Overall I’m a pretty freakin’ happy person. I loss track of how many times a day I laugh, tell friends & family I love them, I have a few friends but they are some of the most inspiring, motivating and heart warming people out there.

But every year around this time I still get those fall/winter blues, holiday blues, whatever you like to call it. It is difficult to get out of bed, which is not like me at all, I typically am leaping out of bed like some sort of super hero ready to fly around. My appetite seems to take a holiday without me. There is this lingering feeling like I am a terrible awful person. Even my posture goes down the drain and I look like I am carrying a turtle shell around. I will completely dodge being social & make a mega effort to even say “hello.” Yup, I am depressed.

The past takes over my thoughts, actions, and the worst thing is I can’t seem to apply the things I know for a fact will help me.

Let the past stay dead.

I am frequently wrong about people, love it.

I am not a terrible person.

All things will pass.

Everything is temporary.

Reality is what I make of it.

I know those who I have lost over the years would be sad to see me in this state. They want me to move on, thrive, succeed, and be as big as my dreams. Adapting a raw vegan lifestyle has been a massive help with coping, but seasonal depression still gets me. This year it seems to have started up later then previous years. I hope each year to see an improvement 🙂

There appears to be people out there in the world promising people miracle cures with raw vegan food. I would just like to stress that it is not a cure, it’s an improve ment, a way to improve your lifestyle. Eating a high raw diet or raw vegan diet will not make things disappear, like emotions or your past. It is a very clean diet, unless it’s high on the gourmet foods. It’s a move in the direction to clean up your body.

Your body, and yes your emotions will even be raw. There are pains or feelings you will have that are exposing you to your reality. Fear, loneliness, sorrow all of that is still there. It’s not like feeling as if you are 100% perfect or happy…there is no way of promising that unless you personally do the mental work, meditation or so forth to get yourself happy.

Food is not the gateway drug to happiness, sorry folks.

Some activities and things I do for myself to HELP, can’t say it always works but at least it’s getting that improvement movement going!

1. Stay busy and active.
2. Refuse to stay in bed when I do not want to get up.
3. Wake up to a happy song or a positive “theme” song for the day.
4. Dance to upbeat, fun music playing while getting ready for the day.
5. Make a smoothie or green juice! Routines like this can be exciting and totally fun if you let yourself dance around or zen out.
6. Keep an art therapy journal, written journal, photograph journal, make daily collage pieces whatever you enjoy. Write down everything and anything that comes to mind, even if it is just one word or a letter. Write it. You don’t have to read it all over after wards, may be later in the day but do revisit your thoughts. Try to see where certain emotions are coming from, most things in life have a meaning that can feel hidden at the time.
7. Do something everyday to remind yourself that you love yourself, your life and all of the things you are so grateful to be able to do.
8. Affirmations. Mantras. One for example that comes to my mind is from the book/movie The Help, “You is kind. You is smart. You is important.” Somehow saying “you is” always makes me smile 🙂
9. Even if you feel like walking around in your pajama pants or nasty sweatpants, don’t do it. First off, pajamas are a sacred thing! You deserve better then that, if you want to have a crummy, stinky day you will have a crummy stinky day. If you dress fun, nice and in something you feel beautiful and strong in…you will be strong, beautiful, fun, nice and so much more.
10. As Mary Poppins says, “With every task that must be done there is an element of fun.” Find the fun and positive in EVERYTHING. There is a lesson that can be taken from every little and big thing we do throughout the day. We are constantly learning, adjusting, improving, and growing.
11. What you give is what you get. You give people a shit grin, you’ll get a dump on your face 😉 Sorry very weird expression I like to use, “It’s like they took a dump on my face.”
12. Take yourself out. Me, myself, and I will go out on dinner dates! I will dress up nice, have a great meal, take my time eating and actually really enjoy it. I do not sit there and scold other people, or awkward stare. But just let the thoughts in my mind flow and thank myself for taking the time out of our busy schedule to do such a thing. I use to feel terribly depressed eating by myself, there was a point where I would skip a meal even. But once I started adapting this idea, I began to love hanging with myself more.
13. SMILE & LAUGH FREQUENTLY! When you screw up, laugh. When you do something amazing, laugh! I frequently laugh at everything. I trip, rip my pants, say something or do something that has completely made someone lost interest in me I laugh. Embrace it even 😀
14. Exercise, skip, walk, do yoga anything to get the blood flowing and the adrenaline going so happiness smacks you in the face.

I hope this gives you all some ideas on how to beat out the blues. I know having this website, this way of reaching out to people, forming a soundboard and learning from people’s comments has been a massive help for me. Creating always knocks out any room for destroying in my case. Have a lovely day everyone & thank you so much for your time. Much love and raw power ❤