Bless You…

If you are suffering from mild to severe depression with a non-medical cause, — Bless You!!

(I know, I know, “Say What??!!!”)

Well, first of all, even though I am not a medical professional, nor do I pretend to be, and even though none of the things that were effective in my case may help YOU at all, my experience has led me to believe that simple depression CAN be deleted with nothing more than a consciousness shift!

A friend of mine, who had extensive nursing experience in a respected “Psyche Ward” once described to me the horrors suffered by those with severe depression caused by medical/genetic issues.  At the time I was struggling with my own issues which were nothing more than erroneous thought patterns as I like to call them now.  That’s when I realized how blessed I was to have a problem I could actually do something about!

I was NOT helpless!

Suffering is, of course, a normal part of the human experience, but there is no need to suffer unnecessarily!  With all the technology and vast store of information available on the subject today, Depression is a VERY unnecessary condition!

If you are just beginning to realize you might have a problem with Depression, your first step should be to get evaluated by a mental health professional!!!  DO NOT ASSUME YOU CAN SELF-DIAGNOSE AND/OR MEDICATE!!

If your doctor recommends medication, by all means follow his recommendations!

The purpose of this blog is to merely give you a different perspective, and a few tips that helped me.

One of those tips, given to me by a Doctor friend of mine was this:  “You cannot count your blessings and be depressed at the same time!”

Of course, being my ususal hard-headed self, I tired to prove him wrong, mainly because at the time, I had not yet realized that my depression was largely a result of thought patterns I had chosen.

Yes, I should have known better!

At first, I couldn’t think of a single blessing.

My next thought was: “Ok, that’s ridiculous, being alive to think, even if it is something negative, has to be a blessing doesnt it?”

Then I realized that I was basically healthy, at least physically.

And that I had a lot of friends who cared deeply about me.

Oh, and a good set of job skills…

a wonderful childhood…

Parents….

Sister…

OH! And Dang It!  I’m Smiling…. (That’s not supposed to happen while I’m busy being depressed!)

I Challenge You!!

Count your blessings and be depressed at the same time!  If you can, You REALLY DO need to see a health professional.

In any case, BLESS YOU!

David.

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Helping One Another Become the Best They Can Be….

They say that in order to help someone else, you have to first be able to help yourself.
Knotty Theory that……
So of course I had to Go back and evaluate.
Have I become the best I can be? At least up until this point? I know that I will strive to improve until the day I die, but how have I done so far?
I guess a little introspection is a good thing from time to time. Looking back, I find much to be thankful for, many blessings that have come my way in the past year. And to be honest, these blessings were only possible because of the change in my mindset, and attitude. Amazing isn’t it, how the things we wanted all our lives cannot be ours until we change into someone who will be able to accept, care for, and value our dreams once they become reality!

Of all the things in Life that I really, really, wanted; the one thing I would have given everything else up for, was Love! Someone who really and truly loved me for Me, not what they could get from me!

I remember 1st Grade….Crayon valentines sent across the room to Debbie. Giggles at the water cooler. Playful slaps on the cheek from the Nancy who really liked me, but could have never told me so.
Anita who was so shy and quiet, but whose whole family loved me in their own quiet way.

Things progress, time passes, this rock speeds ever onward, exponentially accelerating it seems. Days and years begin to blur.
Some things stand out, but the day-to-day, where the little choices are made begins to lack significance. A certain quality is lost. What once had such clarity as a child, today is humdrum.
Oh Well!
And so… I begin to sink into the everday blandness that becomes adulthood:
Seventeen years of marrige to the wrong person.
Twenty-one years of a career that provides me with some of the rewards I need, but includes much I do not.
Everything is direction, and mine isn’t the one I want….

A phone call. My Mother, whom I love so much, is in the Hospital.
A few months later I am sitting under a canvas awning as they lower all that remains into the earth. My face is carved in stone, but I am quivering like the last leaf of the season, as I sit with my arms wrapped, one around my Father, one around my sister.
My mind screams in unbelief: “They’re putting my Mother in the DIRT!”

That was the day the Universe shifted on it’s axis for me. Nothing ever would be the same again.

More fun…. Grandpa followed Mother, Grandma followed Grandpa. My wife follows someone else into our bed while I am on a business trip.
My mental state follows the leftovers into the disposal, and on into the sewer.

