EXHALE Getting Outside of Self to Obliterate Depression


Come quickly, LORD, and answer me,
for my depression deepens.
Don't turn away from me,
or I will die (Psalm 143:7).

When I was trapped in what I thought of as the “quicksand” of depression, a friend invited me to take comfort in Psalm 143. She thought I might identify with David who was also in a deep state of despair at that time he wrote the Psalm.

Unfortunately, when I was up to my eyeballs in the “quicksand” of depression, I found it impossible to see clearly. What I saw in the Psalm was a healthy (even robust) man, surrounded by people who loved and respected him enough to help him hide from a KING. I saw David as a guy, enduring (or enjoying) adventure and intrigue. David's life was a pony ride compared to my (feeling-sorry-for-self) life of unbearable nerve pain, imprisonment in my home, and heart-breaking loneliness.

Depression shifted my focus inward and the more I looked at ME, the more pain and depression I felt. When I tried to look outside of myself, I felt afraid; the anxiety and fear overwhelmed me, so I stopped; I retreated into the pit – the quicksand, the bricked-walls of my ever- increasing depression.

How did I get out? I'd like to say that I just pushed my way out of my house and never looked back. After all, “with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). Believe me, I have heard of people who have taken hold of God's hand and stepped right out of depression and left anxiety behind. With me, it took prayer, and a daily dose of “a good Word” as well as shifting my focus from an inward concentration to an outward focal point.

Proverb 10:25 says, “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.” Grabbing hold of this verse, I awoke daily singing praises to the Lord. In fact, when pain awoke me at night (every couple hours), I would put earbuds in and listen to my favorite Christian Praise music while walking laps in my house – usually belting out songs whether I knew all the words or not. Once my heart felt light and my focus was UPWARD instead of inward, I slept a few more hours.

Praise is STILL part of my daily routine. It draws my focus outside of me. Praise helps me remember that my pain, as well as other trials that drive nails into my depression, are temporary; God's love is eternal. Also, when thoughts badger me: that person who betrayed me, the time my partner neglected me, my friend who talked behind my back, others who have ignored me, or belittled me; I realize they are just as flawed as I am, and I am so VERY far from perfect; they are human beings who deserve forgiveness and grace.

I encourage you to step out of your depression one day after another. Each time you feel a wave of depression pull you down or pulling you INWARD, take that DEEP BREATH. Next, play that praise music as loud as you can and SING along until you feel yourself rising ABOVE the pain of resentment and depression. Consciously forgive those who have hurt you, (you might have to do this several times before you're able to let them go). Finally, get out and go somewhere; do something! Try a hobby or pursuit that you've always wanted to try. Invite a friend or go alone, but DO IT...and...most important


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