Category Archives: Solution Focused Strategies

Solution Focused Strategies

Spiritual Approaches to Depression

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Depression is a deep and intense feeling of sadness, feeling ‘down’, or feeling like if there is a heavy weight on one’s shoulders. It is a serious concern that may possibly impact most people are some point in their lives. However, for some people depression is a very debilitating disorder. Even when it occurs occasionally it must not be ignored because these occasional moments might indicate a deeper issue lurking somewhere in the recesses of one’s mind.

There are numerous ways in which depression can be addressed. Some of these are related to physical, mental and social interventions. However, there are also strategies that can be classed as ‘spiritual’ methods of dealing with this major disorder.

One ‘spiritual’ method is meditation. There are many research studies that demonstrate the healing effects of meditation on both body, mind and spirit. While there are various forms of meditation, the patient has to find one which fits their personality, belief systems and life style. For example, some Christians take issue with Buddhist type meditations… and even with the word ‘meditation’ itself. However, when it is pointed out that ‘prayer’ can be seen as meditation, then this kind of healing activity becomes acceptable.

Other forms of spiritual practice could involve reading uplifting, inspiring and motivating texts, practicing daily acts of kindness, and regularly involving oneself in periods of stillness and quietness.

Being still or visiting places which bring calmness and inner peace can provide one with positive changes on the inside, and can be a powerful healing force for depression. The feeling of ‘being close to nature’ can neutralize feelings of sadness and wipe away the clouds of mental darkness that sometimes accompany states of depression. Walking or sitting in places of serenity – at the beach, by the side of a still pond or lake, sitting on a hillside looking at the valley below, or sitting quietly at night listening to the chirping sounds of the nocturnal insects – can be very soothing and healing.

All of these can provide the kinds of spiritual healing of depression that many patients worldwide have used to bring their lives back to harmony. You can do the same!

Information, Resources, Solution Focused Strategies

Statistics on Depression

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Depression is common mental condition and these days people seem to be suffering from depression because of their stressful lifestyles. Depression not only affects the person who is suffering from depression but also affects their family members. The overall effects of depression are huge. The statistics on depression support this.

According to statistics on depression, it is second most serious, uncontrollable and costly health issue in the world. Still, most people who are suffering from depression are not seeking the treatment they need. Though depression is treatable with proper prescribed medication and psychotherapy, many people don’t seek treatment due to lack of awareness of the help that is available or because of the stigma of mental illness within most societies. Based on the statistics on depression identified by the World Health Organization (WHO), it is clear that around the world, depression seems to be growing everyday. It has become a very serious issue.

Statistics on depression from the World Health Organisation identifies it as the fourth most deadly contributor to the global health diseases and a significant cause of health related disability. WHO declared that by the year 2020 it will be the second highest cause of diseases around the world. According to one study which cited statistics on depression,  121 million people in world are suffering from this disease, and each year hundreds of thousands of people around the world commit suicide due to severe depression.

Here are some general statistics on depression:

  • 121 million people are suffering from depression.
  • Among 25% people seek treatment.
  • After age of 18 yrs, seven persons out of hundred suffer from depression at any stage of their life.
  • One of every 33 children and one of every eight adults suffer from clinical depression.
  • Many people notice their depression in their late thirties.
  • 10% of the 6 million people who are suffering from late life depression receive proper treatment.
  • Experts believe that 80% of people who are suffering from clinical depression are not diagnosed and treated.
  • The world economy also suffers from the cause of depression.  One study indicates that more than $51 million loss is due to lower productivity which is a direct result of depression.
  • Still many people take depression as personal weakness and don’t seek treatment.
  • Most communities around the world (in both developed, developing and emerging countries) place a stigma on mental health disorders including depression.

Though depression is a complex disease, 80 to 90% people get relief if they get proper guidance and treatment. So awareness among people about depression and its effects is very necessary.

For resources on depression, go here.

Information, Solution Focused Strategies

Get Help

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Get help if you suffer from the type of mental problems that triggers feelings that life is not worth living.
The first thing that you should understand is that you are not alone and with the right help and professional intervention you can enjoy the feeling that you can make it.

You are also not alone in the fact that everyday hundreds of thousands of people – maybe even millions of people – around the world struggle with mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. Most of these people find ways to at least cope while many others find ways to be successful in the lives that they choose to live.

One of the reasons that many people don’t get help is because there is a stigma attached to mental disorders in their culture. As a result, they and their families hide their mental problems behind closed doors. In many countries – including the so-called developed countries – many families have been known to lock away and secrete from the world family members who exhibit mental problems. These people suffer a long and miserable life of agony in an age where help is just a phone call away or a visit to the local clinic. As a matter of fact, people can get help just by going on the internet and finding natural solutions to some disorders.

