Breaking Through Barriers aims to help ensure that people with depression suffering from emotional and physical symptoms are diagnosed and treated as effectively as possible Information for people with depression- Breaking Through Barriers aims to help ensure that people with depression suffering from emotional and physical symptoms are diagnosed and treated as effectively as possible

The road to recovery

Mapping out a wellness plan

In addition to working with a physician or other healthcare professional, one of the best things you can do is create a wellness plan to help meet your recovery goals.

While your Support Partner can help you develop your goals and encourage you along the way, it is up to you to define your goals and create personal success. A comprehensive wellness plan will:

Throughout the course of your illness, there may be times when your symptoms get worse or you have thoughts of suicide. If you experience any worsening of depression symptoms, thoughts of suicide, unusual changes in your behavior, or anxiety, agitation, panic attacks, difficulty sleeping, irritability, hostility, aggressiveness, impulsivity, restlessness, or overexcitement and hyperactivity, you should speak to your physician immediately. If any of these changes are severe or occur suddenly, it could signal an increased risk of suicidal thinking or behavior. Also, be especially careful to report symptoms when starting any antidepressant therapy and whenever there is a change in dose.

Keeping a diary

It is important that you stick with the treatment your healthcare professional prescribes, and keep track of how it is affecting your emotional and painful physical symptoms. A good way of doing this is to keep a diary including a mood rating scale of 1 - 10, which is particularly useful. If you do not feel up to it, your Support Partner can do this for you. You can take it over later, when you begin to feel better.

If you share your diary with your Partner, he or she can encourage you as you start to feel better or watch for signs that your symptoms may be coming back. Think about your depression symptoms as you or your Partner fill in your diary. Write as little or as much as you want, but pay attention to details, such as:

Remember also to note the progress you have made and areas where you feel you are getting back to being yourself, such as:

If you are taking an antidepressant medication, look back over your diary after you have been taking the treatment for six weeks or more. As your healthcare professional has told you, it may take one to four weeks or longer for an antidepressant to start working. If you are not feeling much better after six to eight weeks, you can share your diary with your healthcare professional and discuss any changes to your treatment. If you are undergoing therapy, it may be useful for you to share your diary with your therapist, too.

Setting goals

Once you begin to feel a little better, if your healthcare professional gives you the okay, setting goals can be an important part of getting well. Your Partner can help you think about things you used to enjoy or do well, and would like to enjoy again. Share your checklist with your Partner, so that he or she can encourage you as you start to meet your goals.

These goals will be very personal to you, but here are some ideas to start you off: Stick to things you used to do before you had depression. This list is not for things you have always wanted to do or things you never quite got around to doing. Here are some examples:

Taking care of yourself

You would not run a marathon the day after having knee surgery. Recovering from depression is not much different - you need time to heal and recover. Remember, your Support Partner is there to look out for you, but you should treat yourself very well, too. Take care of yourself by eating well, getting enough rest and staying active with a walk outdoors or whatever exercise feels right for you. Try to treat yourself to whatever makes you feel good and take time out to relax and unwind.