All posts by Hugh Smith

Purpose, The 12 Steps

I am no longer ashamed to admit my being depressed.

Leave a comment

Here is a thought for your day!

“Treating yourself kindly means looking after yourself and accepting  yourself in all your humanness. You are not the most perfect, wonderful person that has ever graced this earth. Neither are you the worst, most imperfect, wicked person that has ever dared to draw breath.”

CLARIFICATION OF THOUGHT

I am beginning to realize , thanks to my program of recovery and my Higher Power, that I am not as bad as I think I am. I am beginning to see that the more I tend to stick to the present and live my life in today, the more free I am becoming  myself and  with others.

My depressed way of looking  at my world prevented me from ever focusing on the fact that I have a lot of value as a human being and as a member of the human race. I know that I am no longer ashamed to admit my being depressed. I am able to free myself away from the bonds of my sadness. I am now able to walk with my head up and believe and trust that God has a special purpose for me here on this  earth.

To be kind means to treat another the way you would want to be treated. When I am depressed, I treat myself like I am a nothing. I try and find ways to help myself to a gentler way of thinking of myself. ”

MEDITATION

We know that the God of our lives has something good for us today.  This good  will help us grow and get through  this day. We will place our trust in God,  as weak as this trust might be at the moment. Our trust is found in our ever growing love for ourselves.  (Personal comments)

SOURCE:  Copyright(c) Higher Thoughts for down days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for members of 12 Step fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. March 23. Page 60.

Copyright(c) Depressed Anonymous, 3rd edition. (2011) Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville.

+ For information on online ordering of these books, please click onto VISIT OUR STORE  on website menu (depressedanon.com) and then click onto VISIT THE  DEPRESSED ANONYMOUS  BOOKSTORE and this will lead you to the ordering information. Thank you and have a better day!!!

Courage, Spirituality, The 12 Steps

I can visualize myself happy and serene.

Leave a comment

A HIGHER THOUGHT FOR YOU  TODAY

AFFIRMATION

I will trust myself to try thoughts other than  the ones that make me feel sad, small and guilty. I will imagine myself happy and serene.

“Any system approaching perfect self-control is also approaching perfect self frustration. The desire for perfect control of the environment and of myself, is based on a profound mistrust of the controller. Because you couldn’t trust yourself to become, to allow   yourself to grow as a plant grows. Rather you have to make yourself, like you make a box. In regarding yourself as a manufactured box, rather than a growing plant you see yourself as an object, not as a living being…” (3) Dorothy Rowe.

CLARIFICATION OF THOUGHT

I know now that I need to let go and to let God guide my life as I attempt to live today. Just one day at a time. I pray now that God, or my Higher Power, will not let me get down on myself. Instead the Higher Power will help me become conscious of the fact that the Twelve Steps are truly  my steps out of the cell of the prison of my depression.

Each and every living human organism on this earth has five major characteristics that link all life together. Each  life organism has an autonomy, a competency, an interconnectedness to others, a self-directedness and an ability to duplicate itself.

MEDITATION

We want to control our lives and we are discovering that the best way to guide our lives is to live in the principle  of this Higher  Consciousness or, the God of our understanding.”

SOURCES:  Copyright(c) Higher Thoughts for down days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for  members of Twelve Step fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville.  Page 59. March 22.

Copyright(c) I’ll do it when I feel better. 2nd Edition (2018) Hugh Smith, Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville.

12 Step Meeting, DA Literature, Fellowship

I saw the light! The light of hope. The light on the path to freedom and sanity!

Leave a comment

AFFIRMATION

Spring can only start in my mind and, today, the first day of Spring, I want to be a beautiful flower. I will visualize myself growing tall and bright and filled with God’s most beautiful colors.

CLARIFICATION OF THOUGHT

“One of the reasons I am depressed is because I have made this an absolute belief of mine, namely the  belief  ‘Only bad things happened to me in the past and only bad things will happen to me in the future.’ (3) Dorothy Rowe, Ph.D

Now that I am working on myself and admitting that I have to do some housekeeping on myself. I am beginning  to hope and see a light at the end of the tunnel. I also believe that I will begin to feel better, the more I go to my DA meetings and listen to how other people are working the Twelve Step Program.

The future is where I live right now. The future now is the yesterday’s  tomorrow. I am making my future now.