In some unsophisticated communities, those who suffer from disorders like depression, grief, trauma, phobias or anxiety can also get help by talking with wise elders and community healers who have apothecaries of natural medicines that can help with some mild forms of these mental disorders. Modern trained clinicians and doctors – even those whose origins are from indigenous communities – tend to dismiss the healing and therapeutic power of natural forms of healing. Their modern ‘first world’ based on their ‘modern’ ‘scientific’ medical training has all but washed their brains of the centuries old healing powers of natural forms of healing. Thus, many of them warn potential clients that they should not get help from shamans, ‘witch doctors’, and other types of natural healers.
They even suggest that sufferers should not get help using medical approaches such as alternative medicines such as hypnosis, NLP, homeopathy, acupuncture, aromatherapy, naturopathy, Reflexology, Shiatsu, Ayurvedic medicine, or energy therapy.

Clearly, evidence abounds that some of these approaches to healing work well for some people in some situations. The truth is that also in many cases, these approaches work better, with less side effects and potentially less harm than many of the Western vaulted, high price medications many of which have murky reputations among patients.

For the persons who suffer from mental disorders, they should get help anyway that they can. They should monitor their responses to any intervention – whether mainstream or traditional.

Bottom line… Get help now!

Information, Solution Focused Strategies

Anxiety or Depression

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When taking medications for anxiety or depression patients must realize that these are not necessarily the best answer for these potentially serious mental disorders. There are several issues which rise to the surface including the fact that the medications may work for some people while they fail for others.

These medications including anti-depressants impact the brain in ways which may change people’s moods. Anxiety drugs may help some people deal with their feelings. These medications for anxiety or depression, however, are not cures since they only help to control the symptoms of anxiety or depression.

There is no healing process involved with these drugs for anxiety or depression and they often don’t even impact the symptoms right away. They may take days or even weeks before patients may see changes. Individuals must remember that many of these drugs work by making changes to the chemistry in the brain. However, once you stop taking the medications these changes are reversed back to their original condition and the symptoms of anxiety or depression will return in full force.

I realize that many people have no alternative but to turn to these medications for anxiety or depression so that they can get a chance for a life that approaches some semblance of normality. However, patients must closely monitor their psychological and physiological responses to the medications. Why? Because, while some medications may have no observable negative effect, there are others which can wreak havoc and make your life worse than before. The side effects of some of these medications are often worse than the anxiety or depression that they have been prescribed for.

Additionally, it may not be that your anxiety or depression medication is ineffective or incorrect. It may be that the dosage is incorrect for the problem that you have. When your doctor changes the prescription dosage (up or down), many of the negative side effects may be reduced or disappear altogether. One of the issues with managing the right dosage is that doctors prescribe medications for anxiety or depression without the close follow-up that is needed to ensure that the dosage is right. In many cases, it may take a patient months to get a follow-up appointment with a doctor who has a busy practice.

Therefore, rather than relying on the ‘wisdom’ of a busy doctor, patients who take medications for anxiety or depression should monitor their responses closely, and then if they feel that changes are needed, they should be aggressive in getting to their doctors immediately. In cases like this, I have suggested to my clients that they walk into the doctor’s office and demand to see the doctor right then and there. Doctors can always ‘squeeze’ in another appointment. If you call on the phone however, expecting to get the appointment, the clerical gatekeeper is going to stay on script and attempt to block your efforts to get an immediate appointment (if none is readily available).

There are times when doctors inform patients that it will take time for the anxiety or depression medication to work and for the side effects to ‘smooth out’. Don’t buy that line of reasoning. If you feel bad… if you feel something is not right… if you feel worse… if you are experiencing symptoms that have nothing to do with your anxiety or depression… be aggressive and get help right away… while you can.

Why? Some of the side effects for some of these anxiety or depression medications are potentially deadly including suicide or even black outs and vertigo while driving. Imagine driving on the highway and experiencing vertigo!

So… if you experience troubling symptoms from your new anxiety or depression medication… do whatever needs to be done to get to the doctor. And, if that proves difficult – get another doctor right away!  In this case break the rules that they set… and get help.

 

Information, Solution Focused Strategies

How to Deal with Social Anxiety Disorder

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Social Anxiety Disorder is a Psychiatric disorder that attacks one out of every eight Americans. Those who have the disorder can become physically sick in social situations. This disorder can devastate more than your self esteem, it can destroy your marriage, finances and many other aspects of your life. The disorder is characterized by fear of social situations.

There is help for people suffering with social anxiety disorder. If you seek treatment, you will be able to obtain medications, counseling and support group information to help cope with this psychiatric disorder. After seeking treatment, there are things that you can do to help alleviate stressful social situations and ways to begin to reacquaint yourself with friends and family members.

First, read everything you can on social anxiety disorder. Visit your local library and check out books on the subject. Then, check out books with topics on building self-esteem, positive thinking, public speaking, anything that you think will empower you to gain more confidence. You can not just “snap your fingers” and have this disorder just disappear You need to read everything you can on the subject and subjects that will help you re-build your own self-worth.

