Just who is responsible for our emotional reactions? “He made me upset.” “She made me cry.” “They all make me so very angry.” We often directly attribute our distress to the actions of someone else, or to external circumstances, such as the decisions of politicians, society in general, or even the weather. In our minds it is a direct cause and effect – their actions or these events caused my emotions. However, in reality there is actually another step in between. Let’s look at the following scenario (which by the way is totally hypothetical and definitely not recommended). [Read more…]
Handling Depression
It is normal to feel upset when things go wrong, and for a person to feel very down for a few days after suffering a series of setbacks. But most people bounce back once they have had time to think about it and get things into perspective. Depression is far more serious than just feeling down in the dumps for a while.
The most common symptoms of depression are feeling tired, not caring, having no energy, not sleeping normally, feeling sad a lot, being unable to concentrate, losing interest in life, and not having a normal appetite. Some people get so down they think about ending their lives.
There are a number of causes of depression. It can occur in people who suffer from a mental illness, it can be caused by a chemical imbalance, or it can be hereditary. However, for the majority of people who develop it depression is often part of a reaction to unpleasant events.
Such circumstances can include losing a job, the breakup of a relationship, being seriously ill or injured, being treated badly, experiencing a trauma, the death of someone close, a big financial loss, and many other triggers. Many people can go through difficult times like these without developing depression. This is called resilience. [Read more…]