#Depression Recovery

[endlesslyupwards]

If you brushed your teeth today, I'm proud of you.

If you couldn't brush your teeth and just swished with mouth wash, I'm proud of you.

If you used a toothpick to get the gunk but nothing else, I'm proud of you.

If you couldn't do any oral hygiene and just existed today, I'm proud of you.

Oral hygiene is not linear, depression isn't linear, recovery isn't linear. You're doing great.

[pink-petal-horns]

Something Soft

Bob Reynolds x Fem!Reader

Bob hadn’t gotten out of bed in two days.

The apartment was dim, quiet. Your soft footsteps echoed against the hardwood as you moved through the rooms, arms crossed against the heavy silence. No news reports blared. No glowing golden aura pulsed under the bedroom door. He hadn’t even turned on the shower.

The only sign he was still there—still breathing—was the quiet creak of the mattress when you gently opened the door.

He lay curled toward the window. Bare-chested. His hair tangled. Eyes sunken. The soft, broken golden glow in his chest barely flickered beneath his skin.

You didn’t say anything at first.

You just sat down beside him and laid your hand on his back.

“I can’t move,” he whispered, voice hoarse. “I know I should. But I can’t.”

“I know,” you said softly. “You don’t have to move. I’ll help you.”

He didn’t answer. But he didn’t pull away.

You brushed his hair back. “You don’t have to fly. Or fight. Or save the world today. Just let me take you somewhere quiet. Somewhere soft.”

He blinked. His jaw tensed. “I’ll ruin it.”

“You won’t.”

“I’m not good to be around when I’m like this.”

You slid your hand down to his. Interlaced your fingers.

“Then I’ll be around you like this.”

It took an hour to coax him up. Another to help him into the shower. You combed his hair with gentle fingers, buttoned up the navy sweater you’d set out for him. It hung loose on his frame. His eyes never quite met yours. But he let you hold his hand the whole way there.

—

The cat café smelled like cinnamon and coffee and vanilla beans.

Bob froze in the doorway at first. There were four other people seated around small café tables, warm drinks in hand—and a sleepy gray tabby sprawled across one customer’s lap. Two black kittens wrestled near a scratch post. And one curious orange cat immediately padded over to sniff Bob’s boot.

You smiled.

“Let’s get you something sweet.”

You sat him down near the window, the softest corner of the café. Ordered him a honey latte and a slice of banana bread. And when the orange cat climbed up onto his lap—Bob didn’t move.

Didn’t speak.

Didn’t breathe for a second.

Just stared down at the tiny creature now purring against his thigh.

“I think they like you,” you said gently.

He blinked. Lifted one shaking hand. Let the cat press its head into his palm.

“Why does it feel like this?” he whispered. “Like… I can breathe again.”

“Because it’s not asking you to be anything but here.”

You wrapped your hands around his coffee and guided it to him.

The first sip made him exhale. The cat curled tighter against his body. And you watched Bob Reynolds—glowing god, weapon of mass destruction, too much and too empty—start to soften.

—

He didn’t want to leave.

Not because he was scared anymore—but because he was peaceful.

“Can we come back?” he asked quietly.

You smiled. “Actually…”

You opened your bag. Reached in. And pulled out a small purple carrier.

Inside was a kitten. Pure black. Tiny. Sleepy.

“Her name’s Nova,” you said softly. “She’s yours.”

Bob stared.

Completely still.

Then his lips trembled. “You—you got me a—?”

“For the days you can’t move,” you said. “She’ll lay with you. Purr with you. Just like I will.”

His breath hitched.

He looked down at the sleeping kitten. Then at you.

“I don’t deserve this,” he whispered.

You reached up. Touched his cheek. “You deserve softness, Bob.”

His arms wrapped around you—tight, trembling.

And in the safety of your arms, with Nova asleep in his lap and coffee still warm in his hands, Bob Reynolds let himself cry.

Not because he was broken.

But because he wasn’t alone.

[justatorturedpoet]

Oh depression is so LOOSING today (the sun is shining, my room is clean and I took a shower)

[rabbittongues]

the relief of it is foreign, yet reassuring

[posbitivity]

I'm glad that I'm still alive to have new experiences. Even after hard times, I'm grateful that I gave myself another chance.

