The Life Design Studio

Depressed at Christmas

If you are depressed at Christmas-time it can be especially difficult because all around you there is excitement and fun.  The TV is full of advertisements for games, depicting happy families at play and romantic comedies that seem to rub salt into the wounds of those who are finding life a struggle.  So what can you do?  What steps could you take to ease your pain just a little.

What we class as “depression” can take many forms.  You might be very stressed at work and feel depressed there but you’re still able to function within your family or leisure time – or vice versa.  You may be feeling extremely negative about life and your place in the world but still able to go to the cinema or out with a friend.  Or your depression may be rock bottom, where you’ve gone into the realm of locking yourself in the bedroom with a duvet over your head for most of the day, not seeing anyone or doing anything much at all.  By the time you’ve got to this level you may be classed as ‘clinically depressed’ and hopefully you are under the care of a doctor.

Why Me? | Its Just not fair

What happens when we take an event in our lives - or someone else’s - and then, by the way we think, we exaggerate the negative effect on our lives? 

“Why did this have to happen to me?”  “What have I done to deserve this?”  “Everything was going so well ... until this happened.  Now nothing can ever be the same again.”

Let’s say it’s an unexpected health problem.  Do you find yourself thinking…….

“I know  other people don’t look after themselves, they eat junk food, they smoke and drink, so they deserve to get sick, but not me … I eat healthy food … maybe other people don’t take exercise, but I work out every day.  It’s their own fault, but not me… “

Or maybe you have a financial issue and you think “I control my money very well……maybe other people don’t make a budget and watch expenditures, so if they have a financial disaster I can understand it but why me; I am so careful.”  Or “Maybe other people don’t treat their partners well, and so they deserve to be cheated on , but not me, I’m a good person…” and on it goes.

Stress Unravelled!

When you or your employees suffer from stress it isn’t just a matter of ‘pull yourself together’ or ‘snap out of it’. Stress is a real problem which can have dire consequences for your business.

Research has shown that pressure at work (or at home) is causing many employees to succumb to stress related diseases costing many businesses a small fortune.  Yet excessive anxiety and stress are both preventable and avoidable.

To the sufferer it very often seems impossible to shake off anxiety or depression but it doesn’t have to be that way. The right professional help could sort out the problem in a matter of weeks, turning someone who has become a liability into your best asset.