2) Start and maintain a daily, weekly, and monthly journal. In the daily journal write down where you are right now in your life. Write about any and all social situations. How did you feel in those social situations? How do you think other people reacted to you and how did you react to them? Did you feel sick today when you were in the social situation? These are crucial questions when trying to deal with social anxiety disorder.

At the end of the week, summarize your set-backs and itemize your progress. At the end of the month, write two pages in your journal. The first page should summarize any difficult situations and how you overcame the situation, or how you dealt with it. The second page should summarize the social events and social situations where you felt comfortable and why you felt comfortable. How did you feel overall? While this may seem to be a waste of time, the journals will help you face and overcome your fears and ultimately help you deal with your social anxiety disorder.

3) Set social goals for yourself and follow through on them. If you are extremely uneasy at the mall, then go to the mall and walk in. Then walk out, immediately. If your social anxiety seems to attack you when you are in the middle of a crowded building, walk to the center of the crowd, and immediately turn and walk away. Take small practical steps at the start and them move on to the more challenging issues you may have with social anxiety disorder.

Finally, always talk to your doctor or psychologist openly and honestly. If you are on medication, take it as prescribed and try to overcome your social anxiety so that you can experience the life that you deserve to live at the very fullest. Stressful social situations happen to everyone at some point in their lives and one out of every eight people know how you feel to be living with something much worse than ‘one social situation’, you are not alone at all and though there is little comfort in knowing that you aren’t alone , do know that you are understood.

Social anxiety disorder is serious but, but all over the world, millions of people have learned how to manage their symptoms on a daily basis.

Information, Solution Focused Strategies

Beating Depression with Action

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Depression can come on us at any time of the year. Sometimes, holidays are the worst times for those that feel this down-in-the-dumps fear and worry and things just seem to happen to make us feel gloomy and sad. Note that this feeling happens to all of us at one time or another. How to recognize the feeling and know what to do about it is the purpose of this article which features several steps to help you in beating depression.

No one can or should ignore this feeling. It is universal and the blues are very much ingrained in our world. Music and movies are legendary in handling this subject. If the feeling is too overwhelming, then sometimes professional help is the desired action. We will just talk here about the funk of depression, the knotted thinking that nothing is right and it will only get worse. The following things are suggested to help you in beating depression:

  1. Laughing is the best medicine is an old adage, but so true. It is amazing how when you are depressed, just laughing about something and releasing the stress, can make you feel better. If you are having trouble finding something to laugh about, maybe you can find some people to keep close that cheer you up, that you can call when you feel bad, those who you know will let you apply the “strength in numbers” theory. Invite a few good friends over just to talk and have an appetizer and you will see how much better you feel afterwards. Laughing will help you to move towards your goal of beating depression.
  2. Listening to music is another key to beating depression. If you can just relax and let the type of music you love drift over you and enter your senses, you will find that you calm down and feel better. Even as babies in the womb, we respond to music. Maybe you will find you want to get up and dance and there is nothing wrong with that – even without a partner! Just move to the beat and let all your stress flow out of your fingertips and toes.
  3. Do some work and you will find you feel less depressed. There is something about a clean bathroom, living room, or kitchen that gives most women a sense of pride and order and joy. Men sometimes enjoy doing some of the same work and experiencing the same attitudes. The point is you just need to get out and do something that moves your body. Maybe you can shoot hoops in the driveway, ride a bicycle through the neighborhood and say “HI” to a few of your neighbors. There is something to be said for just watching a sunset and realizing how mighty the world is and how we are just one part of it. That sometimes seems to put our troubles more in perspective and help in beating depression.
  4. While we are on that thought, why not try prayer when you feel depressed? Try helping out someone less fortunate. Think of hospital patients and know that they most likely have things worse than you. Yet, you see happier children and adults in some of the worst settings in the hospital. Count your blessings. Hug someone or maybe go through some old pictures of happy times with your family. Prayer can be used as a premier strategy in beating depression.

Doing productive activities will always perk you up. Think positively about your life and the things you have been given and do not dwell on the problems. Take your dog for a walk and relish in the animal’s unending enjoyment at seeing you and being with you. Sometimes simple undemanding love is all we need to overcome the blue feeling and move towards beating depression for good.

The last suggestion may sound unusual, but here it is. EAT ICE CREAM! Yes, just swirling that cold stuff around on your tongue and all the different flavors can make you feel good! The idea is to eat something that you totally enjoy and see how hard it is to be depressed when you have your favorite food and are enjoying it. The world just seems a little better! Yes – eat ice cream or something you really love – and use your tastes in beating depression.

Of course, all the suggestions given above may not apply to everyone. But give them a try and who knows…maybe they can help just a little. Keep this list handy and the next time you are feeling a little down, find something that triggers the best response to get you to feel happy again. Be aware that when depression creeps in, you need to take action in beatin depression back to the corner – way otu of your life where it belongs.

We all have more important things to do in life than feel blue and depressed. Keep this thought in-mind and may your life be filled with joy.