For me, counseling has been my thing. Just talking over solutions and what to do socially is helping 100%. It's well worth the $20 per week (which adds up, but worth it!).
Exercise also helps -- but a.) recent root canal b.) recently had a monitor fall on my hand at work and still dealing with a contused wrist that doesn't want to move one way (or acts really cranky if I do), c.) it's too cold out and d.) my bike needs to go into the shop but I can't afford it ... and riding one-handly with poor brakes isn't a good idea (I tried).
Buy something - I'm constantly broke and having to call the local food bank (embarrassing, truly) ... hence the cause of the majority of my stress, anxiety, and depression. Having almost no food in the cupboards - especially when that's a trigger - is not particularly good. I like being well stocked in case of an emergency. At the moment, it's remedied ...
Say it's okay to be in this space: Damn right, I own this friggen' depressed life and it's all mine, mine, mine! If I want, I can have a pity party for three: me, myself, and I
Might not get me anywhere fast, but I'm learning these are normal and it's okay to have an occassional pity party as long as you remember not to use the pity parties as an excuse to hide from life.
Take a day off: I don't have a lot of leave time due to a constant stream of medical appointments, dental appointments, and an up-and-coming weeks vacation in Florida.
Drink: Can't drink, on meds for diabetes and anxiety; bad idea.
Coffee: Every morning.
Stay awake late: Do that anyway - part of my anxiety and worsening attention issues is that I can't get ENOUGH sleep.
Stay away from wheat: Ditto. I also stay away from gluten. And processed foods with corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup. And artificial colors. And since that's about everything at the regular grocery store, I've since started shopping Whole Foods. It's more expensive, so I still have to shop around for prices, but I am very choosy about what I do and don't eat. It's why I never have enough time - I don't go out and buy a lot of food; I pick up whole foods and come back and make my own stuff.
Do something exciting: Yesterday I had a root canal - does that count? I bought my guineas their Christmas presents. PetSmart has these flannel animal blankets for 3 dollars off AND it benefits local pet charities (or something). Oreo got his blue blanket (which he used to make a guinea fort on the couch as soon as he got used to his new blanket) and Benny got a red one which he promptly ignored for his other blanket - this really ugly flowery black skirt I gave to him when he was a baby. I think he likes running and jumping on his new blanket because he was doing that while running around the kitchen last night - but not sure.
Cry: Egh, then your eyes get all red and puffy and you can't really see. Sometimes it helps to cry, but I try to avoid it. I'm a tough cookie.
I like baking for people. I'm a really good baker and so I like baking stuff for people. Holidays are a good excuse to do that.
Still taking it one day at a time and trying not to throttle my littlest guinea ... who is currently learning patience. Way to bang my head against the brick wall (it's working, but only at his pace, i.e. slow progress)!
- Serenity
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