This Is How You Overcome Depression
Learn exactly why your previous attempts to beat depression haven’t worked, and how the Storm To Sun Framework can give you the blueprint to conquer it once and for all.
Learn exactly why your previous attempts to beat depression haven’t worked, and how the Storm To Sun Framework can give you the blueprint to conquer it once and for all.
As you can see below, at any point in time when you struggle with depression, you can either be in the “Storm Zone”, the “Rain Zone” or the “Cloud Zone” of the Storm To Sun Framework.
This is when your depression is at its worst - i.e. when it feels like there's a storm raging in your mind. In this Zone, simple tasks like getting out of bed or having a shower can feel like climbing a mountain; going to work, socializing and other commonplace activities are often unmanageable; and you may feel so miserable, broken and hopeless that overcoming depression can seem impossible.
When you're in the Rain Zone, the storm in your mind has calmed down or not yet started. Consequently, since your symptoms are only moderately severe, you'll find it easier to uphold your responsibilities and carry on with life - however, getting burned out is common; you're prone to snapping easily; and interacting with others often feels overwhelming. For this reason, there's always a risk that you'll soon fall back into the Storm Zone.
When you're in the Cloud Zone, you feel more or less “normal” – in the sense that your days are only mildly impacted by depression. Consequently, you're able to function without becoming easily tired, and you're a lot more likely to want to interact with other people. In the Cloud Zone, your motivation is at its highest, so you're most able to do the things you may've been putting off while in the Storm or Rain Zones.
Perhaps the biggest reason why the Storm To Sun Framework is so powerful is because once you understand it, how to treat your depression at any point in time becomes extremely clear. In fact, the Storm To Sun Framework actually gives you the blueprint to overcome depression!
When you’re in the Storm Zone and therefore have severe symptoms and a low ability to function, the best way to combat depression is to implement “survival strategies” that give you immediate, short-term relief to prevent it from completely consuming you – and in the worst cases, to prevent you from turning to suicide. Examples of survival strategies include doing pleasurable things that relax you (e.g. watching your favourite TV show), talking to someone you trust, doing a calming breathing exercise, curling up under a weighted blanket, or calling a crisis line.
In the Rain Zone, your symptoms are moderately severe, and you have more ability to function than when you’re in the Storm Zone. For this reason, rather than just trying to “survive” depression, you should now try to “cope” with it as best as possible – so that you can function and uphold your day-to-day responsibilities, without getting burnt out or having your symptoms intensify. In order to do this, you need to learn and implement “coping strategies” - e.g. exercising, meditating, journalling, challenging negative thoughts, participating in a depression support group, or practicing gratitude.
In the “Cloud Zone”, your symptoms are mild and your ability to function is high, so rather than focusing on “surviving” or “coping” with depression, the challenge now is to actually “heal” from it – i.e. to clear up the clouds that are still hanging over you, so that they stop bringing on rain or worst of all a storm. This is done by learning “healing strategies” that help you overcome the underlying causes of your depression.
For example, if one of your underlying causes is low self-esteem, then a healing strategy may be to challenge and re-frame past instances which you believe are evidence that you're "a failure". If another one is a painful divorce, a healing strategy may help you to make room in your heart for love again. If a third one is childhood trauma, a healing strategy would help you work through complex emotions surrounding this event.
If you don’t implement survival strategies that give you immediate, short-term relief, then your depression is going to completely consume and overwhelm you – and in the worst cases, it can lead to suicide.
If you don’t implement coping strategies that help you function and manage your depression as best as possible, then it's only a matter of time until you burn yourself out, your symptoms worsen, and you find yourself back in the Storm Zone.
If you don’t implement healing strategies that help you overcome the underlying causes of your depression, then you will never beat depression. This explains why some people's depression never improves over time – because while they might learn strategies to survive and cope with depression, at no point are they ever taught strategies to heal from depression.
Guiding you through the storm to the sun
