Self-help is an important step in overcoming depression. Believing that a pill is the sole source of a cure for depression can be treacherous. Antidepressants don't work for many people. Relying solely on mediation may only numb the pain. It also can fail to address the root cause of depression; thus, real success is never achieved.
Overcoming depression can generally be helped the most when the individual takes an active role in change. Learning to retrain how one reacts to situations takes effort, which a pill alone cannot achieve.
Self-help starts by recognizing that depression can be changed with a little effort. If an individual has been depressed for some time- it may take longer, but the results can be the same. A great video is, "What the Bleep do We Know?" This 2004 best documentary video illustrates how we become what we think, and people can restructure the brain by changing how one thinks. The video, “Brain Fitness” illustrates how people restructure the brain through training. The book, When Your Mind Is Clear, the Sun Shines All the Time, uses the information we know about the brain to retrain thinking so that negative thoughts are no longer as automatic. For other strategies see Prevention.
Rewiring the mind isn’t hard and the rewards are great. Rewiring the brain is the process of changing how past events are remembered and how future events are perceived. This makes overcoming depression more plausible and manageable.
In the US, help for depression mainly relies on medication. There is a name for almost every bodily function. The US is the biggest and wealthiest country; yet, we have the highest depression rate in the world. Other countries such as the UK have implemented the bibliotherapy scheme into their health systems, which has proved to be beneficial to those who suffer from depression.
The bibliotherapy scheme is a system that introduces patients to self-help books. This is the first choice for many people who have depression versus medication. There are many self-help books. When Your Mind Is Clear, the Sun Shines All the Time is a valuable book, because it not only helps a person understand the root of his or her depression, but teaches how to change negative thinking and how to control it. These two factors are necessary for depression to be a thing of the past.
Effective books on depression should actually teach you something!
If you’re not learning valuable skills from the books you’re reading on overcoming depression, then it’s time to move on to one that does. When Your Mind Is the Clear, the Sun Shines All the Time teaches several valuable skills that enable long-term results for overcoming depression. It also teaches valuable skills for other facets of your life such as relationships with family, spouse, friends, co-workers, on the job, spiritual and personal growth.
