Depression and LOA

[KalaMa]

I have been suffering long-them severe depression. A healer suggested I try working with the law of attraction to recover and I am willing to give it a go. I have a problem with it though. The instructions I have read say to feel happy when visualising, and even to feel happy throughout the day in order to send out the right vibration to the Universe. If I could just will myself to be happy I wouldn't be depressed in the first place. I try to feel happy when visualising but I can't seem to do it. Does anyone have any tips for stimulating emotions?

There are a few things I do to make myself feel marginally better - like standing barefoot on the earth in the sunshine, cuddling my cat, listening to certain music etc, but I haven't been able to achieve the sort of level of emotion I figure I need to really energise my desires. I feel emotionally numb most of the time. Can anyone relate and what did you do about it?

Thanks for your help.

I think you've started to change things. Keep up looking for something good about every day.

Don't expect optimism to turn you over instantly. It'll take time to disperse severe depression but the point is to aim for optimism.

Keep a little notebook to jot the things you have noticed that make the day good. And make a special effort to keep it going. I can imagine it very easy to say "why bother" and that's what you have to act against.

Have a look through this part of the forum. There are lots of hints. LOA won't work for everything - in your case, as you say, it's defeated at the outset. So also pop onto the affirmations section. That IS where you can make a start! It'll take a bit of an effort but when you want to bring about a big change it's worth it!

All the best.

....

[Morrigan]

I have suffered from clinical depression in the past, and tbh, I wouldn't bother aiming for something like LOA at the moment, you need to focus on SMALL steps in my opinion. I agree with Lorelyn's suggestion of keeping a notebook and noting down one small thing each day that you enjoy or were pleased to see.
Someone suggested this to me, and I did it and it helped a bit.
Regarding affirmations, if you are trying to affirm something you don't really believe to be true, your subconscious can work against you. I dislike them but I know some find them helpful. You need to try things and discard what doesn't work for you.

I would stay away from self help books unless they were written by people who have been there themselves! One book that I often recommend to people who are depressed or anxious is "Climbing Out of Depression" by Sue Atkinson.

^^^ Agreed except affirming something one doesn't believe to be true. That's a waste and well....I'd say dangerous.
It has to be practical: about what you want to be, have or do, within practical limits and always positive which is why it's important to say them aloud (at least at first. It's a drill.) It's so important to exclude all negative from them; to look only to the future.

Most people who have some kind of aim: career, socially or financially affirm naturally. Their positive outlook is wrapped up in that. Deliberate affirmations as a technique is to bring others into that same frame.

I still reckon it's worth KalaMa having a look. She seems to want to change things rather than keep going "as is" so it's a start.

She might think it a waste of time - not willing to put in the effort over many months. Then again if she decides to try then she can return to discuss what she wants to do.

Well, you'll know anyway - medication doesn't get rid of the problem, just covers it up, so that's no good. Maybe in a mild form in severe cases to assist breaking away from it. But assuming there's no deep physiological problem then hopefully some way can be found to slowly but surely grow optimism.

I'd guess LOA has to be avoided at all costs until one is clear.


But, Morrigan, I have to confess not being depressive so I can only go by observation of those who suffer. You may be righter than I - for someone depressed, falling back into a negative affirmation or getting into a fight with one's subconscious may be a risk not worth taking.

.....

[Sojourner2013]

Hi Kalama, yes I also agree with the others that using positive affirmations when severely depressed is like jumping into the deep end of the pool for your first swimming lesson. Best to try the shallow end first. I would suggest doing meditative visualizations that address the negative/depressive symptoms first. Then build from there. Here is a meditation that I have given others for removing negative energy/thoughts from the body. I've used this with a spiritual development group that helps to rid body of negative energy. I'd be interested to know how you feel afterwards. You can adapt the visualization to any belief system, if this one doesn't suit yours.

Note: when doing this meditation, sit in a chair with palms of hands on knees.

Daily Meditation:

Take a deep breath and let it out slowly to a count of five. Pause. Repeat the deep breath and count.

