Posted by morganator on October 15, 2009, at 21:26:03
In reply to Re: Jobless. Anyone else, posted by bleauberry on October 15, 2009, at 17:20:38
I would say maybe even go to the other end of the spectrum and force yourself to do something like wait tables or host. This way you are forced to be social, something that we may need when we are depressed. Also maybe be a bus boy or a bar back. These jobs keep you very busy and give you little time to be depressed and think about negative things.
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> > Just posting this to know there are other psychiatric patients too like me. I have been jobless for the past six months and worst of all, I am suffering from depression and a significant lack of motivation.
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> The best thing to do then is to make an effort 5 days a week to get a job. If that means sending one letter resume a day, making a followup phone call the next day, attending an interview the next, sending another letter, etc on and on, doesn't matter...just do it.
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> Don't feel like? Unlmotivated? Too depressed? Doesn't matter. Just do it. The postiveness of forcing oneself to win against the enemy is better than the negativeness of letting the enemy win over you. By not making some kind of forced effort to overcome, the enemy is allowed to win.
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> The best place to be with depression and lack of motivation is at a job. Not the couch. Not at home. It should fit your personality. If you are generally quiet, then you don't want a job that will require lots of talking. If you are weak and not in shape, you probably don't want a job with heavy physical work. You definitely don't want a job that is boring, such as a flagholder at a construction site. That's no good for a depressed person. You want something that keeps your mind occupied. Even through the densest brain fog, a job can be done well.
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> This will sound weird, but honestly, a great place for someone depressed without motivation is Wal*Mart. They are almost always hiring. Cashier is likely the first stop. Very little eye contact is needed, very little talking is needed, not too much mental exertion or physical exertion. But, you senses are filled with lots of input going on around you...that's a good thing. And if you do want to talk, or practice it, or force it, you have many opportunities. If you want to be a loner, you can. Lots at WM are. If you want to be a mingler, you can. Lots do that. Somewhere in the middle, that too. It varies from day to day? Perfect place to be is WM because it is big enough and non-demanding enough to absorb whatever you got without anyone noticing. And so what if they noticed? Half of them are on meds too.
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> I'm a department manager at WM so I know. For someone struggling real hard, getting out in the world even if it is forced...actually especially if it is forced...is pure positive and good. You can increase your wellbeing on the 1-10 depression score by 2 or 3 points just by doing that.
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> There have been many times going to work or leaving work when I looked up at the psychiatric windows at the top floor of a hospital I drive by and I knew there were people up there in BETTER condition that I was...and yet I was holding a job. I was fighting the enemy. Nobody ever noticed how bad off I was. I just did my work as best I could and kept to myself. So much better than laying on a couch, watching TV, surfing, and worrying. A day can go so much faster with a job. Since I don't feel good most of the time, that is a good thing.
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> I think it is a terrible mistake to wait for a med or combination to kick in before getting back in the world. Bad mistake. For me, it was just a couple weeks post-ECT and I was in real bad shape. Something inside me just told me that doing something, anything, was better than doing nothing. I still believe that.
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poster:morganator
thread:920967
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20091012/msgs/921060.html