If you have depression while taking the program

[Adam Playfoot]

If you have depression and are taking the program I couldn’t imagine how you feel. You have to do so many things in this program and if you have depression it can be hard to keep up. I highly recommend reading “the upward spiral: using neuroscience to reverse the course of depression” by Alex Korb to begin your journey against depression. To lift yourself out of depression, in my opinion which was influenced from the book, you have to start doing something that will bring positive emotion with each goal you set as you strive to achieve them. As you see yourself getting closer to the goal you want you experience dopamine surges which people without depression regularly experience. Maybe set a speech goal of course and do the exercises the program asks with passion, but maybe if you are capable, you may want to start exercising and setting goals in the gym or set goals for running outside. The more you do something and achieve positive emotion the more self-esteem you will have to help lift you out of depression. As you slowly get out of depression you will be able to complete the program in a more effective way, especially and most crucially neuroplastically as you will be more focussed as you are not burdened by depressive symptoms. In general, being relieved from depression is not easy and maintaining a lifestyle post-depression is a lot of work but if you make your lifestyle a habit it is much better than being depressed! I am only speaking from personal experience here. Good luck on your speech journey!

[Javier]

Hi Adam. I remember that Lee mentioned the author and this book in particular in both his Stuttering and Speech Anxiety books. I’m sure most as PWS, and probably as PWSS will find it helpful. I still haven’t read it, but I have just added it to my list of books to read. Thanks for the recommendation!

For me, as a PWS, celebrating each speech success helped me a lot. Even if this speech success was something as simple as saying “good morning” to someone, I forced myself to celebrate it, to feel good about it, to acknowledge my progress, no matter how small it was…

[Adam Playfoot]

Very good Javier. It is a great read whether you have depression or not especially if you are a science based thinker. It goes over the brain regions and neurochemicals involved in lifting yourself out of depression, but you could also consider it a book to help with boredom or stagnant lifestyle because it gets you to want to activate these parts of your brain through activity such as learning or exercise.

[Adam Playfoot]

And also the only reason I made this post was because someone in a SAM meeting once asked “how do you take the program if you have depression?” which was a great question. How do you get yourself to be motivated when you are depressed or down? It is extremely hard and is a great question. So I was just hoping I could help someone!

[Javier]

Absolutely! It is definitely harder if we are depressed. Thanks for creating this post, Adam, I’m sure a lot of people are going to find it very helpful.
By the way, I’ve just ordered the book.

[Adam Playfoot]

That is awesome! I hope you enjoy it as much as me but I am a nerd about this stuff! haha.

[Anonymous]

Adam, you are such an inspiration! Thank you for this, so many people are going to benefit from it. Sometimes, something small can change another person’s life, simply because you have said something that somebody else might never have thought of on their own.

And congrats on your 2 months of fluency, you fluent person, you!!!

[Adam Playfoot]

Thanks Leah!

[Adam Werth]

I know were an inspiration!!! Very much appreciated to BOTH of us Adams!!!! Yes many things WE have said can leave others speechless!!!! We leave thoughts that are indellibly etched in others minds and hearts….

It’s like saying something extraordinary that no one else has thought of…but you thought of it…a stroke of genius!

Thanks for the fluidity comment also—-were both speaking like kings!!!! That’s because we are kings!!! We need a crown fashioned for each of us!!!

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Funny you mentioned depression—I have that too-lack of seeing the great friends I used to work with has made me not know what to say to them–lost the spark we had from such a long time…..that has caused me a depression…..more than anything is the hurt to losing friends from not seeing them in so long and losing what to say to them….running out of conversation…..

[Author]

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