Blogs That Bless Me, Part One

One of my routines every time I meet with a bad patch of depression is to do some more research. On one of those desperate nights (before my blogging days), I typed 'depression blogs' and was delighted with what I found. When I discovered my first blog about depression I felt like I had hit a jackpot!

I am going to do a series of reviews on these special blogs. They all have some things in common; they are honest, informative, researched, encouraging, positive, well-written and tactful. My list of blogs is not exhaustive. It is just a sampling of what is out there.

One of those special blogs is More Than Conquerors.

The author is Nancie and here is what I like about her blog.

It is gentle but honest. Nancie's gentleness of spirit shines through her writing style.

It is informative. You would never have to do another bit of research on depression. If you just stayed here and looked up all of her links you would be thoroughly informed.

It is encouraging. She shares her victories.

It is both personal and tactful. She shares her highs and lows without revealing the gritty details.

She shares her christian faith openly. The title of her blog is a portion of scripture. Here is the entire bit of scripture which may caste even more light on what her blog is all about:

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Next time I will share another blog that has blessed me. What about you? Is there a blog about depression that has been helpful to you?

For a dose of laughter medicine, click here.

May Dipsy Doodling Around Depression
be better than a therapy session!

Don't give up,
I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love

Travelling with Depression, Part III

This will be the last post in my little series on travelling with depression. I have shared some tips on how you might prepare for a trip and what to take along.

Today I would like to tell you what NOT to take along - GUILT!

It is not your fault that you suffer from depression. If you had a broken leg and went on a trip would you feel guilty that you brought your broken leg along?

There is one more thing you should NOT take with you when you go - UNREAL EXPECTATIONS.

If you mistakenly imagine you are going to be just fine during the entire trip, you are setting yourself up for further disappointment and even deeper depression. Travelling is stressful! It is stressful for people who do not live with mental illness. It is even more stressful for you. If you expect that, and plan for it ahead of time, things might just go a little better.

There is one option you may have to consider - don't travel if you can avoid it.

How about you? Do you travel? Do you have realistic expectations when you do?

For a dose of laughter medicine click here.

May dipsy doodling around depression

be better than a therapy session!

Don't give up,

I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love

Travelling with Depression, Part II

Depression doesn't take a holiday and so all of those strategies you have in place to help you in your day to day life should not take a holiday either. Pack those strategies!

What do I mean by strategies? I mean all of those things you do or don't do to help you cope with depression. Check out my list of 'labels' at the bottom of the page if you haven't already. I have shared a lot of strategies that may work for you.

Here are some of my strategies that help at home and I try to use when I am away as well.

Exercise: I usually walk (alone!) for at least 30 minutes every day. I try to fit this in on holidays.

Food: I prefer healthy food and I try to stick to that on holiday but oh that is one of the hard ones as I am sure I don't have to tell any of you.

Rest: I need at least seven hours of sleep every night. I can also use some plain rest. So, instead of driving like crazy (pardon the choice of words!) we try to stop early, so I have time to just veg out and rest or have another walk or something like that before calling it a night.

Quiet: I need a lot of quiet. We do listen to music occasionally, and sometimes teaching CD's, but often I just have to turn it off. I need to listen to the scenery. My husband knows this and if I am in a really bad state and he is chatty, I have to ask him to be quiet for awhile.

Those are some of the basic things that help me. What has worked for you when you are away from home?

Next time I would like to tell you what NOT to take with you when you travel.

For a dose of laughter medicine click here.

May dipsy doodling around depression

be better than a therapy session!

Don't give up,

I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love

Secrets for Travelling with Depression, Part I

My husband and I have recently returned from a wonderful road trip to visit my sister in North Carolina. We took a few days to enjoy the scenery along the way.

But...travel is hard on someone with mental illness. For someone with bipolar in particular, the constant stimulation is tiring and taxing. The lack of routine is painful. I could go on and on.

Here is a list of what makes travelling a challenge for me: not enough time alone, too much stimulation, sleeping in a different bed every night, eating in restaurants food all the time and pure exhaustion from all of those things. The biggest challenge of all is that the depression does not take a holiday.

One of my worst days on this trip should have been one of our best days as tourists. We drove through the Blue Ridge Mountains where there was one awesome scenic lookout after another. I tried to enjoy it but I was in such bad shape that day. I felt guilty that I was having this amazing experience and not enjoying it!

If I were to live just for me, I would probably not go anywhere, but my husband enjoys travel and I love my husband. We have devised ways to go places and keep me reasonably well along the way.

I would like to share some travelling tips with you this week.

What do you find most difficult about travel? Have you had a travelling experience that you would like to share?

For a dose of laughter medicine click here.

May dipsy doodling around depression

be better than a therapy session!

Don't give up,

I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love

The Greatest Therapist That Ever Lived!

As a christian, I have found my greatest source of therapy, of comfort and strength comes from God.

Non-believers will say 'if your God is so wonderful, why doesn't he heal you? Why does he allow suffering?' I don't know....

But I do know this. When I talk to God about the way I feel, when I read my bible for awhile, I feel at least a wee bit better. And... I definitely feel supported, heard and loved.

It sounds easy enough, right? Wrong! Maintaining your faith while in a depressed state is just as challenging as everything else when you are depressed. That is when you must just rely on the truth and not on your feelings.

For me, God is truth, and the bible, his word is truth. If I read for long enough, something, somewhere off of one of those inspired pages will finally reach into the depths of my sorrowful self and touch me in a way that nothing else and no one else can.

If you haven't tried God yet, why not give him a try?

If you have tried and you believe he has failed you, why not give him another chance?

Don't give up,

I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love

The Greatest Therapist That Ever Lived!

The Best Therapist of All!

We have been talking about marriage and depression. Depression makes marriage, which we all know is a challenging relationship, even more challenging. It can even be a threat to a marriage.

Therapy is a recommended activity for anyone who lives with mental illness. Finding a good therapist is not an easy thing to do.

But - if you and your spouse work hard at communicating with one another, you just may find that your spouse could be the best therapist of all! After all, the marriage relationship has the potential to be a safer place, a place where each can offer comfort to one another. Just talking things out is therapeutic. And think of the money you can save by counselling each other!

Depression is usually worse in the morning. Sometimes when I wake up and realize I am not well, I tell my husband about how bad I feel. I complain a bit about my awful life. I express some self-pity and some frustration. I have a little cry. He gives me a hug. And then you know what - I feel just a wee bit better after that. It is almost like I have to purge some of the poisonous thinking in order to make a bad day into a not-so-bad day.

Sometime way back when, I had to tell my husband that I did not always need answers, I just needed someone to listen to me express my confusing ideas. Together we have come up with a system that works for us.

I have been talking about ways that my husband has been helpful to me. When I feel well, I make sure that I do things that are helpful to him. Usually he is so happy that I am feeling better, he doesn't even care, but I do. It is nice for a change for me to be the one to offer "how about a back rub?" It is wonderful to have a day now and then where I can be the one to say "is there anything I can do to help?"

How about you? Each couple is as unique as the individuals that make up a couple. Are you attempting to find a way to communicate (which is listening as well as talking) that will benefit both of you and save the marriage?

I have written these posts about marriage and depression to encourage those of you who are married to not give up - to encourage you to keep trying to help each other - to encourage you to find ways to be useful and understand to one another. I will pray for you....

Next time I would like to talk about a 'divine' therapist.

What about you? Do you have a good therapist? Could you and your spouse become sort of 'therapists' for each other?

For your dose of laughter medicine click here.

May dispy doodling around depression
be better than a therapy session!

Don't give up,
I'm praying for you!

Wendy Love