[warm-autumn-evenings]

i hope august brings you moments of calm, peace, and contentment. i hope august feels like your childhood blanket. i hope, in august, you find your own company to be safe and healing ♡

[hopskippen]

AIGHT CHAT WE'RE GONNA GO IN A CIRCLE AND SAY 3 THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT OURSELVES MEOW

I'll go first :3

1) My hair. It's a dark brown most of the time but there are little flecks of red that shine in the sun :3

2) My eyes. Most of the time they're a brown-black color, but in the sun they turn a very nice and pretty amber ^w^

3) My thighs. I know most people hate having large thighs but I honestly love them. I can stim on them, I can use them to warm up my hands, and they make it easier to trap my partners in snuggles >:3

Have a nice day and stay safe out there <3

[unofficialchronicle]

[all-the-reasons-why]

Reason 96: The feeling of realising that you actually want to take care of yourself again.

[nwarrior777]

another positivity post!

i said i will not post off top untill new art post because it's originally my art blog bla bla bla but!!! BUT!!!

I AM 26 AND IT'S FIRST TIME I MADE THIS DISH!! and it's my first complicated dish, which i didn't know the pipeline and cooked by recipe!

IT'S SMTH LIKE PANCAKES FROM PLACE I WAS BORN AND it always seemed to me like smth from adult cooking!!! like i've maybe did the flip part at childhood but never the dough! and today i woke up early in the morning and it was raining and it was so cozy and i just decided to try and!!!! i did it!!! and it didn't even took the whole day, i am usually waking up at time atm, but look at me, seating and eating this!!!

i can't belive it, i am!!! adult!!! who is curing from depression!!!

best morning ever!!!

[itsrecoverytimebitch-blog]

Ridiculously long post of depression tips

In the words from some of my favorite books, people and games:

"Road to recovery is a long one, but you will make it." - Volition from Disco Elysium

"Be selfish. Be brave." - Babel

"You can and you will make it." - Someone I know

This will be a ridiculously long post as I'm trying to put everything I know/have learnt over the years on it, so might break it into parts if need be. I'm not a doctor, but fellow survivor and this is what I've found useful. Take what you need from the post. WE GOT THIS!

Basic self care

Crucial. Important. In some cases, life or death.

I will include the obvious tips and some random specific ones.

Sleep

It literally heals your mind when got right. Some things to make it happen:

Go to bed and wake up at the same time. Even if insomnia keeps you awake, stay consistent with the bed times.

Give yourself ridiculous amount of time for the rest. When I'm bad and in recovery, I start prepping for sleep at 8pm. People will not mind, they might be a bit surprised at first, but it's not really their business.

Be firm with yourself about technology before bed. I strive for putting my mobile off for the night, and only look at it AFTER I've had my morning coffee.

Really long walk and some kind of sleepy tea of your choice is an EXCELLENT combo for good rest.

Sleep is also tied to other basic self care, so you need to be doing all of it - but good news, more you do the easier it gets because you get better.

If you fuck up any of these points - say, stay until 3pm on your phone looking at memes - don't beat yourself up (even if that's the natural thing you'll want to do when you're suffering from depression), but don't give in either, thinking that letting yourself KEEP doing this is self care and being merciful on yourself. No. If you fuck up, it is okay and human, but KEEP AT IT. Think of all the process you've made so far despite the fuck up. Keep going. Don't let yourself get discouraged by one or few fuck ups, but make it a top priority to get back on track. You will make it. You deserve a good life and sleep will definitely help.

Food

Making food while depressed is exhausting. You need to choose the ingredients, buy them, then make the food. And your depression might tell you lies, such as what's the point and I don't deserve to eat well. But they are lies! You do deserve it. It is important to do this right to not get into financial ruin, and keep a healthy diet. This is tricky, but you can get there. Some tips:

When you're doing a little better, prepare a LOT of food, and then freeze a lot of it. Little gift for the future self who is struggling.

Keep a lot of easy good snacks around. Include fruit. Eat when hungry.

Speaking of fruit, have some at the house and eat often.

Include protein in your food. However, if you really are struggling and there's nothing but pasta in the house and you're starving, eat the damn pasta.

Accumulate a lot of simple recipes you can make quickly. Tomato pasta with some protein is a good one, especially with some Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Making food can be helpful for depression, although when the worst is on it's very hard. But if you're a little better, it can even be therapeutic to focus on it. Try making something that takes a while, like pizza.

When you're getting even more better ('cause you will!) offering food to others is good for mental health for secret reasons. But if the thought exhausts you as you read this don't worry about this for now.

If you excercise, horde some protein snacks you can eat immediately.

Congratulate yourself for keeping up with this, and every time you've gone through the day with a good healthy diet. It is not easy.

Similarly to sleep, if you stray off course, know this is natural, change is hard, don't beat yourself up, but get back on track. I believe in you.