Then in the middle of it all, someone says to me: “You don’t have to fear those things anymore, they will never happen again!”

No, those words didn’t change my life, but they deflected my thinking just a bit. Just enough that I could listen to my heart telling me that I could use this opportunity to start over and get it right this time! The thing that made the words significant was the speaker had already turned their own life around….

Phase II. I begin the long journey back into the daylight. Once there, I begin to ‘help myself’ to a few of the valuable resources this world has to offer! They are everywhere, but you can’t have them until you want them!

Hundreds of books, conversations, advice, self-analysis, and instances of good fortune later, I now have the Love of My Life, The Home and Family I couldn’t survive without, and a continued stream of blessings that you have to be open to in order to receive.

I have helped myself, now, how may I help you? D

Habitatus Interuptus

Saturday Night was Interesting to say the least!

The same storm system that killed 21 people in Missouri and Oklahoma, and several in Arkansas, eventually found it’s way eastward to Mississippi.
About 2:am Sunday morning it grazed our house lifting the roof and ceiling, allowing several hundred gallons of rainwater to pour in.

It also dropped the front porch which wraps around 2 sides of the house.

We were blessed,  in that no one was harmed, the house is still standing, and Karen’s brother John is a contractor. He and his crew got the roof and porch mostly repaired by yesterday evening.

So, now we are sorting through the interior damage, ordering new flooring, and looking to see what survived and what didn’t. I am afraid my $3,000 Mitsubishi wide screen TV may have drowned, as it was directly beneath the largest stream of water pouring through the ceiling.

However, insurance will replace all these things. The irreplaceable things, our lives, are still intact!

I have done a lot of thinking in the days since this all happened, and have wondered…. Was this a bad experience or a good one?
Most people would describe it as an ‘awful’ experience, but I have been considering an alternative perspective.

To illustrate, let me use an old Chinese proverb about the poor farmer and his son, who had one horse:

One night while the farmer and his son were sleeping, the horse broke out of the corral and ran away.
The next day, the neighbor came by to console the farmer regarding his misfortune. Wisely, the farmer replied: “Yes, but who knows what is good, and what is bad?”

Oddly enough, the next day the horse returned, leading with it 3 wild horses! The farmer and his son now had 4 horses! The same neighbor rushed over, this time to congratulate his friend on his good fortune! After he subsided, the wise farmer merely replied, “Yes, but who knows what is good, and what is bad?”

The following day, while trying to break one of the wild horses to ride, the farmer’s son was thrown to the ground, breaking his leg. Again the neighbor returned, bemoaning his friend’s misfortune! “It is so terrible, you will never be able to harvest your crop by yourself!” The farmer’s reply was still the same: “Yes, but who knows what is good, and what is bad?”

The next morning, the army passed by conscripting young men to fill their ranks, and excused the farmer’s son because of his broken leg. When the neighbor appeared breathing exclamations of relief for his friend’s good fortune, the answer was still the same: “Yes, but who knows what is good, and what is bad?”

Where does the story end?

Yes we were traumatized, had to spend 3 nights in a motel, and had major structural and interior damage to our residence.

But also, our lives were spared, our awareness of how much we love each other, and our family was deepened, we are getting a new interior and nicer porch for the front of the house, and new roofing!

But to me, the best part is the personal enrichment and growth that comes with another one of life’s experiences, deepening my awareness and understanding of reality in all it’s infinite permutations.

C’est La Vie Mon Ami!

David

Overcoming Depression with St John’s Wort

In my ongoing research into Natural methods for overcoming depression, I have found a lot of useful information.
The Black Dog Institute is attached to the Prince of Wales Hospital and affiliated with the University of New South Wales.

One of such is their fact sheet on the use of St John’s wort, and it’s effects. (read it here)
Personally, I have used St John’s Wort  for several years with varying benefits.  It is no ‘cure-all’, but it does have some beneficial effects.
However, like any other herbal medication, it need to be used with some caution.  It apperars that mixing it with doctor -prescribed medications may have adverse effects, as it can amplify the side-effects of certain pharmaceuticals.
Basically, St john’s Wort acts as a Serotonin Uptake Inhibitor, but is not beneficial to people with Melancholic (or genetic) Depression.
Consult with your Doctor for more information on whether this treatment would be beneficial to you or not.