Starting at your crown, imagine little black magnetic shards being pressed down the head. As they are press down, they attract each other and gather. These are the angst, worries, anger, and negative thoughts and energies that you've held onto but now must release from the body.

Now imagine these little black shards gathering as you move down the head, down the neck, down the shoulders, attracting other shards and collecting up while they move down the body. They now moved down the chest, the arms, through the hand, down the stomach, down the hips, down the legs, down the knees, down the ankles and down through the feet.

Imagine these black shards pour out the heels of the feet and into the floor, down into the earth for their negative energy to be better used elsewhere.

Now, starting at the crown, the healing green oil is poured into the crown by AA Raphael, This warm, healing green oil glides through the head, through the neck, through the arms and torso, through the hips, through the legs, knees and through the feet. It carries in it any shard remnants that had remained in the body, but are now carried out with the oil through the heel of the feet. This excess of oil now goes into the earth, for its energy and healing to be better used elsewhere.

Now, starting at the crown, a large golden rope that represents God's love, grace and protection comes from above and goes into your crown chakra. The rope goes down through the body, through the third eye chakra, through the throat chakra, through the heart chakra, through the solar plexus, through the sacral chakra, through the root chakra and down into the earth.

As this golden rope travels deep into the earth, it comes upon a huge boulder. Imagine this rope wraps itself several times around this boulder and ties itself off securely and tightly.

You are now cleansed and grounded and divinely protected.


I hope you like this meditation. Everyone likes it that has done it. It really grounds the person, but keeps the channel attached and open to the divine. Let me know how you respond to it.

Best wishes!

[Dustin]

Originally Posted by KalaMa

I have been suffering long-them severe depression. A healer suggested I try working with the law of attraction to recover and I am willing to give it a go. I have a problem with it though. The instructions I have read say to feel happy when visualising, and even to feel happy throughout the day in order to send out the right vibration to the Universe. If I could just will myself to be happy I wouldn't be depressed in the first place.

Ya I see what you mean that seems a little odd that you would need to be happy to become happy (it makes sence on some level but in using it as a tool ...).

The way I have come to understand things is that we are always creating despite if it feels like it or not. What I read of LOA some time ago was that it wasn't that you needed positive emotion but that it was all about intensity of emotion. Your thoughts have the most power when they are the most intense, the trick is to direct that power in the proper way. As far as holding a thought though out the day, that works also; its like trying to wash off your driveway, you can run a small amount of water all day and eventually it well work, you can turn on the hose full bast for a short amount of time and spray it off, or you can do both.

When your thoughts are very intense become aware of it and utilize that opertunity, direct your thoughts in a predecided way. figurout what you want and figurout a statement that way apply your energy in the proper way to generate what you want instead of how you feel.

Here's an example say I hate where I live, hate the people, hate my work and at one point during the day I am feeling intensly fed up with it all so I recognize this and focus my energy towards a statement such as I want to be somewhere else and I can even visualize the place if I choose and imagine how nice it would be to be there. And this feeling of imagining how nice it would be to be there should be a good one but at this point I am moveing beyond the initial focus and energy. The cool thing about LOA is you don't need to figureout a solution to a problem, you just need a desire for the problem to have a solution; the process works better if we alow for it to take on its own creativity. The thought that I might hold thoughout the day is reflecting on this place that I had visualized. With LOA the intense moments out way the more bla moments of the rest of the day so in using the more intense moments this is how LOA could change habitual depression. I would guess that most likely imagining that you are happy alone well be less effective than imagining a change in your life that well generate the happiness for you.

[Dustin]

(accidently posted twice then deleted this one)

[rhubarbrosie]

KalaMa, I was in your shoes four years ago.

