Congratulations!
We are congratulating you because your post is actually a great form of self talk. This is really a step in the right direction.
We encourage you to go through the very beginning of the Depression Program, especially Session 2, where you'll get some help about setting Treatment Goals.
Here's why:
Usually when people are depressed, their goal is to just feel better, feel good, or not feel depressed (or in your case, one of your goals is to stop putting yourself down). However, there's a problem with setting very general goals, in that in order to reach a goal, you need to break it down into smaller steps.
When you set a Treatment Goal you need to set goals that are about doing and not about feeling. In order to get there, (in order to stop putting yourself down) you need to concentrate on making small steps and small changes that will cause you to feel good about yourself.
What can you do to make yourself say "Great job!"? It doesn't have to be something complex - start with something small. For example:
*Start a puzzle, and when your finished say: "I accomplished something today"
*Ask a friend out for a coffee and just try to enjoy yourself. On
your way home say "I'm a good friend".
*Help one of your neighbors with a small task. When your finished
say: "I really helped someone out today".
Measure how your feel with your Mood Tracker after you finish each task. You'll soon find that if you do things that will "put yourself up", you'll soon stop "putting yourself down"!
Congratulations and good work!
Josie
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The Depression Center Support Team.