I no longer believe that only bad things will happen to me in the future, because now I hear how people who once were ready to give up on life speak of how they have found hope in the fellowship of Depressed  Anonymous  and are getting, better one day at a time.

MEDITATION

God , please help us live up to our belie that each day we will get better as we live only in today and not in the fears and anxious moment of a tomorrow that may never come.”

(Your personal comments, please)

“MADE A SEARCHING AND FEARLESS MORAL INVENTORY OF OURSELVES. (Step four of Depressed Anonymous).

“Step four is a critical step if we want to begin the journey toward wholeness, peace and having good feelings about ourselves again. But if we want to stay in the pit of sadness then the belief that we are worthless and not quite  good enough will definitely limit our awareness of what we can become and what we can do for ourselves.   I believe a lot of our difficulties have their roots in our need to be perfect and to do things the way others expect. It’s as if we have to take care of their needs before our own. ”

Copyright(c) Depressed Anonymous, 3rd edition. (2011) Depressed Anonymous  Publications. Louisville. Page 54.

This work, the flagship  manual of our fellowship group, can be ordered online at depressedanon.com at VISIT THE STORE the Depressed Anonymous  Publications Bookstore.

NOTE: Copyright (c) Higher Thoughts for Down Days: 365 daily thoughts and daily meditations for members of 12 Step Fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. March 21, pages 58-59.

To Order online, Higher Thoughts for Down Days (either in KINDLE edition or paper book edition) at our Bookstore —VISIT THE STORE–at (Depressed Anonymous Publications at depressedanon.com. Discover other great literature about depression and the 12 Steps.

Affirmations, Fellowship, Purpose

“I have to put my oars in the water if I want to get to my destination.”

Leave a comment

MY AFFIRMATION

“The idea that we have to be responsible  for ourselves and that the ways of the world are neither good nor just is too terrifying for you to contemplate. You cannot tolerate such uncertainty. You do not trust yourself, so how can you take responsibility for yourself?”

CLARIFICATION  OF THOUGHT

I don’t like facing the fact that ultimately I am the one responsible for myself, no one else.It  appears to me that  I have to take care of myself, depend on my Higher Power for direction, and go from there. My Higher Power isn’t going to do it all. I know that I have to do all that I can to restore my life and my feelings. God is the rudder to my boat and I have to put my oars in the water if I am to get moving in the right direction.

I am attempting, day by day, to tolerate the unpredictableness  of my life and gradually learn new ways to cope with uncertainty. While I am depressing myself, I want everything to be perfect and under my control. I know now that I will be happier when I learn how to tolerate a pleasant mood without telling myself that it won’t last.

MEDITATION

We believe that the closer that we come to God, as we understand God, the closer our God draws to us. We believe that whatever we want changed in our life this can be best be accomplished by approaching the God of our Understanding and letting this Power greater  than  ourselves steer us across the stormy sea.

(Your own personal thoughts)

——————————————————-

SOURCE: Copyright (c)  Higher Thoughts for down days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for members of the 12 step fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymlus Publications. Louisville. Page 57. March 19.

NOTE:   This book and others can help you find the serenity and hope that you are looking for in your life today. You can order on line here at our website. Click onto VISIT THE STORE.

Uncategorized

How do we create for ourselves the state of loneliness?

Leave a comment

AFFIRMATION

“I WILL SEEK FIRST THE WAY OF HOLINESS AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS AND EVERYTHING WILL BE GIVE N TO ME BESIDES. IN OTHER WORDS, I WILL FIRST BE TRUE TO MYSELF  AND EVERYTHING WILL BE GIVEN TO ME BESIDES.”

“HOW DO WE CREATE FOR OURSELVES THE STATE OF LONELINESS?  WE CREATE IT BY OUR RULES ABOUT OUR RELATIONSHIPS, THE SKILLS WE USE IN OUR RELATIONSHIPS, AND THE EMOTIONS OUR RELATIONSHIPS PROVIDE IN US.”

CLARIFICATION OF THOUGHT

Fear is at the heart of my depression. Fear of others and their opinions of me make me flee relationships where I feel  alone and vulnerable to another’s critical gaze. I create fear panic in my mind by the imagined hurt that might come to me because of my perception that the word is dangerous and frightful. I fear any unknown reality, be it a place, person or situation.

