One of the most frequent and frustrating habits when you are experiencing depression or anxiety is what is called "pensive". In thinking about the same thing over and over again, taking a lot of turns in the mind. It is something so annoying, that sometimes it does not let you sleep, or it detracts you from whatever you are doing. Much of this thinking refers to day-to-day problems, or specific fears. But many times it refers to oneself.
The typical thing is to spend hours, days or months thinking about yourself, reflecting on the problems, on how inefficient you are, on the unworthy, the useless, among other unfavorable paradigms. You spend hours evaluating problems, thinking that they have no solution, and that you will never be able to change. This, which is called 'hyperreflection', is one of the causes that depression and anxiety continue, perpetuate themselves, and you can never see the way out of difficulties.
Looking at your belly button all day is something that generates significant frustration, closes doors to possibilities and does not let you see beyond the negative that happens in your life, thinking that the world is like that, something that has no solution. In addition, it prevents you from achieving your life purpose.
Therefore, one of the most important keys and strategies to get out of depression is to get out of yourself. Not looking at you so much, not thinking so much about your problems, not reflecting too much on your own things, but what is necessary for growth, but not all day, and less when it is full of pessimistic thoughts.
To get out of this pattern, you need to project yourself beyond yourself. This projection includes dedicating yourself to a mission, a purpose, some worthy goals, a work, a function, or a person or group of people in particular. Having a life project, for example, is one of the ways of going further, of not looking at ourselves all the time, but knowing that we have gifts and abilities that we can exercise to serve people, and it focuses our whole being in something different from us.
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If you want to know more about strategies that you can do yourself to get out of depression, or if you want to work on yourself in a more personalized way through face-to-face psychotherapeutic consultations or via Skype, click here.
Guillermo Mendoza Velez
Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist www.SaludMentalyEmocional.com
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