Depression: Using Your Inner Strengths

I’m Dr. Catherine Serio, a Health Psychologist.

Over the years, I’ve helped many people who struggle with depression. People like you.

Today I’d like to teach you a simple exercise that may help make a tough day a little bit easier. This exercise is about rediscovering your inner strengths—qualities within yourself that have helped you through tough times in the past. Depression can cause you to forget about these inner strengths. But this exercise will help you remember and use them.

Consider this: You chose to watch this video right now. What part of you took that chance?

The part that wants to feel less depressed? The part of you that is open to trying something new? These are some of your strengths, and those are what you want to tap into today.

Let’s give it a try.

Think back to a time in your life when you worked through a difficult situation.

Try to make it as recent, real, and as powerful a memory as possible. Don’t worry if you need to go back a ways to find a memory of when you successfully made it through a tough time.

Close your eyes if that helps. And if you need to, pause the video.

Take a few moments to come up with a good memory.

Now that you have that memory in your mind’s eye, try and recall the things you did to get through that hard time. Did you draw on your patience?

Did you find ways to laugh? Maybe you showed up to be with someone in need. Or you were able to find a silver lining in a dark cloud? Whatever you did, you were drawing on your inner strengths. If you’re comfortable remembering one thing you did that helped, go ahead and try to remember another.

Your inner strength is a powerful tool that can help you work through challenges, tough times, and difficult days.

So write down your inner strengths. Remember them... and use them to keep you feeling capable, confident, and on track to having better days.