Ignorance and Reality, on Being Awake

Ignorance: root. Ignore__  1. To ignore reality in favor of ones own perceptions. 2. A basic failure to see reality as it really is.  

Why NATURAL Anti-Depressants?

     When I understood I had to begin overcoming depression, one of the first things I bean to look for, was a method of overcoming depression naturally. 

     One of the biggest controversies today is ‘Natural vs. Pharmaceutical’.  Of course there are well educated, well respected, advocates on both sides of the fence.

     I am not an expert or professional in either field.  My intention is solely to share with you what worked for me, and why I made the choices I did.  If you are on a doctor-prescribed medication, and you are achieving the results you desire, by all means – continue it!

However,  if you are still searching for more information, perhaps there will be something you can use in my story!  To get a better understanding of what happened to me, it would be helpful to start with the post “Overcoming Depression”.

One of the primary reasons I began to try vitamins, herbs, and other supplements, was the side effects connected to the prescription my doctor gave me.  Mine were relatively mild, but if you read the list of ‘adverse reactions’, they range from the unpleasant to the downright scary!  Another reason I didn’t like the SSRI the prescribed for me was the seeming lack of effectiveness.  I have lately discovered that this feeling was more than imagination!  Read the Article!

Aside from the physical reactions, I hated the disconnected feeling I had everywhere I went.  I had progressed from mental distress to no longer caring.  Neither is a state that adds anything to the quality of your life, and my search was about finding a joyous and peaceful state of mind.

 I understood that on a cognitive level, my depression was a pattern of thoughts leading away from the state of mind I wanted to achieve, but that there was a physiological aspect also.  Just because I wanted to experience a joyous mental state did not mean it was possible to ‘will’ it into existence.  And, I wanted to overcome depression naturally, rather than walk around like a living zombie!

A friend of mine in the medical community suggested I try a herb known as St. John’s Wort.  I had heard of it’s positive, mood enhancing properties for some time, but hadn’t personally experienced them.  At first, they helped, but I sensed there were other times when they merely amplified my sadness.  That was just MY particular experience.  One thing about ANY product, is that everyone’s experience is different.

I DID find that St. John’s Wort used in conjunction with Omega-3 oils had a more positive effect on my mental state than either used alone.

I had some success drinking green tea, and taking green tea extract in capsule form.

However, the most benefit of any one particular experience has been in the form of a Bi-directional herbal tonic.

That’s when I discovered a whole new field of research involving Herbal Remedies. 

There are lots of natural way to overcome depression, but one of the best ways I have found to date is through the use of bi-directional herbs.




NATURAL Anti – Depressants

In order to more fully understand this article, it would be helpful to read the first post in the series, “Overcoming Depression” 

In reference to overcoming depression, I thought I would include this link to supplement the section on Physiology.

5 – HTP, The NATURAL Anti – Depressant and Weight Loss Supplement « Fit Tip Daily

There is a definite connection between Seritonin levels in the brain, and what we do with our bodies.  In this case, put into our bodies!

Not only should we avoid certain things, such as smoking, excessive alcohol, etc., there are supplements we can use to improve our moods as well.

Bidirectional Herbs are another avenue that has worked well for me.  Not only have they improved the ease of maintaining my mental state, I have experienced numerous physical improvements also. 

Things like:

• Lower blood pressure
• increased energy levels
• better skin and muscle tone
• improved cholestrol levels
• hair and nail growth
• better immune system function

     For a complete set of articles on the scientific validation of Bi-Directional Herbs,      Go Here. 

     There is also good information about nutrition and immune system function at:       Dr. Bruce Fife’s Blog

     When I was deeply involved in overcoming my depression, I discovered I had to make changes in my body as well.  I cannot stress the importance of this enough!

     Remember, Cognition AND Physiology!

David C Schupbach


My Experience Overcoming Depression

Looking back now, It has been a wonderful life!

There was a time, not so long ago, when I couldn't have said that. Like most people, I wondered why life hadn't given me more, why I was stuck where I was, with a future that seemed bleak and hopeless.

Depression is the ‘Mind Killer’ as much as is Fear! Fear can be an integral part, or a result of, depression. It can also stand alone. But too often with depressive individuals such as I once was, fear walks hand-in-hand with it’s sibling, Depression.

