Affirmations 1

• I value everything about me
• I deserve respect and happiness
• I am unique
• I am free to be me
• I am worth it
• I love who I am
• I am attractive to others
• It is easy to love me
• Love is all around me
• Love is always flowing through my life
• I love expressing myself
• I always speak what I feel
• I love my sexuality
• I know my feeling and I know myself
• I believe in me
• I need only my own approval
• my achievements get better and better
• I deal with everything well
• I love new experiences
• I speak my truth
• It is safe for me to speak my feelings
• What I say is worth hearing
• My voice is head
• There is much of life to explore
• I am free to move forward
• I am at peace with myself

Your Childhood Kitchen

You don't need to start writing about hugh issues like freedom or the history of the word. Instead, start with a more concrete topic and really explore it.

Describe the kitchen in your childhood home. Consider, for example, what the refrigerator looked like, was there linoleum on the floor? Were there always dirty dishes on the counter, or did every surface shine? Who cooked there, and what else went on in that room.

Gratitude

Next, using the same kind of descriptions, let's take on a broader subject: what are you grateful for? Remember, you can go in any direction you want – just write continuously.

Beyond Words

1.      Set aside the next few minutes. Find a comfortable, quiet place where you will feel safe and are not likely to be disturbed. Take the phone off the hook, take off your shoes. Begin to relax.

2.      Sit or lie down in a comfortable position. Gently close your eyes but remain alert.

3.      Tell yourself that you would like to begin to remember certain life experiences, those particular times when your senses were so deeply involved in an activity or event that:

·        It seems timeless. There was only the present time.

·        You felt unencumbered by the past memories and future anticipation.

·        You were being instead of doing.

You may call them peak experiences. Your experiences could be visual ones – that unforgettable sunset at Yosemite, the time a pod of dolphins skirted your fishing boat, your child first step. Your experiences might have been auditory – that incredible performance by Pavarotti, the sound of wind in a downhill ski run at Sun Valley, your child’s first word.

4.      As you mind sifts, sorts and categorizes these peak memories, one in particular will assert itself strongly. Focus on it. Now, holding that memory in your mind, begin to examine it closely, minutely. Let the memory resonate throughout your entire body and being. Can you sense the overall feeling of being present in that experience? Can you recall the timeless quality of just being in an event that you were not trying to control, shape, fiddle with, or judge?

5.      Let yourself go and once again relive this timeless moment of presentness. Do not interfere with it. Do not edit it into something more than it was. Gently stop and open your eyes. Take a pause to feel the experience of the body and mind.

And when you have finish reliving the moment, gently stop and open your eyes. Take a pause to feel the experience of the body mind.

A Letter to Depression

What would you like to say to your depression? Write a poem in the form of a letter to it.

An Internal Challenge

Allow yourself to go inside and explore deeply as you journal about a personal emotional challenge you’ve faced in your life. It maybe something small, like losing a third-grade spelling bee, or larger, like coming to terms with a breakup. How did you feel at the time? How did you cope with the emotions of that trial?

Telling a friend

What would you like to tell a trusted friend about your depression? Consider whether there are thoughts or feelings that you’ve never shared before, and write them to a judgemental imaginary friend. Be sure to include your opinions and ideas (what you think) and your emotions and moods (what you feel) surrounding your symptoms and any related issues.

Afterwards, reflect upon how this writing felt – did it offer any relief or comfort? Did it trigger any new ideas about your depression? Did it suggest anyone who you may want to confide in, in the future?

Strengthening Your Circle of Intimacy

1.      On a piece of paper, draw three concentric circles. (Intimates, Close contacts, and Acquaintances.)

2.      Make a list of others in your life and enter their names in the appropriate circles.

3.      Look at the diagram daily and tell yourself these are the people who care and who would be very hurt if you injured yourself. These are the people who want you to recover from depression.

4.      Make appointment for phone calls, meetings and brief social engagements that you can’t cancel.

5.      Plan deliberate activities, especially with family, which are hard to excuse yourself from.