Sometimes our depression is our soul's way of screaming out to us to change something in our lives.
Sometimes....it's our bodies way of alerting us.
Sometimes...it's our grief calling out for compassion.
When did you stop dancing?
When was the last time you got outside and forced yourself to crawl out of your self-inflicted cave?
When was the last time you laughed? Like really, really laughed?
Yes, sometimes depression is a chemical imbalance. Sometimes...the only thing that will help it is medication and therapy. Sometimes it's a life-long battle. And sometimes..... Sometimes if we look around? We realize that we haven't been outdoors in weeks. We are truthful with ourselves that we have been watching too much tv and not spending enough time with books or drawing or painting or working on projects that we love.
When was the last time you listened to music that rocks your soul and gives you goosebumps? When was the last time you allowed yourself to turn that music up really loud?
Look around. Are you doing what is best for others and never what is best for you? Listen to me....this can bring on a depressive episode. You aren't responsible for carrying on anyone else's legacy. You aren't responsible for healing people or being around people that bring you down low or trigger your pain. You are responsible for you.......So dance. Get outdoors. Read books that make you laugh or cry or both. Find friends that you can get really real with. Release your self-inflicted obligations to things that only drag you down into the dirt.
When did you stop dancing?
When was the last time you got outside?
When was the last time you chose to talk about your joys?
When was the last time you said, "No." ...and felt good and ok about it? Being a people pleaser is never good for our souls. When we do this we are denying our truth and it hurts.....so our mind feels foggy and dark and really low.
When was the last time you stopped making yourself go places and hang out with people who always make you feel awful?
Stop forcing yourself to do things you don't feel good doing. It's not your job to fix the world or heal all the people.....It's your job to take care of yourself.
Build yourself some walls around your life if it makes you feel safe and happy and content. It's ok to have walls. It's ok to have boundaries. It's ok to stop overextending yourself to make others feel better at the very high price of making yourself feel worse.
Stop hiding behind fake smiles and tell the truth. You don't have to be perfect to be loved. Tell your stories. Tell the truth.
Stop consuming negative material.
Love everybody...always but if you need to unfollow? Block? Unfriend? Not answer calls/texts? If you need to skip out on events and get togethers? If it will literally save your life? Then do it. Ok? Save your life.
Surround yourself with real and authentic support.
Give yourself a fighting chance, dear friend.
When was the last time you stopped trying to fix yourself and you just let yourself live? Humans? We have the ability to carry on with or without finding our broken pieces. With or without ever fully healing our past.
Sometimes....we have just stopped really living, going for daily walks, blocking out negativity, dancing in our living room. Driving with the music turned way up can lift our dark clouds...it can get us out of our head and put us back into our life. It can reawaken our joy and shatter our clouds.
Fight for yourself. Give yourself a chance!
Get yourself out into the sunshine.
Please, turn up the music and get out into nature whether that nature is out in the country, in the wilds, in the forest, or just the city park bench while you listen to the birds and the hustle and bustle of human life.
Depression is very real and so are the many, many ways to heal it.
This is my own personal experience. My story. My truth.
And, friend? God loves you. Always. No matter if you're having a dark day or a sunny one...God is with you. Loving Jesus doesn't always cure it all so reach out for the help you need and deserve. Rest when you need to rest. People love you, I love you. No one is ever too far gone to start over. You aren't broken....you are a beautiful soul and you are precious. You can and will make it through anything. Look up child, you are loved. Reach out, friend. I'm here.
Love always, Nik
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"Hi Nik, I wanted to thank you for saving the life of my daughter. We didn’t know how much she was suffering but you gave her the will to live and the knowledge that she is very, very loved and needed by her babies and her family. Your words have saved a life but also gave her the will to get through this and to know much she is loved. I will be forever in your debt. Thank you Nik."
"What a true legacy and a public service you are doing, Nik..unfortunately out of your own pain you have found strength and have placed in the mind of others to seek help . I applaud you. Well done. What you do is not easy but you do it anyway."
"Hi, Nik!
First off, I want to let you know that I consider you a best friend, because that’s how much I connect with you and your writing. My husband died by suicide almost 3 months ago, making me a widow at 20 years old. Over those past 3 months, your words have been there for me when others haven’t and comforted me in ways others couldn’t. I’ve read every single one of your Facebook posts about 5 times over, and I even have some memorized. To know that the thoughts and feelings I’m experiencing are normal is so comforting in the most painful yet beautiful way. Painful because I wish that none of us would have to endure this loss, but beautiful because none of us are alone in the fight. So thank you, for giving me hope, for changing my life, and for inspiring me to do the same for others.
All the love."
"I'm trying so hard to find self-love. I still think about death every day. And life keeps throwing it at me... Maybe one day I'll catch a break. But until then my beautiful daughters and siblings I do have are enough. I read and reread your posts. I need them as fuel. You are beautiful and I just wanted to let you know your words mean more than you could ever know."
"THANK YOU for ALL you do!! At a low point now.... your promising words mean everything!"