The Jesus Lizard

The jesus lizard is a Costa Rican basilisk that runs so fast it can walk on water. No, nothing to do with the band.

Newsgroups: nose.support.depression
Subject: jesus lizard collaborative project
Date: 13 Aug 1997 19:13:56 GMT

TIPS FOR COPING v 1.0 -- edit in followups

0.  Life is good.
0.1 Safe but scary activities (e.g. climbing trees, running around in
        the rain) help spark a new thrill.

1.  Doing anything at all is better than doing nothing.
1.1 The more you things can get yourself to do, the better.
1.2 If you can bring yourself to do responsible things, you reap the
        double benefits of breaking out of lethargy, and having fewer
        real-life problems.  
1.3 Keeping busy may be the thing that keeps your depression on the safe
        side of the line between derailing and debilitating.

2.  Linear thought is good. Circular thought is bad.
2.1 Good aids for breaking out of obsessive thought include your walkman
        (while walking), and practice in meditation, if you can stand it.
2.2 Pinpoint the one thought which plagues you most and count the number
        of times you think it, every day for a week. Don't fight it,
        just think something like "I'm thinking that obsessive thought
        again, oh well." The number should decrease.

3.  Be with people as much as possible.
3.1 It's important to be with people who aren't close to you; they can
        force you to keep up a happy front, whereas good friends who allow
        you to express your depression don't force you to curb it.
3.2 As much as you can, make an effort to get involved with the
        conversation. It's almost a given that you will feel alienated,
        bored, or rejected, but just plug on through. It's likely that
        neither they are being dull nor you are making an ass of yourself.

4.  Fill your life with joy.
4.1 Write down a list of things that make you feel happy and active.
        Give them a ranking from 1 to 5 based on how happy they make you
        feel. Rank each one "H"ealthy or "U"nhealthy. Make sure to do at
        least two of the healthy things daily.