How can I overcome obstacles that cause depression?

In this exercise we explore obstacles that cause depression and how to overcome them. 1. These are the obstacles that may cause a person's life to go off track and cause depression: Pressure to conform Need for securityNot feeling good enough Need for approval Fear Lack of deep reflectionAsk yourself which potential obstacles, or barriers, seem to be the biggest problem for you.

Let yourself free-associate about this question and then list as many examples as possible of specific behaviors that you do in seeking conformity in your journal. 2. Ask yourself the question "How would my life be different if I could have my obstacle surgically removed from my life and being?"

Write your reflections on the question given above in a journal. Be creative and explore all the ways your life would be different if you did not have your particular obstacle. 3.

Use your journal to reflect on the costs and benefits of your personal obstacle. Draw a line down the middle of one page and write "Costs of My Obstacle" on the left-hand side and "Benefits of My Obstacle" on the right-hand side. (Feel free to substitute the name of your own obstacle, such as "Fear" or "Need for Approval," for "My Obstacle" in these headings).

4. Evaluate your assessment of the risks and benefits of your need for your personal obstacle. Pick one change you could make in your life that moves you away from this obstacle and toward your more authentic needs and desires.

Ask yourself the following questions: What do I need in order to make this change in my life? What can I do now to make this change? Who can support me in making this change?

When will I make this change? Write down a specific and concrete plan. Give yourself a deadline by which you'll have succeeded in taking two steps toward your goal.

5. Create a plan that fits with your lifestyle and pacing to implement some of the other changes you wrote about in step 2. You don't want to rush ahead and overturn your life by changing everything all at once.

6. After each experiment trying a new behavior that frees you from your personal obstacle, write about the positive and negative consequences of your actions. Continue to evaluate the changes, and choose directions that yield the most positive consequences and that do not create more problems than they solve.

7. You can choose to repeat this exercise with any or all of the obstacles that may have driven your life off track and led to the depression.

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