Crippling Mistakes During Depression And Anxiety

The vast majority of us has been in that dark place. While this is largely considered a taboo subject, I simply don’t care.
I care more about you. Yes, you. Look here.
There’s several mistakes people going through the tough phase make, several that could simply be avoided.
Of course, some of what I’ll mention here are going to take effort to stop completely.
And yes, I’ve been in that place.
The Mistakes
Drinking Coffee
This is going to be controversial.
This is so widespread an issue that I feel it needs to be tackled first. If you’re a programmer, like I am, you probably drink quite a bit of it.
I don’t do this anymore, and perhaps that’s why I don’t have sugar crashes anymore.
Caffeine is a stimulant — and as such could easily alter your mood. This has.. unexpected consequences to say the least. Studies have actually suggested that a high enough dosage could lead to a full blown panic attack.
There’s people who could drink a pot of coffee and sleep like a rock. Unfortunately, the vast majority of us aren’t like that.
Take note that stopping abruptly while you’re caffeine dependent could make you severely depressed. Take it slow, if you have to.
Wrong Music
We’ve all been here. Had a breakup? Time to listen to some songs of longing. Joe’s ‘If you lose her’ comes to mind.
It’s okay to listen to it for a while. And by a while I mean a few days. You do need to grieve over the loss (in most cases?). But once that ends, you need to set goals and go after them.
What kind of music should you be listening to? Metal, Motivational, or simply energy-packed.
While you’re at it, check out Team Fearless.
Listening to Tony Robbins, Jaret Grossman, Eric Thomas, Les Brown, or anyone along those lines helps. That’s what you should be listening to.
Wrong Imagination
Let me explain. If you’re depressed, you quite often have thoughts like “If only I treated her better..” or, “If only I didn’t waste my time.”
It could also be like “What if I did more? What if I did work out?”
This is something I learned from Patrick Bet-David:
Change the narrative to “What if I do this now?”
Think about it. When you look at your sloppy body and go “What if I used to work out” — change it to “What if I start working out now?” And.. just imagine. Photoshop your head over Arnold Schwarzenegger’s if you have to.
Imagination works.
Besides preventing the sabotage, it’ll slowly strengthen your will.
Playing The Victim Card
Don’t do this. Look, if you blame OTHER people for what you’re going through, you’re essentially giving them power over yourself. If you want to change your life, I suggest you take ownership, and take responsibility for what’s happening to you — even if some things aren’t really your fault. Why? Because this shifts power FROM other people, back to yourself. Now you can go ahead and change your life.
So don’t blame the government.
Don’t blame your exes.
Not your parents either.
Or your friends.
Or even yourself — you just need to take responsibility, not blame yourself. Tony Robbins suggests ‘As a Man of Thinketh’.
I do too.
While it’s a small essay the contents are invaluable. It may be a hard pill to swallow — but the patient (you) needs it.
On Chester Bennington’s Death
I once had a best friend who could of died in cyclone Yolanda.
Let’s say they died and I killed myself. That person would of been completely heartbroken on the other side.
While it’s been a long time since I listened to any of Linkin Park’s tracks, I was addicted to their music for a large part of my younger years. Numb used to be my favourite song.
It’s frightening to think that someone as successful and as loved as Chester could be driven to take their own life. But it’s also eye-opening — we’re all susceptible to depression.
I’ll admit that I find their friendship beautiful. Even in death he’s admirable.
Rest in Peace, Chester. We’ll miss you.
