My entire life, I was told that I had depression, that I was bipolar, that I had a personality disorder, and that something was wrong with me. My family and therapists told me this, and eventually, I started believing that because of these things, my life was outlined to be a failure. Mental health is such a vast topic in media now, but it wasn’t a huge topic when I was 13 and was admitted to the mental hospital for wanting to commit suicide and feeling alone. I always had the same questions cycling through my mind and thought I would never be good enough. 

I have always been someone who wants that fantastic love story, someone who has a massive vision for how amazing life is going to be, and someone who has so many dreams, goals, and desires. Depression, though, tends to try and rip those dreams away from you and make you feel like your life is not as valuable as other people’s lives, but why?

 Yes, depression is a chemical imbalance that makes things ridiculously tough, but it does not define you!! It is just something to recognize and work through. 

There are so many days that I want to stay in bed and not do anything, so many days I want to sabotage my relationships because depression is constantly whispering in my ear-I am not good enough, my life is pointless, and who am I to have dreams? Those are all lies I have allowed myself to believe for so long, and I hate it, so I started doing everything I could to change them. 

I am just as worthy as everyone else! It took me years of soul-searching and fighting not to let my moods affect me, and being a woman with hormones adds to my self-doubt, but I choose to focus on positivity and myself all day. 

These are the steps I took to help with my depression:

Changed my Diet. I stopped eating fast food, which was incredibly hard but dramatically changed my mood. What we put in our bodies is so critical to our well-being. No one ever realizes the effects, but the difference is there once you focus on what you eat. I now notice the effects moments after I eat fast food. 

Focused on Positivity. This one is tough, especially when you are going through a season of depression because your mind is telling you that the negative feelings feel good. When they feel awful, you are incredibly torn by what you know you should do and what your mind tells you to do. I began listening to uplifting music and podcasts whenever my mind told me to stay feeling awful. That helped me to reroute the negative feelings into something positive.

Read Self Development books. I have always been an avid reader, but it was always fiction books and nothing that was ever really nourishing. I NOTICED A MAJOR SHIFT IN MY MINDSET once I started reading books about who I was and who I wanted to become. I stopped reading other types of books that did not nourish my soul because I learned that all the books I was reading were hindering my mindset about many things. I know many people, though, who read fiction and self-development! I am not saying you must stop reading books besides self-development, but I suggest adding them to your reading list! 

Listen to Podcasts. I started doing this before I did anything else. It is surprising how listening to others living their dreams and talking in such a way that makes you believe you can achieve yours is also incredibly inspirational. They are inspiring, and they all thoroughly enjoy what they do. Find your favorite ones and listen to them, and then it starts broadening your horizons to other podcasts, speakers, and books, which is how I found all the books and speakers I follow.  

Some of my favorites:

Lewis Howes School of Greatness

Unf*k Nation with Gary John Bishop (His books are excellent, too)

The Ed Mylett Show

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

Once you find something you enjoy, you will slowly begin seeing that it dramatically changes your life. So go out there, find what you enjoy, and work towards becoming the best version of yourself.

This was written by our social media coordinator/writer, Bailey Costa.