Choose to kick depression in the butt.

 This week in our lectures Professor Williams took some time during lecture to talk about depression. This topic was beyond intriguing. My Professor revealed that his family and he had struggled with depression throughout their life. He shared about the crippling hardships and difficult hindrances of depression. After battling with depression he has found that there is one specific thing that helped him the most effectively get over his depression. That thing was a change of mindset.

My professor believes strongly that depression is not a chemically imbalanced brain, but that instead, it is an overwhelming tendency to feel and think negatively, an attitude. Along with clinical and scientific studies that would prove this principle is also his heartfelt testimony that we as humans have the power and capability to choose--we have agency. We can choose to be happy, and we can choose to have joy. If we believe, and if it's true, that depression is a permanent condition that will ail us all our lives, then there is little to no hope. Not only is there little hope but the prescription medications are only a temporary relief, not the solution. However, if we believe that we can change our emotional situation through meditation, counseling, and effort, then there is hope, hope to overcome. The joy we get from reconstructing our perspective and mindset is powerful and substantial.

A real-world psychological example of this is the principle of a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset. A growth mindset is a belief that we can control our lives instead of getting acted upon–we act. A fixed mindset is believing things are out of our control. Instead of acting for ourselves, we are acted upon by things and situations around us. The things we think, our opinions, really do matter. Our attitude drives our actions, and our actions direct our lives.

What causes depression and anxiety? I have a close friend who is a certified psychologist. He defines depression and anxiety as the following. Depression is anytime we are stuck in the past, regrets, trauma; things we can’t seem to move on from. Anxiety is anytime we are stuck in the future; this includes a lot of “what ifs” What if they hate me? What if they judge me? What if I'm not good enough? The problem with these two points of view is that life isn't happening in the past, it's not happening in the future, it's right now. As Master Oogway from The Kungfu Panda would say, “Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present.”. If we’re not in the now we will lose the gift of life; joy, love, achievement, peace, and self-confidence. 

I would like to tell two stories that illustrate our power of agency and action. 

The first story is a personal story. When I was growing up the only organized sport we had in my middle school was basketball. In my little Kindergarten through 8th grade school, the grade 5th- 8th were eligible to play on the basketball team. All my close friends had played since fourth grade. While I just watched. I loved basketball and would play during recess and breaks; however the thought of playing in an actual game in front of an audience scared me spitless. What if I mess up? What If I’m not as good as the kids with prior experience? These were my mental obstacles I dealt with. Finally 8th grade rolled around, I reluctantly joined the team after an overwhelming amount of peer pressure. It was the most memorable time of my middle school experience. I had so much fun. 

The other story is written by Max Lucado. It was read to me by my mother as a child to my siblings and I. It is You are Special. This book is about a town of people called Wemmick. Wemmicks are special because they are unique and beautiful people carved from wood. There is one Wemmick named Punchinello, in his town of Wemmickville the townsfolk award stickers to their peers based on their actions. Accomplishments, talent, and beauty are rewarded with golden stars. Failures, mistakes, and embarrassment are awarded with gray dots. These stickers aren't ordinary because they never come off. Punchinello is covered in gray dots and believes he’s worthless, however the story goes on to tell that after a long journey, and after meeting the Man who created him, he finds that his self worth is not based on stars– it's much more.

I want to conclude and share my testimony. I believe in God, so likewise I believe in the devil. The devil seeks to steal our joy, the thoughts that we aren’t good enough eventually rob us of our joy. God wants us to have joy, he gave us agency to choose. We are special, we can change, the past, present, and future does not change our worth. You are special. You are loved.