In my being  part  of a recovery group, I find that the new fellowship and literature of the Depressed  Anonymous group, give me a newfound joy and security.

MEDITATION

God, we choose a-lone-ness with you over our feeling alone.  We will learn all the skills of being honest, open and fearless with others about ourselves. Our faith in you will help us make the move to begin to change ourselves and to seek persons who can help  walk us through our depression into hope and security. (Personal comments).

 

SOURCE:  Higher Thoughts for down days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for members of 12 Step fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. March 15.

12 Step Meeting, Acceptance, DA Literature, Fellowship, Spirituality, The 12 Steps

“I can make the hard changes.”

Leave a comment

Your HIGHER THOUGHT  for today

Affirmation

I am gaining, day by day, a new and hopeful attitude about my life and my relationship with others.

“Strangely, I feel as if I’ve been incredibly lucky. Logically, I don’t believe in  luck. I believe the people make their own lives when they are what they  are, but still I feel so lucky to have been involved in a group which gave me the opportunity, and incentive, to start to make changes in my life: to understand why I am sometimes so angry, why I have been so  self-critical and self-destructing. Understanding why you feel as you do opens the gates for the even harder struggle of changing what you do.”

Making changes is part of making a life.  If I choose to stay mired in the deep pit of depression, I can choose that. I have that as an option. But, if I want to choose and risk changing  myself, I have the option of working to construct a different way of looking at my world. Just by changing my attitude about my life in the direction where I want it to go, I can make the hard changes. I want to change my attitude. I will now want  to listen to those who have been in recovery for months and/or years and listen to their hopeful attitude and how they are feeling better now that they are living one day at a time. They are no longer fearful that the old nemesis, the sadness, will sneak up and change everything back to the way it was.

I can only change myself. I will always try and keep the focus on how I need to change, not how others around me  need to change.

Meditation

God, we are always heartened  and  healed by the group. Please guide us and let us be led  to that healing community of persons who are  struggling to find the serenity that you promised to those who do you will. “Fear not, for I am always with you.”

SOURCE:   Copyright(c)  Higher Thoughts for down days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for members of 12 step fellowship groups. Hugh Smith. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. Ky. Page 43. (2/27/18.)

In order to get started on your own recovery, at your pace, and in the amount of time that you feel you need, we offer a HOME STUDY KIT. Please click onto the Depressed Anonymous Bookstore menu for information on ordering these materials of recovery.

Choice, Egoism, Stress

Higher Thoughts (positive)are like vitamins! Have you taken yours today?

Leave a comment

 

Affirmation

I am able right now to read and discover how I can undepress my self.

“… It seems that the physiological changes which accompany fear can have profound effects on the body which lead to a breakdown of the immune system, the system which enables us to throw off  obnoxious substances and viruses. Once this  this system ceases to function efficiently we are laid open to the ravages of all kinds of diseases.”

Reflection

It happens frequently that those who come to the office and say that they have had a cold which they haven’t been able to shake off,   are oftentimes under an undue amount of stress and pressure. The effects of continued worry and tension accumulate over time and should bring with it the effects of an impaired autoimmune system.

My body is made up of various systems all intended to work in conjunction and in harmony with each other. One of the many ways I could work against my stress   and overcome depression is to understand how I set myself up for depression. Sadness and depression aren’t caused just by a few irrational thoughts held over time – – if that was the case, then all of us would be depressed all the time. Depression, to be overcome, has to be understood and the best way to understand it is to begin to see that no matter how unclear is its origins, I’m still unable to do something so that I can undepressed myself.

Meditation

“God, put your hand in our hand and give us the gift of understanding those  areas, past and present in our lives which continue to produce those  thoughts  of self-hate and fear.”

****************************************************

Personal comments

Source: Copyright ( c) Higher Thoughts for Down Days: 365 daily thoughts and meditations for members of Twelve-Step support groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. Page 41. February 24.

Uncategorized

I will look for fun things to do today.

Leave a comment

 

Your  Higher Thought for today!

Affirmation

I’m going to do a childlike activity today. Crayons anyone?

“In making yourself do all the things that your high standards demands, you turn everything you do into joyless work rather than pleasurable activities. “

Reflections

I don’t usually do activities that are pleasant or fun. That is why I find myself depressed.  As a child, I was taught to do my work and perform all my chores as perfectly as possible, so I didn’t have time to really be a child. My high standards were  such that I took on more and more work to always do the most and the best whenever possible. The more I did, and the more perfect I performed  my work, the more I would please others.

