MDAO Forum

Support for People with Mood Disorders => Depression and Bipolar => Topic started by: Myriad on July 29, 2014, 09:45:33 pm

Title: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Myriad on July 29, 2014, 09:45:33 pm
These are some of the things I do.  Please add to it.

Light timer - always wake up in the light.  Really great particularly in the winter.
Get up
Shower
Get dressed
Protein drink (homemade) :) - seems to stabilize blood sugar longer.
Second breakfast
Small meals throughout the day.
No sugar
No caffeine
Writing
Support groups
Therapy
Depression Chats
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: LuckyLou on August 01, 2014, 07:15:25 am
Things in my tool belt: Yoga, meditation, music, books, baths, online support groups, my pdoc and therapist
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: paulm on August 02, 2014, 01:21:57 am
Hello Myriad. Interesting topic.  You and Lucky Lou have already hit a lot of mine, so I will try and add a few different ones.

 I try and get the same amount of sleep each week, no more, no less.

 I try and get some sweat exercise in at least 3X per week and no, sweat exercise isn't walking on the beach on a hot day LOL

 I try to take my meds at the same time each day.

 I try to be honest with my pdoc (that can be harder than it sounds  :))

 I try not to become obsessed over things that I cannot control.

 I try and be patient. (with varying degrees of success  :))

 I try to realize that an a**hole will always be an a**hole and not to get worked up by their comments. There is no way that I'm going to change their opinions, no matter how wonderful my arguments are. Better to just smile and walk away.

 I try to avoid as many triggers as I can

 When the little hamster in my brain gets spinning in it's cage a little to fast I try to concentrate to slow it down.

 I try to remember that sometimes that I just need to be alone.

 When I slip up and don't follow my own rules, I try to learn from that rather than berate myself for slipping up.

 I always try and remember that I'm a good person with a bad illness, not a bad person with good excuses.

 I try to remember that I'm not alone.  Take Care. paulm

 
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Dragonfly on August 02, 2014, 02:05:30 pm
I talk to my children on the phone almost every day and see them in person regularly since I now live alone. Get great support from them and I support them.

See my grandchildren regularly. (Just wait Paul you will know what joy it is to become a grand parent).

Go camping with family to get away from everything.

Read.

Keep to a good sleep pattern - sometimes hard.

Eat sensibly. (am diabetic)

Take my meds.

Computering. Helps me keep my mind off things. Have to be careful to limit time.

See a number of very good doctors for my health problems.

Talk about my illness with people that are supportive.
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: paulm on August 02, 2014, 11:08:56 pm
Hello Dragonfly and welcome to the new forum. I am looking forward to becoming a grandfather, but in the short term people arranging baby showers etc is slowly driving me a little crazy LOL. Take Care. paul m
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Rich on August 04, 2014, 09:53:10 pm
Hi!
Here are the things in my feel better took belt:

- Reading - I bought an e-reader after a couple of months of hell (RE:  Mom in hospital;  unexpected expenses).  I just downloaded by 6th e-book from the Toronto Public Library FOR *FREE*!  I find that reading on the bus and subway keeps my mind from thinking too many thoughts.

- Sugary treats

- Naps

Rich
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Dragonfly on August 05, 2014, 06:31:30 pm
Hi Rich,

Often thought about getting an e-reader. Love to read a lot. Do you find it better than a hard cover or paper back book. What if you want to go to the beach and read? Could it get damaged by sand and water? Great that you can download  free from the libary. I suppose from the internet you have to pay. Is that right or can you find places where it is free?
Dragonfly :-*
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Soozan on August 05, 2014, 08:53:39 pm
Hi Everyone, my toolbelt is looking a bit sparce these days but I do like to work on the computer to keep my mind active and off of my disabilities. Luckily I have made a great contact with positive fun people who appreciate my talents and I enjoy working with them. The money is not great, but I get a lot of satisfaction in upgrading my skills and having the human interaction of meeting with them every day. I am a bit of a workaholic, so I have to rely on Rich to pry me away from the computer, but other than that, I tend to spend my time conquering a computer free fall game called Maleficent.

OH and of course there is the household chores of cooking dinner and laundry for a household, the fun never stops!

Compared to other's posts here, it makes me think that Maybe I need to get a life, Ya think?

When I was at my worst, I relied on making sure I took my medications and going after every source of free help I could get, caseworkers, socialworkers for counselling, progress place to keep me busy and active and out of the house.
I highly recommend keeping busy when you need coping skills, those were mine.

- Soozan
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Rich on August 05, 2014, 09:02:42 pm
Hi Dragonfly,
I like e-readers better than paper-based books for the following reasons:

1)  I don't like germs, so I don't like library or used books
2)  I like my money, so I don't like to buy books that I'm only going to read once  :-)
3)  I'm not near a beach :-)
3)  I like to be able to download a book to my e-reader via the Toronto Public Library website for *FREE* and from the comfort of my own home, so then I don't have to fit in a visit to the library into my busy schedule.  All you need is:

- a library card (you will have to go in person to get one, I think?)
- an e-reader --- I've got a Kobo Arc 7 which cost about $180 incl. taxes...I like this one because I can connect it directly (and wirelessly) to my home network, as opposed to downloading and saving e-books to my PC first (from the library website), and then copying them to the e-reader via a cable...yes, I am lazy and spoiled!  (Soozan bought it for me!)
- you are right, you may not need your own internet, since yes, you may be able to use coffee shop wifi?