Exercise

Did someone say "extra fries"? Boomer minion memes aside, this is another really really good thing to do. Get this: You can literally force your body to create endorphins, even when you're mind is in the mud. It also helps with both appetite and sleep, and self-esteem. It also can help you find an outlet, and it helps focus yourself on the present. And it is such a concrete way of fighting an illness which feels so not-concrete. Some tips:

Make plans with people or find a workout buddy. The peer pressure is an excellent way to motivate yourself even if your mind makes bullshit excuses. It may feel intimidating to ask someone but I promise a lot of people want to get into working out but find it hard to motivate themselves too, so you really are also helping them at the same time too. Societies or groups are also good, as long as you go each time.

Think of working out as a fight against your depression. Because it is. Think of your depression being this big Dark Souls boss fight. (gif below for anyone not familiar.) You are struggling, but you are fighting against it, and you're a survivor, and you're badass af for keeping on fighting.

BTW above gif: that's you drinking some estus flask (water) before you tackle again the task of fighting your depression by working out because that is how badass you are.

Do the workout, no matter what your mind tells you.

The kind of workout that raises heart rate is really good.

Long walks are also REALLY good. I don't know what it is about them, but they are magical. You might find cats on the street or cool birds too.

Yoga is also good. The YouTube channel Yoga by Adriene is very good, she's so gentle.

Remember that after any kind of work out congratulate yourself and remember you are a fighter and you've just taken even more steps to battle against this thing, it's not easy and you've done it and you should be beyond proud.

That's it for this post but I will reblog this with more tips in the future so stay tuned folks. I will cover at least things like people, hobbies, therapy, values and goals and staying organized, but I'll add more if I think more.

I've struggled with this for a long time but I can and will make it towards being better and so will you.

[purplelightblog]

“My stomach hurt all day thinking about it. There is no way out. There is no way out. I kept repeating it in my head. I felt like I could will myself to death with those words. But I couldn’t. I had kids. I had to get better. I had to. I had to take care of myself. To take care of my children. I had to figure out, once and for all, how to get out of the hole, how to get off the floor, and stay there. I had to figure out, from the inside out, what was going to transform me into someone who would not just succeed, but thrive.”

- Choose Yourself!.”

[mercy-the-divine]

I think I might have cracked the code.

3 steps to feel alive again for a little bit when recovering from a depressive episode.

Step one: Wear yourself out. Work out if you have the time/energy. Doesn't have to be at a gym (though I would reccomend somewhere besides home), doesn't have to be super hard, just get hot and gross and sweaty.

Step two: Eat something. Get finger foods or eat foods with your fingers. Go for something with a sauce or spices that you can lick off your hands and just fuckin. Inhale that shit. I like to go for something a little spicy so it hurts just a little, but you do you. Cajun fries are great, edamame in shell w a sauce (I have a great one if anyone's interested), pasta salad/pasta/salad, wings/ribs.

Step three: Shower. Wash the gross off, get comfy, then make it as cold as you can handle so your throat gets tight and your skin gets all bumpy and it makes you feel a bit breathless.

I've found that this helps for a few hours. It takes a bit of doing to get started, but it's worth it- if you're in a position that you have a bit of energy to spend on that initial push.

For the ppl who aren't quite at the point of starting to recover, it might make you feel worse- spending energy I don't have always just makes me crash and spiral. Be patient w urself, try to treat urself like a friend. Energy comes and goes, don't force it, you'll get there in the end. Best of hope to you.

[jenthebug]

On paper, today has been fine. Played some SDV, got taxes done (minor snafu, but we’re getting a refund), took Jay downtown to meet friends, got some plotting done on my next novel (‼️).

Emotionally, though, I’m glad that it has coincided with a major allergy attack, because I’ve been crying all day.

It’s just the depression. It’s not a solvable problem without good therapy (lookin at you, therapist, I’ll do homework if you give it to me), and without me doing my part to pull myself out.

Watching one of Little Bro’s videos, he’s always fun to watch.

Got something to look forward to, boba with Squish on Sunday, wedding anniversary on the 9th, and the trip to visit Twin Bro and @unic0rnthe0ry later this summer.

I’m exercising, I’ll go for a walk at the mall by the hospital tomorrow and make my first onc rehab appointment.

I have goals, I’m learning Spanish and showing improvement. I’m doing NaNoWriMo and will have a solid outline by November.

I just can’t shake these down moods. YET.

[3ndishere]

pro recovery people are following this shit is awesome (hi @yumclaire @lyssieslife524)

[sunbathedboy]

There’s something so gentle and human about a chorus of strangers or coworkers or classmates saying “bless you” when someone sneezes. Ofc I could think of the history of the term and all of the negativity of religion, or I could focus on how natural this small kindness comes to so many of us. I don’t know you, our paths barely cross, but I wish you well.