I suffer from depression. Do you think that depressed people can motivate themselves just by using will power alone? Does just "getting a grip" work?
by 
Hieronymus_Bosch
ANSWERS: 9
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i suffer from bi polar and when in a depressive state i find i can only motivate myself to do the simplest things nothing to big a task
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No, it does not. A clinically depressed person cannot "get a grip" any more than a person in diabetic shock can. Everything in your body is a biochemical process, including your thoughts, motivations, moods, etc. These are carried through your central nervous system (particularly your brain) via neurotransmitters. If you are lacking the necessary neurotransmitters, you just are. Seratonin is one important neurotransmitter in this process. Modern antidepressants are Selective Seratonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs). These inhibit your body's ability to reabsorb seratonin; thereby, boosting the seratonin levels in your system. If you do not produce enough seratonin, no amount of willing yourself to be motivated is going to do any good. The signal isn't being transmitted properly.
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No. "Positive thinking" alone does not work. You can tell yourself all day and night that you 'feel better', but until you CONVINCE yourself of it, (by actually acting like it), you will get nowhere. You must BE before you can DO.
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I think it depends on the severity of the depression. I think people w/ moderate to severe depression will need some kind of medication.
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Despite what some people tell you, no, "getting a grip" is chemically impossible for a person with depression. You'd have to be in one of those Disney movies where someone with paralysis starts to walk again just because they really want to, or something, for that to happen. There are ways of helping yourself, but if a depressed person could stop being depressed whenever they just try to "stop", psychiatrists would find it a lot more difficult to stay in business...
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I agree with the other answers about sheer will power being insufficient to break out of depression. That being said, I think will power can enable you to overcome lesser depressions *provided* that you use that will power to seek out treatment. Just deciding "I will no longer be depressed" will do little or nothing. Deciding "I no longer want to be depressed" and using that idea to see a therapist, make changes to diet and exercise, look into cognitive behavior modification, consult a psychiatrist about anti-depressant mediations, read publications about depression and brain function, etc. is perhaps the *main* way that one recovers from depression. Of course, if your depression is so severe that getting out of bed in the morning defeats you, then you need intervention on your behalf until you have the will to manage your own life again.
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In many cases of depression, it can be practically cured by changing your diet and vitamin/herb regimen to "boost up" what it is you're lacking, along with exercise and forcing yourself out of the house and off the internet. As someone who used to suffer from it I can tell you that this DOES work, despite what other people might say.
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I suffer from Depression, and yes but it takes practice and it does not always work. I agree that first you have to decide (every day) "I do not want to be depressed". The practice starts when you're not depressed. Brainstorm signs that your mood is changing, slipping, falling. The earlier you catch yourself the less difficult it becomes to motivate yourself through it (and even out of it). STAY BUSY. Forget what you've heard about idle hands - your worst enemy is an idle mind. Those nasty thoughts of worthlessness and guilt can creep up out of nowhere. Keep a good book or puzzle with you. Your practice will arm you with the strength to bat negative thoughts away, your distractions with help you to enjoy even those little "idle" moments. And you need a support system. Create one: a therapist, a parent, a best friend, churchmembers; people you can call on when you can't motivate yourself; people who can teach you to laugh; people who can provide that "grip" in an emergency.
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It depends on your definition of "cured". Will you be able to make yourself feel great all the time or even at all? Absolutely not and it really depends on the type of depression you have. I have diagnosed clinical depression and I don't take meds. I refuse to take meds. I realize that my depression is cyclic and have enough will power and self control to realize that when I have a depression "attack" (an event that occurs several time a week) that it will not last forever and so long as I can grit my teeth and bear it and not go too off the handle I will go on to live another day and while I might not feel happy I'm ok. Then again I've been suffering depression for seven years and have an uncanny and really unusual sense of myself that my psychiatrist is just confounded by.
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