Depression Battle

Yesterday we heard the tragic news of Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise. This was the most shocking and disturbing news I had heard recently. I was more shocked learning that he committed suicide.

A person can look very happy and fulfilled from outside but no one get to know what that person is going through from inside. If we see Sushant’s life as an outsider then it feels like a dream. He was a very talented, performed in many great movies, very handsome with a contagious smile. He was one of my favourite actor. I used to watch his movies in theatre. I am going to miss his movies. It is hard to digest that he died from depression, to me it still feels like it was a planned murder. Nevertheless, the sad truth is we had lost a gem. May his soul rest in peace.

After this news came out, I felt that I should also write the story of my own depression. I have also faced this demon. During that time, My self confidence was at lowest point. I was always sad. I felt like crying whole day. I used to cry 4–5 times in a day. All I wanted to do was sleep for whole day so that I don’t have to face the day. I felt that I was alone in this whole world, no one was there for me. Sadly during those times, I had lost faith even in my parents. That was the worst phase of my life but I felt very strong mentally when I came out of it.

I want to tell everyone who is not happy in their life – all the negative thoughts that are making you feel worthless and alone are just thoughts. That is creation of our own mind. It is possible to conquer them. There are ways by which we can win this fight. I had opted various conscious measures to fight this enemy. I am listing some of those methods below :

1. Acceptance : Accept your current situation. Don’t complain why this is happening to you. Don’t compare yourself with others. Acceptance is the key. If you are not living the life the way you wanted or your friends life seems more interesting to you than yours, these are just factors created by our own mind. They don’t define our reality. We need to work continuously on our growth. and we should not torture ourselves for anything.
2. Don’t let your past ruin a beautiful present. Don’t regret past. What’s gone is gone, you can never get it back. Focus only on present and future.
3. Remove negative people from life. Observe who adds negativity in your life and who brings happiness. We need to remove all those people from our life who brings negativity.
4. Remember life is not a race. We have to live each and every moment rather than running a marathon.
5. Gratitude : Daily write or think of one gratitude for living on this planet. Writing gratitude really shift our energy towards positive. The gratitude can be anything, i.e. I am thankful that I had a good sleep last night, or I was able to breathe.
6. Shift your focus when any negative thought comes to your mind. One negative thought attract billion other negative thoughts and then we would be lost in that sad world for the entire day. So, smart thing is as soon as you think of any negative thought then say it good bye at that moment. Think about anything else at that point. e.g. Murgi pehle aayi ya anda. It can be any damn thing but that thought.
7. Exercise : Exercise is very necessary. It will completely change your mood. Include exercise in your daily routine.
8. Try Meditation. It calms the mind.
9. Read self help books or watch videos. I found videos of Sadhguru very helpful for me.I had read couple of self help books which gave me whole new perspective.
10. Convert loneliness into solitude. Go out alone for watching a movie, trip, eating in a restaurant, shopping, anything that you enjoy doing with friends. Initially you will not like it, but that’s Ok. You will feel self achievement and after sometime you will not depend on anyone. You will start to enjoy your own company.
11. Talk to your close friends and family about your state of mind. They will listen to you and understand your situation.
12. Stop using social media apps like Facebook, Instagram. They create more negative thoughts than positive in these hard times. Uninstall these apps.
13. If you are living away from family, then it’s a good idea to start living with them for sometime until you start experiencing happiness within.
14. Invest time in any new hobby. It’s very necessary to have hobbies which makes you happy. It can be anything, i.e. Writing, reading, painting.

All these things helped me to win my battle with depression. If I can do it then anyone can do it. Please stop judging anyone and be kind to everyone. We all have a responsibility to make this world a better place. Spread love as it’s the most powerful thing.