To a depressive, everything we see in the external world, ie; ‘Reality’, reinforces our negative conclusions of how awful our lives are. Because everything is filtered through our negative perceptions. How we perceive, or view reality, determines our world.

For 37 years, I viewed the world through ‘dirt colored glasses’!

Because of the infallibility of the ‘Law of Attraction’, sure enough, my life deteriorated, year by year.

BREAKTHROUGH!

Eventually My life reached the point where nothing was working! Career, Finances, business and personal relationships were all in the toilet. Basically, I had a bad case of ‘Optorectitus’! (where your optical nerve gets crossed with your rectal nerve and gives you a very, shall we say…, ‘brown’ outlook on life!)

What really tipped it over the edge, was a 2 year period in which my Mother, Grandfather, and Grandmother died — My wife began left me for someone else, my Father had a stroke and sold the Home-place I was supposed to inherit. Add to that bankruptcy, and a ‘one-night-stand’ that came up pregnant. (yes, 21 years of child support payments on a child I never see.)

Eventually I became desperate and turned to anti-depressants and therapy. The Therapist diagnosed me as having: Depression! (go figure!)

• long term
• chronic
• severe
• recurring

His recommendation was:

• 2-4 years of medication
• 4 years of weekly therapy sessions. ($80.00/session)

I thought seriously about it all through the first 30 days of medication, before I finally had: Breakthrough #1

I began to realize several things:

1. I Hated the way I felt when I was on the medication.
2. I could not afford the medication and the therapy.
3. If it was MY mind, then it was up to ME to control it!
4. There had to be resources outside of traditional therapy and medication that would help me reach a healthy mindset.

So began my search for a solution that would empower me.

Needless to say, it was a long journey, with many dead-ends I won’t bore you with. However, I was Blessed with good friends, and even good friends in the Medical Profession who had an in-depth knowledge of my condition. I was also fortunate to have friends who were inspiring, and/or motivating, and always had an uplifting effect on my spirits.

THIS IS VITAL:

You MUST have a network of *helpful friends who can empower you, if you are to succeed in breaking ‘The Mind Trap’ that is Depression!

These Friends can be Online, or Off line, but they MUST be:

• Positive
• Helpful
• Experienced at living well
• Concerned
• Successful at motivating others
• True Friends*, people who care about your well-being and want to see you succeed.

Breakthrough #2:

I began to understand that were two aspects to Depression.

1. Cognitition (what you do with your Mind)
2. Physiology (what you do with your body)

Physiology: what you do with your body
In western culture, we tend to look at Mind as being separate from Body. However, Eastern culture has known for a long time that the two are complementary halves of an indivisible whole. The principle of yin/yang is relevant here. Mind + Body = you. “You” is more than just your mind, and more than just your body. Hence there are two avenues through which the mental state can be determined.

Remember when everyone would say: “Just think positive”? But my question was always: “how can I think positive when I am depressed?

Well, I discovered the answer. “Just think positive” was not the answer! In ‘depression mode’ you can’t think positive. If you could, you wouldn’t be depressed! The answer is simple: to change your thinking, change what you are doing with your body.

Excersise has long been known to be helpful in improving our depression.  Excersise releases endorphins.  Endorphins, a neurotransmitter produced in the brain reduces pain and improves your overall mental condition.

Have you ever noticed how your body mirrors your mood?

Depressed:

• shoulders slumped
• head down
• breathing shallow
• 1000 yard stare
• uncommunicative

Happy:

• head back
• shoulders back
• breathing normal
• alert, interested in your surroundings
• laughing, joking, talking

If you want to try a little exercise to prove this, the next time you are depressed, or even just tired, sit upright in a chair with your shoulders back, breathe deeply 10 times. Then tip your head straight back until your face is pointed directly at the ceiling. Completely relax your shoulders as much as you can without letting them slump, and put the biggest, silliest, goofiest grin on your face you can possibly imagine.

Now, be depressed! Go ahead, I dare you!

What? You can’t do it and be depressed? My point exactly. You absolutely CAN change your mood by what you are doing with your body! This is even a good exercise to apply when you are tired.

How else can your body affect your mood?

There are several things we do that can negatively impact our state of mind.