If I want some good advice on how to feel better, I need to start looking toward taking some time off for myself today. I need to do something frivolous and fun, making sure it has nothing to do with work or with performance. The more I will look for fun things to do for myself the less attention I may put on performing at the perfection level. Depressed people don’t know how to have fun!

Meditation

“God, you made the world and on the seventh day even rested. I need to take a cue from you and take at least one day off a week from all my work, projects, and worries!

************************************

Source: Copyright (C) Higher thoughts for down days: 365 daily meditations and thoughts for members of 12 step fellowship groups. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville. February 21.

People Pleasing

The joys of approval seeking.

Leave a comment

The following post was  written by Bob P.

“I have observed that many depressives, including me, are given to approval seeking, some more than others. It seems fair to call it a kind of emotional dependency. Little children are completely dependent on their parents or whoever is taking care of them. They have no choice and are helpless. They  better have their parents approval or else.

Some of the children carry this kind of dependency right on into  adulthood, even to their graves unless they do the hard work of unlearning it. They have become so unsure of themselves, their opinions, and thoughts and skills, that they feel an imperative urge to get someone’s approval   that they are doing the right thing and that they are still ok.

When we, the former children, reach physical maturity, we find that people soon resent those who become dependent on them. They often become contemptuous of them -leaners, clinging vines, etc.  We literally drive them away from us with our constant demand for reassurance, hanging onto them, and begging them to throw us a few crumbs of approval now and then. We become fearful of asserting ourselves at all for fear of retaliating  such as outright ridicule, not being given a seat around the campfire, the doghouse, prolonged silent treatment, or stopping cooking, etc.  How can we avoid this treatment? Please them  more, of course?  Hardly. That brings only more contempt.

What will become of us?  We will spend our lives doing what others want us to do. Not what we want to do. If it gets bad enough, we will have feelings of total worthlessness and  self-loathing. Some will reach the point where they would rather die than to continue lving with that yoke around their neck.

You can free yourself from this fetter, but it’s really tough depending how badly you are addicted. It will take determination and sustained effort. It’s worth it to finally breath the air of freedom. And, you gave it to yourself. Start with a proven self help progam like Depressed Anonymous.

I include some words by Lao Tzu, 500 BC, who wrote the Tao Te Ching.

“Care about people’s approval

and you will be their slave.

Must you value what others value

and avoid what they avoid?

How ridiculous!

When you are content to be simply yourself

and don’t compare or compete

everybody will respect you.”

NOTE:

Bob P., Evansville, Indiana,  is  a  founding  member of  Depressed Anonymous and  one whose  friendship and thinking  I  cherish.  (Hugh S).

This article first appeared in the Spring 1995 issue of The Antidepressant Tablet, (Vol 6. No. 3)

Spirituality

What do you mean when you talk about a spiritual awakening?

Leave a comment

STEP TWELVE OF THE DEPRESSED ANONYMOUS PROGRAM OF RECOVERY

“Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry the message to the depressed, and to practice these principles in all of our affairs.”

“Maybe there are as many definitions of spiritual awakening as there are people who have had them. But certainly each genuine  one has something in common with all the others. And these things which they have in common are not too hard to understand. When  a man or a woman has a spiritual awakening, the most important meaning of it is that  he or she has now become able to do, feel, and believe that which he or she could not do before on their unaided strength and resources alone.  He has been granted a gift which amounts to a new state of conscious and being.  He has been set on a path which tells him that he is really going somewhere, that life is not a dead end, not something to be endured or mastered.  In a very real sense he has been transformed, because he has laid hold of a source of strength which, in one way or another, he has hitherto denied himself. He finds himself in possession of a degree of honesty, tolerance, unselfishness, peace of mind, and love of which he had thought himself quite incapable. What he has received is a free gift, and yet usually, at least in some small part, he has made himself ready to receive it.

A.A.,s (D.A’s)   manner of making ready to receive this gift lies in the practice of the Twelve Steps in our program.”

——————————

Copyright (c) Twelve and Twelve. Pages 106-107. Alcoholics Anonymous World Service, New York. 29th printing.  1998. (Quoted in Depressed Anonymous, 3rd edition. Depressed Anonymous Publications. Louisville.)