Getting Back in the Groove

As I mentioned last week, I have been attending a recreational therapy program called THRIVE.  It is aimed towards people with depression and/or anxiety and helping them cope with life.  One of the main purposes of THRIVE is creating goals and seeing them through.  We meet in accountability groups at the end of each session to see how we're doing with our goals.
Since I started attending THRIVE, I have noticed that I have become much more motivated and happier.  My younger brother said he noticed the same thing.  Since beginning THRIVE, I have been going to the gym, I changed up my eating habits, started meeting with a wellness coach, and started truly enjoying life.  I still get anxious and depressed, but I now have a better grip on reality.
One week at THRIVE, we talked about finding our flow.  Flow is experienced when you are doing something you absolutely enjoy and that seems to come naturally for you.  Time seems to slow down and nothing else matters.  I experience flow the most when I'm brainstorming photo ideas and executing those ideas.  Photography is my thing.  Time slows down and nothing but my ideas and photos matters.  Flow is when we are feeling the most at ease.
I am truly grateful for the THRIVE program and all that I have learned there.  I was beginning to think that a change in medication or dosage was the only thing to get me out of the funk I was in.  But I can attest that therapy, along with medication, is the best way to get back into the groove of things.

A Great(er) Depression

What can I say?  Idaho is just a depressing place.  I spent almost all of February through April hating life and hating myself.  I hid it well.  On the outside, I was a happy young man with a couple small issues.  But inside, I didn't know who I was anymore.  I went through all the motions: get up, eat, go back to bed, go to work, go back to bed.
When school started, things began to change.  My depression was still there, but not as intense as it had been.  I actually had things to do with my day.  I woke up in the morning, went to class(es), went to work, then back to bed.
My therapist, who is amazing, by the way, recommended a program on campus called THRIVE (I'm not sure why it's all caps, it doesn't stand for anything).  THRIVE has helped me so much.  It's a recreational therapy group that helps me and others in my situation learn how to deal with life.  Because of THRIVE, I have become motivated to go to the gym three days a week, to meet up with a wellness adviser to help me with my nutrition, and to simply see the good things in life.  I'm more motivated to try new things.  I'm not nearly as anxious as I normally am, and my depression is completely gone.
I guess my message is this:  Get out of your comfort zone and try something new.  I'm still taking my medications as prescribed.  But instead of increasing my dosage, my doctor suggested THRIVE, socializing, and trying new things.  I realize this is much easier said than done, but it works.  I have found myself again.  I am in a much better place.