Now imagine you deciding not to let life be easy, and that means challenging yourself along with your depression. Imagine your depression as a demon trying to conquer your way of living, and you as the knight making it fight for that right. Finally, imagine you actually winning that battle. Probably thinking to yourself it sounds like a fantasy, but let me tell you a secret. It doesn't have to be.
That's what this blog is about. I'm not telling you how I conquered my demons, because I'm still battling them. I'd like to think I'm assisting, helping those like me learn how to battle their demons. So they can have a better hope of victory. From this point on, we're all knights against depression.
I hoped you liked my intro, and it got you ready to battle your demons. Let me state that I did not go to college for the study of depression or anything like that. I have been battling it along with many other mental illnesses for about thirty years now. So I have some knowledge on how to handle it, and I'm here to share some tips on how to handle depression with you based on my own experiences. There are three things specifically that helps me control the overwhelming feelings of loneliness, worthlessness, and ever approaching DOOM.
There is unimaginable power that comes from the presence of music. You hear of people that create music for wealth and influence. Some people *cough cough, Diddy* uses this power for evil, but I'm going to teach you how to use music as a positive influence and weaponize it against your depression. Soon you'll go from a woeful individual, to a Knight against depression with the power of MUSIC!!! You got to do the stance where you do a sumo stomp followed by holding out an open palm. Trust me, it's worth it just because of how fun it is.
First thing you need to know, you don't need to create music to harness its powers. Instead you need to know how to manage and set up a vibe using the melodies and lyrics. Let me break it down to you real quick. The moments when the thoughts in your head only want to talk about what makes you feel useless, a good playlist can switch the subject and mood in your mind. You can't just play any kind of music and expect to become happy. There's a science to it, and it's extremely simple.
If you're angry and play rock music, then there's a good chance you'll stay angry. I'm not saying that because it's rock music, I'm saying that because most rock music holds an aggressive melody, or beat. If you would want to get rid of that anger, then it would be best to play something calming like classical. That's the basis behind the science of music, to play the melodies that oppose your emotions and encourage something better to arise. So what type of music should you play to battle your depression.
In the case of fighting depression, lyrics are important as well. Depression isn't just a mood or feeling like anger, it's a state of mind created by your own negative thoughts. It has you trapped into the pool of misery with negative words overfilling your throat. We use lyrical music to battle those vile and venomous thoughts. If you're stuck in depression because you can't make money, listen to music that allow you to envision yourself as a hustler, and go make a hustle. If you're feeling lonely, then listen to music about being the one and go find some friends. If you're feeling worthless, then listen to the music that helps you feel encouraged and go do something with your life. The key is to know the main cause of your depression, what makes you feel the worst about yourself. Then build a playlist of at least forty songs with lyrics that preach the opposite of how you feel, and listen to it as you work to improve yourself.
I wouldn't be saying this if I didn't know it was true, and I know it's true because of experience. My mood can often change with what I'm thinking about. When I was depressed I would only think about what made me feel horrible. Right now I can't stop thinking about how much of a failure I am because of my inability get a job. Instead of sitting on those cursed words, I turn on some Connor Price or Neffex and look for a job, or write with the purpose of making a come up one day. I might not have amounted to nothing yet, but I will because I'm only going to keep pressing on this gas pedal.
The beauty about living your life is you get to decide what you want to do. When life feels down, you can use an upbeat playlist to turn the vibe around. The power of music might sound corny but it's real. I bet if you start to harness music the way I showed, then you'll have a much easier time handling your anxiety and depression. Yeah, they're basically hand to hand. Depression and anxiety can, and normally always will, gang up on you. That's why you need a little bit more fire power to truly fend off the demons. That extra fire power comes in the form of habits.
Little Rot has depression, probably because of their name. Voices in their head taunts them, on a bad day it drives them insane. Then they took a liking to stick carving, and made it a habit for everyday. Rot was able to express themselves by carving in different design. Suddenly those nasty mean voices didn't hold so much sway. The morale of the story is that Rot was able to fend off their depression by picking up a hobby that allowed them to express themselves, and you can too.
Picking up a habit that allow you to express yourself is vital for fighting off depression. Misery can turn a person head into a pool of stagnation. The person don't do anything because they're so caught up in the slump, they truly believe life is pointless. By picking up a habit that allow that person to express themselves, the habit is acting as an outlet. By expressing themselves, that outlet drain out all the negative thoughts. Giving that person a clearer mind, and better chance to tackle the day with good vibes.
