5 MINUTES AT A TIME

Time is all about perspective.  There are 1,440 minutes in a day.  Consider these perspectives:

* If you work an 8-hour day and like your job, 480 minutes goes pretty quickly.  However, if you don't like your job, it seems like an eternity.
* If you sit in classroom for an hour and listen to a teacher with a monotone voice, 60 minutes is a long time.  However, if the teacher is funny and interesting, 60 minutes goes fast.
* If you are giving birth without any anesthesia and they tell you just 5 more minutes, those 5 minutes can be torcher, literally.

We hear so often people say 'one day at a time'.  It's not a bad statement.  It's actually very applicable and biblical.  It's means just deal with today.  Although through my experience, a day with depression can be an extremely long day and excruciating day!!!

First of all, many of us with depression do not want to get out of bed.  If you have to work, run errands, take care of the kids, etc., the day seems way longer than 1,440 minutes.  If you are depressed and you don't want others to know, you not only have to push through the day, you have to put a mask on and fake like everything is okay which, I feel, makes time go slower.

The days we can't get out of the house to do errands and/or can't bring ourselves to get out of bed, one hour might as well be 24 hours.  I titled this "5 minutes at a time" for a reason.  In the deeper depression times when it feels like you are walking through quicksand to get through the day, sometimes 5 minutes is all you can focus on.  In those times, changing our perspective from one day to 5 minutes at a time is more helpful.  Heck, set a timer to help you focus on one thing and once it goes off, you can say "I made it".  It may sound so silly, but it is not for those of us who have or are experiencing depression.  We need all the encouragement we can get.  So focus on 5 minutes and then congratulate yourself and use that as encouragement to say "I can do another 5".

Equipment

Equipment is needed for specific sports.  You cannot use a baseball glove to catch a football.  You can't use a bat to hit a basketball.  So, in each situation in our lives, we need specific types of equipment to help us.

As far as depression, sadness, or suicide goes, we need equipment we can go use to help us.  We want to use the right equipment at the right times.

Take baseball for instance.  If you are on defense in the outfield, you wouldn't take a bat to catch the baseball; you would make a glove right?  Or vice versa, if you were up to bat, you wouldn't take a glove to hit the ball.

It's the same thing in life.  You need certain things you can have to help you through each situation.  Here are a few pieces of equipment I use:

1.  Journal - For me, writing down my feelings, thoughts, or just what happened in the day makes me feel better and sometimes shows a different perspective on things.

2.  Music - Music can be an outlet for people.  You can listen to music to help you relax, to inspire you, or to dance frustrations away.

3.  Reading - Reading can sometimes take you to another world.  Reading can also give you encouragement.

4.  Friends - True friends love you when you are up or down.  If you are like me, it might be hard to pick up the phone and say 'I'm not doing great and I need someone to talk to'.  BUT if you are like me, you want to be there for your friends and you would want them to call you when they need help.  So I encourage you to use this special piece of equipment.

5.  Call your therapist, psychiatrist or physician.  If things are really getting out of control, you may need to get on some medications temporarily or get medications adjusted.  Plus doctors are there to help you by listening as well and may have other pieces of equipment to use that you are not aware of.

6.  Your church family and or pastor.  Reading the Bible and prayer.

Everyone copes differently.  Sometimes a particular situation may require only a couple pieces of equipment and other times you might need all of them.  Either way, try to keep each one of these in mind.  You can even let me know what kind of equipment you use and when it helps you!!!

R.E.S.T.

Rest?  Most of us would say 'Rest.  What is that?  Are you kidding me?  My life is so stressful I don't have time to rest.'  And if I were to come into your home and look at your calendar, I most probably would agree.  BUT.....

But it is essential.

R=Required
E=Equipment
for
S=Stress
T=Treatment

When I came home from work, it was a requirement not to hit me with 5,000 things as I walked in the door.  I needed at least 5-15 minutes alone to decompress.  It may appear selfish, but I knew myself.  I knew if I didn't get those few minutes the evening could go in a wrong direction.  So I gave myself permission.

Rest doesn't have to mean a day or a weekend, although there are times when we can do that.  But sometimes we have to take just a few minutes.  Here's some good advice I received once.  Get a box with a favorite CD, a candle or something similar with your favorite smell, something comforting like a soft blanket, pillow, stuffed animal, your Bible, a book of encouraging words, etc.  When things feel like they are starting to get to be too much, give yourself permission to get that box.  Find a quiet place and get what you need from the box; maybe one item or all.

A friend of mine and I used to joke about hanging a sign on our bedroom or office door that said "If there is no blood, there is no reason to knock on this door."  I believe you are a better mom, dad, spouse, etc. if you allow yourself to R.E.S.T.  GIVE YOURSELF PERMISSION TODAY!!!!

A Letter to You

Someone very special sent this to me when I needed it.  It was so good I wanted to share it with you and I hope and pray it will encourage you too!

"This letter is to you.

The you that's had a rough week.  The you that seems to be under constant storm clouds.  The you that feels invisible.  The you that doesn't know how much longer you can hold on.  The you that has lost faith.  The you that always blames yourself for everything that goes wrong.  To you.

You are incredible.  You make this world a little bit more wonderful.  You have so much potential and so many things left to do.  You have time.  Better things are coming your way, so please hang in there.  You can do it."