Life can be a roller coaster, with VERY deep drops. One day, you feel like you are on top of the world. Everything is going your way. You have a smile on your face. “This is finally it! I’m going to be ok! I’m going to make it!” And then…the floor drops out from under you. You lose your balance with no floor beneath you and you fall. I mean, you fall hard, harder than the last time you fell. You know you should get back up, you did the last time. Since the last time, you have been reading and studying and praying. You were preparing yourself, just in case this happened again, the fall. Lo and behold, it’s here again. And, this time it REALLY hurt. You don’t know if you can get up from this one. This was a bad fall. You lay there a while trying to sort out what happened. “How did I fall?” “I was so sure that ‘this’ was it.” “I am just destined to fail. I will never make it. I might as well stay down.”

And, now you don’t want to get up. You don’t want to go to school. You don’t want to go to work. You don’t want to leave the house. Heck, you don’t even want to leave the bed. Yes, I have been there too. You don’t feel like doing anything. Why try? I mean it’s going to end up badly anyway right? Epic Fail, right? You don’t feel like partying either but you throw the biggest Pity Party you’ve ever had. But nobody shows up to this party and if they do, they never bring any presents (Zig Ziglar told me that one).

Depression is no joke. You start watching late night tv and you see all the ads on about it and a pill to “cure it.” But, the pill has more side effects than cures so now you’re even more depressed because you feel helpless. This mood is lingering. It’s not going away. You are no longer able to concentrate. You want to lay in bed, but you can’t sleep. And, bad thoughts…thoughts of you no longer being “here” because you think you may want to end it all creep into your mind. What now?

First, let me say that I know most believe the medication route is the way to go; I will not begrudge you this choice. But, there have been some really amazing studies done on depression. The more you focus on “what’s wrong” the less likely you are to get over it. When you are depressed, you are always focused on ‘what’s wrong” instead of “what can be done to fix what’s wrong?” Something happened. You didn’t like the result. What caused the result you didn’t like? Have you kept getting the same depressing results over and over again? Why? What factor did you play in it? If you were presented with the same situation in the future, what could you do differently that could produce a different outcome?

Whenever I start to get a little “off course” I do a few things. I remind myself of where I’m going. Because, where I’m going makes me happy. I think about where I’m going and a smile flashes across my face. The vision of my future makes me happy every time I think about it. Do you have a vision for your future? If not, you should get one and asap.

I then have to remind myself of that’s where I really want to go, to that vision. Somewhere, I got off course. How did I get off course? I have to look at my plan and see what caused the unexpected result I got. Then, I have to course correct. I took a detour. The GPS gave me bad directions, or I was asleep when she told me to “turn right” at the next exit. I kept going straight. Do you have a plan? If not, you should get one and asap.

I then look at the amazing light bulb. I remember the story of the man credited with creating it, Thomas Edison. I read once that he tried and failed at it over 10,000 times! But, when asked about it, Mr. Edison said that he didn’t fail, he just found 10,000 ways not to do it! Wow! Now, people all over the world use his product. A truly great invention that may have never been created if he stopped at 9,999! How many stories of “triumph over adversity” do you know and remember? If you don’t know any, you should read and watch some and asap.

Most kids 9 years old and younger laugh and laugh and laugh. Everything is funny. It is said that kids laugh over 100 times a day. My girls are always laughing. They are always smiling, too. I smile when I see them smile. It makes me happy. When they are not around and I’m feeling a little “down,” I watch stand up comedy. I laugh for 30 minutes to an hour and I forget what was making me feel bad. There have been numerous studies done on the power of laughter to cure depression. Have you laughed lately? Cracked a smile while looking at yourself in mirror? Might I suggest this fun practice to you? Try to look at yourself in the mirror, smile and then laugh. Do it and see if you are depressed while doing it. You can’t be! Smile and laugh hard, asap.

I then re-focus. I get back to my vision and my plan for getting there. After all, I am the U-KAN man! I have the belief in myself. I Know what I really want. I have plAnned it out. And, I have made the commitment to myself that I will Never give up. I focus on something other than myself. Depression is always “me” centered. I have to get the focus off of me and onto something else. A project, a person, a cause, something other than “me.” Do you have a focus, a project, a person you love, a cause or something other than yourself that needs your help?

Again, depression is no joke. But, I believe and studies have shown that you can laugh your way to a happier you. You can “focus” your way to a more stable you. You can remember past successes, your own or other people’s successes. You can give of yourself to causes and projects. You can exercise, you can move. U-KAN beat depression!