether you can adopt this as a liberating motto.

Don't beat yourself up over “failings” that are part of your innate character. They aren't failings. They're you in all your glory! Love yourself the way you are. Learn life hacks to circumvent issues that your quirks and personality traits may cause. And move on, accepting the things you can't change.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 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

Do something fun! Something you don't usually do. Shake it up!

Take a walk in the woods.

Go to a shelter or pet store and visit the animals.

Sing karaoke.

Play.

Or work if that's fun – work on a project you put aside, such as a business plan or a quilt or woodworking project.

Go to a ball game with a friend.

It doesn't much matter what you do. Just break your usual patterns that are contributing to your depression.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 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

Get help: Medication

“Please Note: Although antidepressants can be effective for many people, they may present serious risks to some, especially children, teens, and young adults. Antidepressants may cause some people, especially those who become agitated when they first start taking the medication and before it begins to work, to have suicidal thoughts or make suicide attempts. Anyone taking antidepressants should be monitored closely, especially when they first start taking them. For most people, though, the risks of untreated depression far outweigh those of antidepressant medications when they are used under a doctor’s careful supervision.”

The National Institute of Mental Health provides clear information on recognizing and treating depression.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 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

“Sea glass is beautiful. Everyone loves sea glass, and everyone wants to find sea glass, but no one wants to become sea glass. It is worn and shaped by the forces around it. It is beautiful because of what it has endured. The original colors change, but become something even more beautiful. But sea glass is never bright and shiny. It is not perfect glass. In fact, it is broken glass – the furthest thing from perfect.”

– Become Sea Glass: Brave the Waves This Year!

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 16, 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

Thank you to the Huffington Post online for this great column, and to Liv Raimonde for her inspiring piece, Open Letter to My Depression: 4 Ways I Defeat You Every Day!

“Dear Depression,

“I must say you have put up quite a fight. You insidiously infiltrated my life years ago completely unbeknownst to me. For years I blamed myself for the rage, despair and deep emptiness that consumed my life. But it was you all along, hiding cowardly in the shadows, vehemently inflicting pain on my existence. You tore my confidence to shreds, destroyed relationships that I held dear and stripped away my appreciation for life...”

Read the entire letter HERE.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 15, 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

Yippee! It's Tax Day! (Said no one, ever.)

“There’s no need to go it alone as you deal with tax-based stress. While chatting with a trusted friend or family member may help, there’s no substitution for a series of sessions with a licensed therapist. You’ll gain valuable skills for dealing with symptoms and just might uncover factors exacerbating your tax situation and further harming your mental health.

“Help can come in many forms. While a therapist may be critical for dealing with feelings of hopelessness, you’ll also want to tackle the problem head-on. Working with an attorney may help you feel more in control of your tax situation – and therefore less vulnerable to the symptoms of anxiety or depression.”

– Highland Tax Group

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 14, 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

If you seem to be annoyed and irritable a lot of the time, know that there is a connection between depression and irritability.

A 2013 article in the JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) Psychiatry online begins:

“Although symptoms of irritability or anger are not central to the diagnosis of unipolar major depressive episodes (MDEs), these symptoms have been found, in cross-sectional studies, to be highly prevalent and associated with increased comorbidity and depressive illness burden.”

An article in a different online newsletter is entitled Irritable Depression: When Sadness Feels Like Anger.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com

April 13, 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

With mental illness and several suicides in her family, including her famous grandfather and sister, Mariel Hemingway had some tough choices to make. She successfully chose to actively work at keeping depression at bay.

Check THIS insightful interview with the actress and author.

Contact: witchhazel2020@gmail.com