Many people who are diagnosed with depression struggle with loving themselves. We might feel the sting of stigma, whether it’s from others, from within them, or from a combination of both. As individuals with depression, some of people deal with negative thoughts, which can make it difficult to foster feelings of love towards themselves. How can they overcome these challenges and learn to love themselves?

Ways to Love Yourself When You’re Depressed

Set Boundaries and Learn to Say No
Loving yourself starts with respecting yourself. Do not let others cross your boundaries. Set them and then stick with them. Depression can be  made worse when a person loose set of boundaries or no boundaries set at all. If you  allow people to do and say hurtful things to yo. These words and actions then became your internal dialogue, which, in turn, fueled negative thoughts and contributed to your depression. Once you  learn how to set boundaries and be strong enough to hold to them, you began to love yourself more and see improvement in your depression.

Keep a Positivity Journal
In order to counteract the negative thoughts you have, write all the positive things about yourself down. Record these thoughts in a journal. When you’re struggling with loving yourself, you can refer to this “positivity journal.” You know that you have a hard time remembering anything positive about yourself on your low, depression days, so keeping a journal filled with loving thoughts about yourself encourage and can be helpful to you. Leave notecards around the house so these loving statements are readily visible. It may seem cheesy, but it helps you.

Do Nice Things for Yourself
Give yourself permission to rest without feeling guilty. Your bodies is fighting an illness, and you need to acknowledge that. Those individuals with depression often struggle with finding energy and motivation to bathe or shower; so, splurge and buy yourself some nice body care items. Take small steps toward doing activities you used to enjoy. Show yourself some love by purchasing a book by an author you like or get that new video game that has caught your eye. Whatever it is you think you might be able to enjoy, do that thing.

Discover Who You Are
You are diagnosed with depression, Yet, you are not depression. some days it feels like you are. The black cloud is heavy, and it hangs over everything. Still, I want you to find that one speck of light. I assure you it’s there. You’re still here. You can start there.

One thing you certainly are is warriors. See yourself for the courageous and strong person that you are. In spite of the struggle, you are still shining brightly in this darkness. Be  proud of yourself. You have every reason to love yourself.

For help:
Take the next step and book your session with DHP. Lazzaro Pisu in Vancouver, today, Call 604 202 7938.
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