Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

LEAP SERIES This Depression Treatment Program is part of Lily Pad’s ‘Leap’ therapist supported program. Clients access our treatment manual online and work through the sections in their own time, and review their progress with their therapist. The Program is set out week by week over a 6 session plan. You are welcome to access the program and complete it alone, however results are best achieved with therapist support. We are not responsible for the success of this program with out the support of our therapist.

WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM Welcome! We are so glad you’ve leapt into this program! Lily Pad Psychology Clinic works by the philosophy that we ‘bounce’ through life’s up’s and down’s and that Psychological reflection and support are best utilised when we feel we are getting stuck in a rut and need to gain insight and strategies to jump off the ‘lily pad’ again (so to speak) and leap back into life! Hence, our name ‘Lily Pad Psychology Clinic’. I have designed this program to be a basic manual to support the therapy you are receiving with myself. Please work through this program in-line with the sessions we have together, of course we can skip parts and spend more time on parts you may need/want to focus on. We can also spend time on topics outside of this manual, that you may want to explore, as we go through. I am trained in lots of forms of therapy including ACT, CBT, DBT, Schema Therapy, Brief Solution Focused Therapy and Psycho-education and I provide individual, couples and family treatment, so we can use a mix of what you are wanting to get the best outcomes. There are resources attached to this program that are free to download, many of these resources will be valuable tools for you to use regularly to overcome the challenges of anxiety. I will also direct you to other online resources, that are also useful, for your exploration.

WHAT IS DEPRESSION? To be continued…

DO I HAVE DEPRESSION? To be continued…

SELF ASSESSMENT To be continued…

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 1: WHAT IS DEPRESSION?

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 2: MOTIVATION TO CHANGE…

6 TOOLS TO IMPROVE YOUR MOTIVATION TO CHANGE We’ve all heard these phrases before … and we’ve all probably heard ourselves saying them at some time or another. “I’m sick of how I feel!” “I’m fed up with feeling this awful!” “I can’t stand where I’m at in life!” “I need a change!” We get worn-out by repeating the same pattern, feeling a certain way, or having people around us ‘push our buttons’. And often we’ll say we need a change, but are we really ready to take the plunge knowing that it’s us that needs to do the ‘hard’ work? If you’re feeling stuck, frustrated or just plain sick and tired, maybe it’s time to change – whether that’s your circumstances, your outlook on life, or yourself. If you feel like you’re ready for change, then the below strategies might help you to really embrace that change … because let’s face it, change can be really difficult. 1. Don’t ignore how you feel. Contemplating change, and indeed making a change, can be very worrisome – sometimes terrifying. Acknowledge the fear, worry, anxiety, terror, trepidation, limbo, excitement, apprehension, and anything else you may be feeling. And try to accept these feelings as a normal part of the change process, rather than struggling with your emotions and potentially creating resistance or further suffering.

6 TOOLS TO IMPROVE YOUR MOTIVATION TO CHANGE 2. Be specific and prepare to make the change. Consider what options and choices you have – you could continue doing what you’re currently doing, you could take drastic and quick action, or you could take a slower path to change. Once you’ve listed all your options, decide which change you’re going to make (and don’t get too hung up on making the ‘right’ decision and put off change – sometimes several small steps are as valuable as one big one). Then plan in further detail and be specific about what you’re going to do, how you’re going to do it, when you’re going to do it, and how you’ll know you’ve done it. Maybe even build in some rewards for yourself along the way. Also, know that accepting a current situation for what it is (for example, you cannot change the behaviour of others) is also change – and sometimes the most challenging change of all. 3. Be patient. Often change takes time, and seeing the results of all your consistent effort may take even longer. But don’t be put off. If the end goal is important to you, then the wait will be worth it. 4. Persist and persevere, persist and persevere, persist and persevere! When old habits or patterns resurface, when obstacles and setbacks occur, and when change isn’t fun anymore, this is often when the hard work begins. And this is the point where many of us give up. Keep in mind your ultimate goal – maybe write it down, take a photo of it and put it on your mobile, put it on the fridge, put it on the back of your toilet door, find an image that represents it so that when times are challenging you’ll persist and persevere. Hopefully it won’t be long before you start to see your efforts paying off.

6 TOOLS TO IMPROVE YOUR MOTIVATION TO CHANGE 5. Enlist help from others. Going through change alone can be really challenging. You might want to get some help from those you trust so they can be your ‘cheer-leading’ team along the way. Or maybe find someone with a similar goal to yours, and you can work together along the way. 6. Know that you’re more likely to change when you have an internal drive (that is, YOU really want to change) and you feel confident about the change. This often creates a sense of strength, challenge, desire, passion, satisfaction and self-validation. Reflect on what you want to change and understand why YOU want to change it. And don’t forget … effort = results. Often we can feel motivated, set goals, plan out our change; however our plans fall flat or we lose momentum. This probably means there’s a disconnect between how much effort you put in and what you want to achieve. If this consistently keeps happening to you, you can do one of two things. Change the goal to match your efforts, or raise your efforts to match your goals. Hopefully these six tips will keep you on the path to the change you want. Remember – feel, prepare, be patient, persist and persevere, enlist help, and find out why YOU want to change. However, if these strategies aren’t enough, and you’re still finding it difficult to embrace change, seeking professional assistance could be useful. If you would like help in managing your thoughts, feelings or behaviours, please feel free to contact our clinic, or

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 3: TO BE CONTINUED…

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 4: TO BE CONTINUED…

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 5: TO BE CONTINUED…

Lily Pad Psychology Clinic TM ADULTS MANAUL June 2015 COPING WITH DEPRESSION WEEK 6: TO BE CONTINUED…