SIX WAYS TO BEAT DEPRESSION from William Thomas Buckley

1. Do something constructive. Depression feeds on inertia. To fight inertia, write down a daily plan of action - from wake up to lights out. Action often must come before motivation. This means you shouldn't wait until you feel like it to start moving, because as long as you're depressed, you may never "feel like it." You may have to "prime the pump" by taking a small step to get started, even if you are not in the mood.

2. Lend a hand. Altruism is rapidly gaining acceptance among doctors as a way to help yourself to better health. Volunteer work, community service of such neighborly gestures as shopping for an elderly shut-in can have a therapeutic effect. "You can say to yourself, 'I can do things. I am not worthless.'" Moreover, because isolation from people is an important cause of depression, human contact in and of itself heals.

3. Schedule joy. Many depressed people give up the pastimes they enjoy most. Focus on social interactions, especially get-togethers with friends, projects that make you feel competent, such as mastering a new skill, and pleasurable events, including dinner out or a movie. Also try smiling. Extensive research shows that our behavior shapes our emotions. If you're sad, don't drag your feet, walk briskly; don't slouch, sit upright; and don't frown, smile. The attempt alone may put you in a good mood.

4. Exercise regularly. Scientists think that aerobic exercise... may boost your self-confidence, improve your sense of well-being, and heighten your energy. And, by helping you relax, it can reduce the tension and anxiety that contribute to depression.

5. Brighten your day. Research has shown that exposure to light - from the sun or artificial devices - can help relieve such seasonal depression as "seasonal

6. Read all about it. According to a recent study by psychologist Forest Scogin of U of Alabama, giving depressed people certain books to read helped to treat mild to moderate forms of depression

EMOTIONS & HEALTH R.Digest 10/81 p.41

Medical investigators have demonstrated that emotional upset triggers a chain of events involving the brain and the endocrine system. This neuroendocrine response, which affects all vital bodily processes, is natural and necessary. Severe overstimulation, however, may have physical effects leading to disease.

According to one theory... two patterns are beginning to emerge, depending on the type of emotion. Such passive emotions as grief and despair, with feelings of loss and failure, register in the hippocampus, the part of the brain that activates the body's pituitary - adrenal - cortical network. Hormones like cortisol, needed for the regulation of metabolism, are secreted in excessive quantities from the outer portion (cortex) of the adrenal glands. If this occurs too often or for too long, the immune mechanism may be thrown out of whack. Defenses against infections and tumors diminish. And such autoimmune diseases as rheumatoid arthritis and myasthenia gravis, in which the body attacks itself, may be more likely to develop.

More aggressive emotions like anger and impatience, or a sense of threat to one's family, income, or position, affect a different section of the brain - the amygdala, which sets off the adrenal-medullary system. The inner (medulla) of the adrenal glands releases chemicals known as catecholamines (adrenaline is one). These increase the heart rate, elevate blood pressure and raise the level of free fatty acids in the blood. Faced with challenge, our survival instincts prompt this response. But prolonged or repeated activation may lead to migraines, hypertension, even coronary heat disease and stroke.

In a random sample of nearly 7000 adults in Alameda County, California, epidemiologists discovered that men and women with firm bonds of family, friends and church had less than half the mortality rate of those without the comfort and balance of such ties. And this applied irrespective of individual habits of smoking, drinking, eating and exercise.

In Michigan, close medical checks were kept on 100 married auto workers. Those reporting a supportive home, work, and social life remained far healthier than those expressing dissatisfaction with their private and work lives. The incidence of arthritis in the least contented group was tenfold that in the most satisfied.

The most startling findings in this area have come from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Researchers there began gathering emotional profiles of graduating doctors more than 30 years ago and have followed their health status ever since. They discovered that physicians with established tendencies toward depression, anxiety or anger tended to fall ill at a younger age than those of calmer temperament. Unexpectedly, they also learned that doctors who had grown up without close family relationships were stricken with cancer at a greater rate than those from loving families.

YOUR BROKEN DREAMS Morris L. Venden Pulpit Helps 9/91 p.8

As children bring their broken toys with tears for us to mend,

I brought my broken dreams to God because He was my friend.

But then instead of leaving Him in peace to work alone,

I stayed around and tried to help thru ways that were my own.

At last I snatched them back and cried, "How can you be so slow?"

"My child," He said, "what could I do? You never did let go."

The following is a wonderful prayer by Norwegian Theologian Ole Hallesby:

"Lord, if it will be to Your glory, heal suddenly. If it will glorify You more, heal gradually; if it will glorify You even more, may your servant remain sick awhile; and if it will glorify Your name still more, take him to Yourself in heaven."