Hope this helps!  I'm still new to this e-reader / e-book thing!

Rich
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Dragonfly on August 12, 2014, 10:40:43 am
Thanks Rich for replying,

My youngest daughter goes to the library a lot. You can take out e-readers. She said she would get me one to try out. Thanks for the info.

Dragonfly
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Pleeb on August 23, 2014, 03:11:57 am
Good tips!

The main Toronto library has the largest collection of recordable/downloadable music in the world.  (how they measure these things?)
You need a library card to get on.


Peter
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Pleeb on September 07, 2014, 12:10:09 am
I need tips on catching triggers.  They can be very subtle.

I haven't finished rereading my WRAP manual yet.....maybe something in there?


Peter
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: paulm on September 09, 2014, 12:37:50 am
Hello Peter. Your wrap manual should have plenty of tips. If you can find a place offering it for free, I know people that have taken wrap twice.  Take Care. paul m
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: DeterminedJay on November 24, 2014, 03:34:10 pm
Hey all, this is a great topic, was just reading through it comparing your tools with mine! Mine is still being built, but here are a couple:

- Meditation
- An array of spokem/thought POSITIVE affirmations
- Taking a long shower
- Spending time with loved ones
- A good long run
- Playing video games(more of a distraction technique)

One thing I have trouble with is being consistent day to day, routine day after day is something that has evaded my mental processes for many years. Could be the ADHD but I know if I put my mind to it I can re-wire it. I am human, and we have overcome much worse circumstances in our past.

Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: WRW1955 on November 25, 2014, 05:33:40 pm
Love my cats and dogs.  Playing, grooming and petting them really helps my moods.  Getting funny cartoons on FB of cats and dogs. I'm a shopaholic so I restrict my shopping now to used book stores, thrift shops, and dollar stores.
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: katiecole on January 10, 2015, 10:03:17 pm
Went for a hike up a mountain today. Getting out in the fresh air, well bundled up is invigorating. I find that exercising my physical body gets me out of the mind. It is like a form of meditation. My goal is to try and do some exercise each day but of course that is easier said than done! Balance seems to be key when treating bipolar. The healthier I eat, get proper rest, again exercise, the better things are balanced.

Reading a good book is great; socializing with friends when possible; watching a good movie.
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: DeterminedJay on January 17, 2015, 04:57:07 pm
You are quite correct, exercise really allows you to be at one with your body as you need to focus on moving in the correct way without thinking about whatever is bothering you. Meditation of the body for sure!

We should start some polls on which activities allow you to fully open your mind to the experience of being, and perhaps post some experiences of such. If we all talk about exercising, even if it is just a little bit, it will motivate us all to start joining in.

I am glad that you felt great while hiking, I wish there was a mountain near here where I could hike. I'm sure I could find something!
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Pleeb on January 19, 2015, 02:11:30 am
Hi, WR....I have no pets, but I like finding neat pet pics, esp cats on petoftheday.com (http://petoftheday.com) and cuteoverload.com (http://cuteoverload.com).......I post a lot of them on Facebook, and oddball pics I find on Tumblr blogs, like old ads.... I posted an old ad that showed an infant drinking 7-up!!!  Something about the infant will be more social from drinking it....I forget.

Peter

I also like joking with cashiers, people working at Second Cup or whatever, and saying thank you in their languages if I guess correctly.  They often get a big kick out of it, esp Ethiopian women.

This isn't something I can control - the other day I was feeling bad, but I was very chatty, but not by choice - it just happened........I wasn't trying to be cheerful.
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Pleeb on January 19, 2015, 02:17:00 am
New routine.....I have a plastic octopus (?) tentacle about 6 inches long - fits on my finger.

If they ask:  "Anything else with your coffee (or whatever I'm ordering...."  I show them my octopus finger and say:  "And a bucket of fish heads for my pet squid please......are they fresh?"  Too offbeat for a lot of people, especially if they don't have great English skills.

The guy in the Second Cup in the Eaton Centre laffs his head off at my stuff, but he wasn't in Friday!....next time!

Peter

 :P

Don't send me back to the institute!.....LOL
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: DaniAle on January 22, 2015, 11:05:37 pm
Hi everyone! I'm new here. Really enjoyed reading about everyone's feel better tool belt. Mine are a lot of the same as yours:

Reading
Going to the gym
Spending time with my daughter
Meditating
Attending Self-Help Groups
Taking my meds
Writing
Attending mass
Eating healthy
Drinking lots of water
Starting each day with a clean slate
Talking with friends
A good cup of coffee
Colouring
Bargain hunting
Knitting

Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: paulm on January 24, 2015, 01:03:26 am
Hello DaniAle. Welcome to the forum. Great list. Please feel free to ask questions, answer other people's questions' and/or use the forum to vent.  Sometimes I find venting out a few of my frustrations is a good way to keep healthy. Take Care. paul m
Title: Re: What's in our feel better Tool Belt?
Post by: Pleeb on February 03, 2015, 08:21:11 pm
Quote
Starting each day with a clean slate

Never thought of that!


Peter