Looking To The Future When You’re Depressed
Do you have trouble finding hope and optimism about the future?
When you think about your future, what does it look like? I want you to take a minute and really focus on it…
Maybe you find it hard to see yourself living a future full of good times. Perhaps you’re like many others and you see things staying “exactly the same.”
And, even worse…
You might think little about the future because you really don’t want to fail… and you might be worried if you try you’ll fail , so it’s safer not to try.
At this point, you’re probably confused because you don’t know what kind of action you can take to have a different future.
Sound about right? I went a little deep, I know. But hey, here’s a point of encouragement, and maybe a way for you to offer compassion to yourself…
I’m also 100% sure I can use proven therapeutic strategies and techniques to help you replace this view of the future with comfort and healing. And then—hopefully—a different picture of a different future will start to appear.
(Notice I said “different,” not perfect.)
Let Me Help You See A Different Future
How can I be so sure? One reason is because that’s been my personal experience.
But an even bigger reason is… I’m sure because it’s how I helped many clients find it in therapy for depression, too!
I helped them when they faced the consequences of a future of loneliness that depressed (and shut down) any forward progress. I helped them when they faced the picture of a future consisting of nothing but many more “horrible” days.
Best of all…
I helped them replace this fear of the future with something else entirely…
… something that gets away from the past and focuses on your abilities in the present…
Something cognitive therapy calls responsibility for the future. Note: this isn’t saying anyone’s being irresponsible. This is about ownership.
When someone takes ownership of their thoughts, choices, and actions, it leads to healing changes with depression every time. And once they claim responsibility for the future, the threat of a “hopeless future” starts to fade.
Here Are 2 Ways To Claim Responsibility For The Future
Maybe you’re all too aware that you might have more lows in the future, so here’s what I want to share with you…
It’s a scientifically proven fact:
Any person can treat thoughts and feelings about a hopeless future in cognitive therapy and use this to help manage depression…
… and it just takes 2 simple steps:
Step #1:
You need to examine how your views about the future relate to your views about yourself. For example, views like, “Things are probably going to be way worse in the future” have a huge influence over how you view yourself.
Step #2:
You need to work on reorganizing your views about the future instead of letting it happen again the way it did yesterday. I’ve seen reorganizing lead to a lot of helpful insights.
Sound too easy? Many scientists have proven cognitive therapy is one of the best ways to help depression. And it’s one of the best ways I know of for depression treatment.
When you choose to get your depression treated, and then you work with a depression therapist on how you look at your future… your whole depression can start to shift.
A big part of this is learning how to claim ownership and responsibility for the future and for creating the future... which involves the past. When we work in therapy together, I won’t guilt you for any bad choices you made. Too many depressed people blame themselves for the actions of others and I’m not going to do that to you.
Instead, I’ll help you deprogram the parts of the past that hurt you in the present… that way, you might be able to move forward from the past. Then I’ll keep you focused on the growth you make in life.
I know, I know… You might not see any choices right now. It could be you’re struggling hard to see any future. I understand, I’m just saying therapy can help.
It can help you unravel the journey you’ve been on up to now, and then as we face where you are today…
… the way forward into the future might become clear.
If you’d like depression treatment, please reach out to me for a free 15-minute consultation. I hope in the future you can look back on this experience and see how strong and resilient you can be.
Find out more about Depression Treatment.
About The Author
John Younes, JD, MA, LPCC, NCC is a trained counselor who owns a private practice in Denver, CO. In general, he specializes in depression treatment using existential and cognitive therapy practices.
Last thing: if you’re thinking about suicide and are in immediate danger, please call your local emergency number… so for Denver, Colorado, call 1-844-493-8255 or text TALK to 38255. You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.