Resilience | Resilience Know How

Question: Do you think that you can control depression with exercise, meditation and positive thinking?

(Posted by: mudpuppie_80 on 2009-09-30 15:09:55)

I ask because I have had success myself. After being told I was an alcoholic, clinically depressed, manic depressive and ADD with a learning disability (and I had panic attacks daily)I went through life thinking I was too slow to amount to anything. Until this year. I got off the booze, I meditate every night, I actively combat negative thinking with positive thinking and I get out and walk. I am not on medication and haven't been for a year. It seemed as though they all worked for about a month and then all of the symptoms would return. I am having better results through my routine than I did with any drugs. Can you control symptoms or get rid of them all together with positive thinking, exercise and meditation?

Posted by: monica on 2009-09-30, 15:13:27

I found Byron Katie really helpful! Great post! xxx

Posted by: Mom of 4 on 2009-09-30, 15:14:11

Well, I think you could probably control mild depression to a point, but depression can come from a chemical imbalance that sometimes requires meds. However, if it's working fairly well with you and you're happy, stick with it. And kudos to you for getting off the booze and the other things you're doing.

Posted by: I am NOT a Muslim on 2009-09-30, 15:17:40

I wouldn't have one iota of a clue lol.

Posted by: Jessica on 2009-09-30, 15:18:59

They have workbooks that help with positive thinking. I am depressed also. If you work out and change it up, doing different things that are fun it helps. Also, a VERY helpful tool is yoga. Seriously, join a yoga class or get a tape on yoga. It will really help! Best of luck to you, hope you feel better!

Posted by: Ryan on 2009-09-30, 15:35:01

I agree with this absolutely. While there may be cases where medication might be the quickest route to healing this is not a forward thinking solution. A chemical imbalance in the brain does not necessarily mean that it requires additional chemicals to fix. Thought patterns, mood, music, meditation, physical activity and human interaction all have an immense effect upon brain chemistry. More importantly they train your brain to correct the imbalance on its own and not rely on external stimulus to correct the problem. I am glad to hear of your success. Your story, and my own personal experiences, seem to confirm that the answer to your question is yes. That being said, I do think that medication and therapy may have their uses in 'jump starting' the healing process in certain cases. It is not a weakness to seek help. Recovering from depression internally does not necessarily mean you have to do so alone. I hope that covers your questions.

Posted by: WanderingTraveler on 2009-09-30, 15:40:44

I had always been down, but that went away to a void. I used to exercise, yes, to perk up. I have many of the same stressors that you do, but they told me recently that I'm not actually learning disabled after running a billion tests. Opps. Delusional thinking of happiness doesn't help me because I'm not actually depressed, absent of feelings mostly. I do get angry if someone tries to cheer me up because I'm used to being used and not respected by anyone. Plus, I'm edgy all the time these days. It must be the demons. I drink and smoke a lot. Kudos to you for stopping. All in all, walks in the woods have helped me. I mean, I'm still alive. I walk 3 to 5 miles a day and run one every other day.

Posted by: YA Junkie on 2009-09-30, 23:11:32

It's a great question. If you can control depression without medication depends to a large degree on the severity of the depression, the cause of it, and how long you have had the condition. First let me cover the most difficult types of depression. For some people, depression appears to be largely genetic. If a person has a strong genetic predisposition to depression, it can be very difficult to overcome by positive thinking, exercise, etc. If a person suffered from child abuse or other trauma and has had depression from a very early age, it also makes it difficult to overcome the problem. Some people have no conscious memory of ever being free of depression. This condition may last for many years or decades, which makes matters worse. If the depression occurs for no apparent external reason, it is probable that the condition is being caused by an imbalance in brain chemistry. Such cases can be hard to resolve without medication. On the positive side, some forms of depression are relatively mild. Also, instead of being caused by brain chemistry, some forms of depression may be caused more by external events (like disliking school or a job or ending a relationship). A person might be happy for most of his/ her life, but then experience a bout of depression. In the cases above, it would be much easier to resolve the problem by positive thinking, exercise and meditation. I have suffered from major depression and anxiety for many years. I started with lots of alternative medicine approaches to the problem. I also exercise and meditate daily. However, since my depression is fairly extreme, I still need medication in addition to the more natural approaches like meditation and exercise. In your case, I suspect that getting off the booze was a big help. Alcohol can lead to depression and the other conditions you mentioned. Also, alcohol will mess up any positive effects that psychiatric meds might have. So, my guess is that getting off the booze and working with positive thinking, exercise and meditation made a vast change for you. Congratulations. Keep up the good work!!!

Posted by: ʎəʌəəʍ ʎəʌəəd ʎəʌəəls on 2009-10-03, 02:11:42

Worked for me as well

Posted by: Helen W. on 2009-10-04, 08:43:43

I notice that you say you have been diagnosed with bi-polar disorder. It is possible that you do not actually have bi-polar disorder, that your drinking was causing the mood swings. However, it is also possible that you DO have bipolar and are simply between flare-ups. If that is the case and you find your mood swings returning, then it is critical that you work with a good psychiatrist and take medications for this as prescribed. Bi-polar is not something to fool around with; untreated mood swings can actually cause irreversible brain damage.