• smoking
• drinking
• drug usage
• lack of sleep
• lack of exercise
• certain foods (excess carbs and sugars affect some people)
• unhealthy dieting and/or eating habits
• not drinking enough water
• lack of certain trace minerals and/or vitamins

There are more, but these are some of the basics. Take a long hard look at all the things you do physically, and analyze each one for it’s effect on your mind and body.

Of course, to positively impact your mental state, just reverse the list. Limit or end:

• smoking
• drinking
• drug usage

Begin to:

• sleep your recommended 6-8 hours (more if you are under 21)
• brisk exercise at least 1 hour per day(releases endorphins which positively affect your mood)
• implement a healthy diet
• drink 4-6 glasses of water per day
• take the time to visit your local health food store and learn about herbs and supplements which have a positive effect.

These are some basic things you can do to effect your depression through your physiology.

Is this enough? Maybe not. In my case, I didn’t want to just misdirect my erroneous thought patterns, but I wanted to ‘rewrite the code’ that had led to my depression in the first place.

Breakthrough #3

Cognition: what you do with your mind.

Back in the early days of computer programming, there was an acronym which is extremely relevant to the subject of depression. Programmers used to say when referring to an incorrect data output: “GIGO” or, Garbage In, Garbage Out. That saying may have went the way of punch-card data processing, but it is still applicable to our mind.

If you put ‘Garbage’ into your mind, you will get ‘Garbage’ out, in terms of your mental state.

I have a dear friend who is the most positive person I know. He is in his early 80’s, and has open heart surgery, yet he never complains or appears depressed. He once told me a secret I never learned to apply, until I was in the process of overcoming my depression. He said, “Every morning I have to get up and get my mood straight.” “No one is going to do it for me, no one can do it for me, and to continue to be successful in my business, I have no other choice.”

This was his method of putting Quality into his mental state, instead of ‘Garbage’. (he finally ‘retired’ from the health care field this year at a young 82 years of age, and is pursuing a career in network marketing!)

So how do you define ‘Garbage’? My definition has always been; anything that doesn’t have a positive effect on my state of mind, is ‘Garbage’. It may not be bad in and of itself, but if it has an adverse effect on me, it’s ‘Garbage’ .

Here are a few of the things I pursued that had a positive outcome:

• Relaxation, New Age, Zen, and Yoga music.
• Classical Music (second choice)
• Self Improvement Literature
• Meditation
• Prayer
• Classical Martial Arts (I have both a black, and a red sash in Shaolin Lohan Chuan Kung Fu)
• Ballroom Dancing
• Eastern Philosophy (Tao Te Ching, The Art of War, and various books on Bhuddist Philosophy (not to be confused with Bhuddist religion) The Way of Awakening, Zen, etc)

Results?

Consider this: before I began to turn things around, and put the ‘Law of Attraction’ to work for me, I was homeless. What few possessions I had left were stored with family and friends. I wasn’t living on the streets, I was living at my job. I had a 1976 Jeep pickup for transportation, which ran whenever it wanted to.

Then one day I began to realize, after a lot of prayer and meditation, that I was grateful for the tiny bit I did have. The more I thought about it, the more grateful I was.

Soon, I began to realize I had enough to share a little with those less fortunate, and as bad as it was, there were those less fortunate. I gave some clothes I no longer needed to a man living on the street. (He in turn, shared them with some of his friends on the street!) I began to give a few dollars in handouts. I wasn’t on the street yet, but I realized I wasn’t far from it!

On the job, I went everywhere with my CD player pumping out positive music. I read, meditated, and prayed constantly.

Things gradually began to improve. And improve. And Improve. Funny thing, it seems to take on a life of it’s own after a while.

Oh there were setbacks, but I never gave up. I still haven’t. Even though I have been relatively free from depression for over a year now, I still haven’t gone as far as I would like to go.

Today, I live in a $250,000 home with Karen, the love of my life–the girl I should have attracted to myself 35 years ago, we have 40 acres in the country, a rental house, pickup truck, BMW 325 is hobby/project car, and a wonderful family.  (just a few of the blessings, the rest would take too long to list)

I have 2 offline jobs, and am working like crazy online.  I have never been happier!!

Conclusion: (whew)

This is my experience with depression.  I hope reading it helps you, if you are experiencing ‘the big D’, or if you know someone who is.

If you liked this article, and you must have if you are reading this, please be sure to bookmark it with the social bookmarking service of your choice.

Sincerely, David C Schupbach.