I so depressed I could barely do the Twin Hearts meditation, because it starts out, "imagine a happy event" and anything I thought of, made me cry, because it felt like I had lost sooo much. But I did have ONE thing. A gorgeous, beautiful, 18 months old nephew, so full of giggles and life and prana and joy, that I could think of him, feel happy, and build the meditation around that (the purpose is to stimulate the heart chakra actually, and get it radiating again)

Do you have a similar "one" thing? A fabulous cup of coffee, a favorite spot near a river, a bird who comes to your feeder, a huge tree that through some miracle of nature's prana is growing magnificent nearby? If you can just find your "one" thing and build on it: say if it's the tree, then you go to parks, and find more tree to admire.

That might help elevate your vibration...? A bit off LOA topic, apologies, but I wanted to respond to the depression element

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by KalaMa

I have been suffering long-them severe depression. A healer suggested I try working with the law of attraction to recover and I am willing to give it a go. I have a problem with it though. The instructions I have read say to feel happy when visualising, and even to feel happy throughout the day in order to send out the right vibration to the Universe. If I could just will myself to be happy I wouldn't be depressed in the first place. I try to feel happy when visualising but I can't seem to do it. Does anyone have any tips for stimulating emotions?

There are a few things I do to make myself feel marginally better - like standing barefoot on the earth in the sunshine, cuddling my cat, listening to certain music etc, but I haven't been able to achieve the sort of level of emotion I figure I need to really energise my desires. I feel emotionally numb most of the time. Can anyone relate and what did you do about it?

Thanks for your help.

Hello and welcome to the forum.

From my own experience (recent experience), the LoA isn't going to work very well for one who has depression/is depressed anyway, because it requires one to have a 'positive attitude' and a 'positive self-image' and 'confidence in oneself and in their wants and needs' and let's face it, if one had those things to get the LoA to work for them, they wouldn't be depressed in the first place.

Yeah...I know...I know.

I guess you have to make and take your own personal responsibility here. I believe that the Law of Attraction works, but not in the way we think/believe it does. It's not like 'I want to be happy' and the universe makes you happy.
It's like 'I want to be happy' and the universe sends another person who goes; "I wanna be happy too - wanna try being happy together? Let's see if that gonna work?"

While ever you are depressed, you'll be wanting things to happen and waiting for them to happen, but while ever you are 'wanting' and 'waiting' your little 'Black Dog' called 'Depression' is going 'mwahahaha, I got you right where I want you'. You need to take responsibility for overcoming your depression first! with the help of others, be it doctors, psychologists, counsellors, family, friends and do whatever makes you happy, like the above posters have said...just take time out to relax, pamper yourself, get on top of it a bit and then you can choose to give this LoA thing a crack, when you are not going to just go 'why isn't this damn thing working?' after a week or two.

All the best and peace to you.

[KalaMa]

Wow, I am overwhelmed at everyone's kind and helpful replies. Sojourner, I am going to try that visualisation.

I do a bit of work with affirmations (and yes, I try to keep them believable) I meditate and sweep out my aura and chakras and try to stay positive, but I am aware you are meant to put feeling into the affirmations as well. It is like there is a big wall and I am on one side and I am vaguely aware that my emotions are on the other but I can't get to them. I will see a beautiful sunset and think "that's a beautiful sunset" but it doesn't move me emotionally. I guess that's what depression is.

One thing I can seem to do is visualise, so I thought I could try visualising myself dismantling the wall between me and my emotions and see if that works.

I agree with Necromancer that I need to take responsibility. Some people say depression is learned helplessness. I'm sick of waiting and hoping for someone (usually my psychiatrist) to reach in and help me. It's time to take action for myself and see what I can do to solve the situation. I have been trying to see the depression as a puzzle to solve or a gym to make me stronger rather than some curse visited upon me.

I suppose another thing I could do is latch onto any tiny glimmer of emotion I feel and really consciously notice it and savour it.

Thank you everyone for your replies. Thanks Morrigan for the book recommendation. Most self help books don't resonate at all because they are written with the assumption you are already bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

I think the take-home message was 'baby steps'. I will just try to go forward and not bite off more than I can chew. I must admit, I find Esther Hicks way too much to handle.

Blessings to all of you