Little Rot's outlet was stick carving, my personal outlet is writing, and Eminem's outlet was writing/rapping. Hobbies take on many forms. Only thing that is important is it allow you to express yourself without hurting others. Unless your hobby is boxing or martial arts, in which case you can find willing sparring partners at a boxing gym or dojo. You might not know what your passion is, then feel free to try out different activities.Something is going to catch your fancy that you'll become passionate about, and that is your gift.
There are three things essential to battle the demon known as depression and that's a great playlist, an hobby to outlet your feelings, and most importantly a connection with God. Some people might have clicked away after me mentioning the heavenly father, and it's okay if your not too fond of the idea of running to an all powerful spiritual being. I was skeptical of him before, it's illogical not to be. However I can testify on a few occasions of my life that would have left me for dead if there was not a God. It's because of these experiences that I built and I do my best to maintain a relationship with our all father.
I hope it's not disrespecting God by wording my last sentence the way I did. I don't mean going to church when talking about building a relationship with God. Church is an excellent way to worship our lord, but the first step truly starts with you. Build your own relationship with your/our God by talking to him, praying to him, and praising him. I personally talk to him whenever I'm thinking out loud, admiring the works of nature, and have a specific playlist meant for worshiping. No it's not all gospel, but there are some good gospel songs. Some of you may have peeped that your/our God part, and let me explain to you what I mean. Understanding what I mean by this will make it easier for you to start your own bond.
This isn't a full on "GO CHRISTIAN" blog, but please stick with me as we hop around subjects a bit. First place on our bunny trail is to the sentence I said earlier. When I say your/our God, I mean we all have the same God. No matter how one may picture God, or what religion they practice, we still have the same God. Our father made us, he also made the greeks that worshiped Zeus and Hades, and he made the Nordics that worshiped Thor and Valhalla. God created us but didn't reveal himself to us, loaded us up with imagination and curiosity, and gave us free will to live life as we please. My point being that our God is an understanding God. If you imagined God as a man who wielded lightning, or an African lady; God understands why you picture him that way. I would dare say he even planned for it.
If we wasn't allowed to imagine God how we pleased, then why wouldn't he reveal himself to correct all of our visions? The answer is because God doesn't care. God only cares about us building that bond to worship, praise, and bond with him. He cares that we decide to do it on our own free will. He doesn't care if you're the perfect being, perfect christian, christian, boy, girl, transgender, black, white, latino, or asian; he only cares that you accept and believe in him.
He understands the pain, confusion, and resentment that would drive us away from his embrace, and that's why he love on the ones that walk into the darkness with faith. After realizing this, it was easy for me to talk to him. Not just like an all powerful father, but as if I was a child spending quality time with a parent. In all honesty, I never felt more empowered. That's where I get the power to face my demons by writing. When my mind drowns me in an ocean of negative thoughts, God is the light house that encourages me to keep swimming. If you want to build your relationship with God but don't know where to start, begin a prayer just by saying hi to God and talking to him about life and goals, and the rest will come naturally. If you're a music person like me, then I'll have a link to my playlist I use to worship God below, maybe ya'll have fun.
So, what do you think about my blog? Did you find any of my advice helpful? Did you try out the open palm stance, and why or why not? These are all questions I want answered from you in the comment section. I also have a few challenges for you. First challenge is to just try being positive for a week, especially when you feel like you're at your worst. Fake it til you make it is a really strong tactic against depression, and it emulates out real positive energy. Second challenge is to try making your own playlist for fighting off depression. My final and probably most difficult challenge is to try talking to God. Just say "Dear God" and tell him about your day and crack some jokes. Even if you don't think he is, God's always listening.
This is the link to my playlist "Sunday Mix" on Youtube. Times right now are tough, and that's why it's even more important to keep a relationship with God. Use the playlist to gain a little bit of faith that everything will be alright under the God's guidance. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLL-z9qcn12NeICZWRzxiVK_4e6Ds7nWsY
This is the link to my playlist "Self Pick Me Up" on Youtube. Let the vibe of self-love, empowerment, and hustle overfill your senses. Soon you'll be ready slay any evil that comes your way. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLL-z9qcn12Nf2iqTJ1Azon5a2Fet6AmgEI have taught you everything I could, and handed you every source I know I can. Life is now your journey young padawan, and you know what opponent you face. I have faith in you, and pray to God we all gain the strength to overthrow our own demons. We might fight alone, but we are not alone. Just as I pray for your strength to succeed, I ask that you also pray for mines. It's these prayers that will connect our battles, building our own links with each other. Thank you for calling on me to assist you, and have a blessed day. Until next time fellow knight.