Depression Can Be "Cured"

I recently gave an interview on the topic of depression being “?urable” (see video below). I use the word “curable” in quotes because in my experience what is true for me is that ‘depression’ is something that can be managed (and managed effectively). I would not call it a permanent “cure” however because at least for me, if I stop managing it then the symptoms typically reappear - sooner or later. I know this because I have struggled with depression for a fair chunk of my life.

When I was first diagnosed as clinically depressed (this was a very long time back) my knee jerk response to it was denial and a sense of shame. I didn’t even tell anybody about the diagnosis because it made me feel like something was faulty with me. Eventually, however, I realized that I really needed help if I was to continue living with myself (and my own cesspool of thoughts and emotions) and so I decided to learn more about my mind. I really wanted to learn more about how my brain functioned and know if it was possible to manage my thoughts and emotions so that instead of them leading me into uncontrollable and delusional spaces, I could be the one in control.

It has been a long beautiful journey of discovery and learning - one that took me into the fields of Cognitive therapy, Buddhism, Positive Psychology, Neuroscience, as well as Energy Healing Modalities. I have kept away from chemical medication and suppressants out of choice. I know that there is a science to why they are administered and how they work. However, I did not opt for them because I did not want to numb or subdue my thoughts and emotions - instead, I wanted to master them.

Today I can say with confidence that depression can be managed - it can be overcome. It takes a bit of work though. Rather, to rephrase it takes a lot of awareness and a bit of work. The awareness component is that you have to literally monitor and be aware of your inner weather almost 24/7. The work component involves learning tools and techniques to work with your thoughts and emotions and then applying them in a regular and timely manner. Before you conclude that this is too much effort let me tell you this - if you enjoy the process then the freedom, joy, and access to your own potency and strength and creativity that you get is totally worth the effort.

Cultivating awareness of your own thoughts and emotions also comes with a whole host of side benefits. You can even enjoy and laugh at the dramas and movies within you without going to a theatre. You can consciously start using your thoughts to motivate yourself in the direction of what you want to do and create in life. As you start understanding your own mental models and thought patterns and the underlying fears that drive your life you can start changing them - thereby creating quantum shifts in your personality and behaviour. As you learn more about yourself you start realizing that you can actually understand the thoughts, emotions, and behavioural patterns of others as well - so you become more empathetic, more understanding and less judgmental of others. You can use this knowledge and understanding then to coach and guide others.

At the end of the day, we are all more alike than different - we each have an inner machinery inside of us (think of that as analogous to the hardware) and then mental models (memory structures) programs and subroutines in our brains that drive our thinking. It is certain nuances in the nature of both the inner machinery as well as the programs and mental models that lead to the creation of depressive thoughts (thereby making some people more prone to depression than others).

In terms of our inner machinery, we all have a set of neurons in our brain known as mirror neurons whose sole job is to mirror (copy) the thought and emotional patterns of those around us - and hold it like some sort of a psychic sponge. Some people are blessed (or cursed) with an inner machinery which is more active in this function than others. In everyday language, we often call these people empaths or ultra-sensitive. These people by default are more susceptible to depression because their brain will quickly pick up all the sorrow, misery and pain of everyone around them. However, this is the same nuance in the brain that also enables these very same people to be gifted healers, creative artists, or empathetic leaders. The good news is that people can learn to manage this through cultivating awareness, and the bad news is that when they stop being aware their brain will default into assuming that everything they are mirroring is something that is actually their own problem. This is why I mentioned at the start of the article that in my view depression can be managed (as an ongoing part of life’s journey) but not permanently changed. It can be managed really well though.

With regard to our mental models and the programs that drive our thinking - again there are certain typical mental models and programs that make a person more prone to depression. With some help and coaching, or through meditative practices we can learn to identify and let go of these. We can also create new mental models and programs in our brain that serve us better. Just like we train our muscles, through repetitive exercises like gratitude journaling we can train our brain to overcome the negativity bias that is widely prevalent so that our brain learns to scan the environment for what’s going right instead of being fixated on what’s going wrong. Similarly we with practice we can retrain our brain to search for possibilities and opportunities in the same situation that it earlier would have framed as a problem or a dead-end. The opportunities to reframe and rewire our brain are endless and most of us have just scratched the surface of we can do by means of reprogramming our minds. In my experience some of these changes can be permanent but since the outside world is constantly programming our minds as well the art of becoming the lead programmer of our own minds is an ongoing work or task.

Before I sign off, I want to repeat that if you suffer from depression I am not asking you to reject medication as a treatment. Please use it if it works for you, and I know only too well that different approaches suit different people. However, if like me, you would like to learn to manage your inner world so that it does not overwhelm you then I want you to know that it is POSSIBLE without medication as well. There is some work involved (learning as well as practice) but the fruits are totally worth it. In fact, the task of managing your inner world soon starts to become something that you just do regularly, like brushing your teeth, having a bath etc and it does not require that much effort. At the end of the day, the logic is very straightforward. Depression is caused by depressive thoughts - manage your thoughts and the depression cannot occur. In fact the more you see your thoughts for what they are - a construct created by your brain, the more you get access to your inner sense of joy and peace which is always there. This peace and joy is only masked by depressive thoughts. You, in fact, are never depressed. The real you cannot be depressed. You are just overwhelmed by depressive thoughts. And these thoughts can be dealt with if you choose to.

If you would start to learn more about managing the inner world of your thoughts and emotions I have lots of free resources including a TED Talk on Managing Attention, a free 11-part video course titled “Managing Our Inner Worlds” and a 6-week course on edX titled “Crafting Realities - Work, Happiness and Meaning” which has been taken by over 12,000 people so far. I also conduct workshops as well as individual and group coaching and you can find all this and more on my website www.craftingourlives.com. As a starter - you can watch the interview below for some quick and immediate pointers on this subject.