Depression And Your Thinking

Thinking can change your depression – or at least the way
you look at depression.

Buddha believes that obsession with the self is one of the
sources of human miseries. Interestingly enough, most
people with depression are self-centered: they focus on
themselves, thinking of their lack or their own needs.
Depressive people often dwell on the negative aspects of
their lives. They need to change their thinking.

Thinking is a skill that leads to self-knowledge. According
to Buddha, self-knowledge, which is available to everyone,
is the way to true human wisdom. Enlightenment, a result of
pursuit of wisdom, shows you the "emptiness" of feelings
and things, and hence the futility of "attachment."
"Emptiness" in Buddhism does not mean "negation" or
"self-denial" of objectives and goals in life. Rather, it
implies holding your objectives and goals in "emptiness",
allowing them to move along with their natural energy, but
with no attachment of the "self" to them. It is similar to
your creativity: you let it come on its own; you don't
force upon it; you do it, but you give up "striving" and
"struggling" to do it. Just "being present" and "be
available" when it comes. This is the wisdom of "emptiness"
and "non-attachment."

With liberation from "self-preoccupation", you intuit the
wisdom that all pleasant feelings in life just lead you to
desire for more. The initial satisfaction that comes with
the desiret is short-lived, for no sooner have you
satisfied one craving than another arises and there is
another new craving. Buddha says that you suffer by wanting
the things you don't have and having the things you don't
want. Life is not a bed of roses, and it is never supposed
to be one. If you want the roses without the thorns, you
are planting the seeds of depression.

To eliminate the depression-causing desire, you need to
start thinking right. The pursuit of self-knowledge leading
to intuitive wisdom suggested by Buddha is attainable only
through daily meditation in which you dispel all negative
thoughts and replenish your mind with positive images.

Discipline your mind to think in a different way, in
particular to avoid any distorted thinking. According to
many psychologists and therapists, you mood is determined
by the way you think about your own experiences. If you
choose to think of unpleasant things, you will experience
unpleasant emotional responses or moods. Your thoughts are
only what you decide to believe in and continually
reinforce in your mind.

Avoid any thinking that makes you too optimistic that it
releases unrealistic energy precipitating in euphoria and
fantasy, commonly seen in bipolar depression.

Avoid any thinking that leads you to obsess with physical
and sensual matters. Such obsession often underlines a lack
of emotional and spiritual satisfaction in life.

Avoid any thinking that reinforces your fear. Truly, nearly
all of us feel afraid or low at some point in life. But if
you thoughts of insecurity are habitual, and your mind is
reacting to these dark forces daily, then you may have
become overwhelmed by the world around you. It is time you
did some thought discipline.

Avoid any thinking that focuses on material things, such as
career, money, and relationships. If you think you can
control your life through controlling other people or the
possession of wealth, think again.

A single thought can change your life forever. Change the
way you think about yourself. You are and become what you
think you are. You cannot change happenings or people
around you, but you can change the way you think about
them. In Buddha's wisdom, once you have negated the "self",
you attitudes to everything else will be different. You
will be imbued with love and compassion for others. You
will begin to relinquish your hold on material things. You
will become aware of the impermanence of things, and hence
the non-attachment.

Western medicine holds the belief that depression is due to
the imbalance of brain chemicals. There is no dispute to
the role of chemical imbalances in depression. However, it
must be pointed out that mind power can also induce and
initiate the production of certain brain chemicals, thereby
instrumental in triggering off depression. Change your
thinking may change the outcome of your depression.

----------------------------------------------------
Stephen Lau is a researcher, writing synopses of medical
research. His publications include "NO MIRACLE CURES - Only
Wholesome Self-Healing," a book on healing and wellness. He
has created several websites, including "Longevity For You"
, "A Healthy Lifestyle Is The Way Of Zen" and " and
"Chinese Natural Healing For Health Rejuvenation."
http://www.longevityforyou.com
http://www.zenhealthylifestyle.com
http://www.chinesenaturalhealing.com