When you're happy and you know it, clap your hands..updated

This post was UPDATED on 9/9/08
September is Suicide Prevention Month. I was going to post a list of resources for people feeling suicidal, but then, upon further thinking (and having already posted such lists in other places), I thought, it would make more sense to discuss methods of saving one's self from the realm of suicidality. In this vein, I present you with, Things that Make Me Happy:

Recent Things That Made Me Happy:

-I saw an excellent movie called Transsiberian which I recommend that you see yourself if you are a bit bored and looking for some entertainment.

-I am back in school, and finally, finally, finally, about to finish my little degree (and move on to a better degree directly afterwards)

-I found out that a failing grade I got when I was sick and unable to think clearly enough to withdraw myself from a course that I could not finish, might be changed to a W (for Withdrawal) so my GPA will go back up to where it should be.

-My first assignment in Math for Liberal Arts II was to write a paper! I kid you not. I have dreamed all my life of a math course that would allow me to write papers for math credit. It exists.

-I have been encouraged by people in NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) to get more involved in advocacy work with them, and I plan on doing that by, among other things, writing an article for the newsletter, writing some more letters, and eventually speaking to some legislators in Tallahassee

Overall Happiness Inducers:
-My beautiful, loving, adorable cat, Spooky
-Friends
-Fall is coming soon! The end of Florida's torturous August heat is near.
-Books
-Writing
-Having a sense of humor. There is much to laugh at in life. Laughing helps heal wounds, and distracts from problems. One way I amuse myself is making up things like a new religion where I am the prophet of the feminist God; such things may be primarily only amusing to me, but they often have the benefit of making others laugh as well.

Ok, your turn. Take out a piece of paper, a journal, or get online and write to yourself about things that make you happy. Do this regardless of whether you are happy right now or not. It doesn't have to be some daily happiness journal, like the type recommended by Oprah and pals (who regularly annoy me with their stupidly simplistic advice), but it should list a few things to cheer you up.

One can be creative with this as well. I did the following project some years ago in a hospital:
-took a shoe box, and covered it with glued-on pictures of flowers and gardens, making it look like one big garden box
-cut up construction paper in various colors in the shapes of flowers
-wrote "reasons to live" on each flower
-filled box

Example of reasons to live:
-"I admire Sylvia Plath for her poetry and not her suicide".
-"I love my family".
Etc...

Do your own! It's a fun project, especially if you're as bored as I was on the hospital unit where I came up with that idea.

You might want to keep a journal that lists reasons to live, or keep it on a blog or in your email account, or in your pocket, or some such place, particularly if you are prone to suicidal thoughts. One of the best ways to cope with suicidal thoughts is to combat them with positive thoughts. This is not as easy as it sounds, but it can be done. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about in this arena.

Other things to do to pull yourself out of the Bell Jar, if you are feeling suicidal or depressed are:

1. Talk to someone. If you have no one to talk to, call a hotline such as 1-800-273-TALK or 1-800-SUICIDE (both these numbers lead to the same people)

2. Deal with whatever is beneath your depression. There are always reasons people feel so low. Whether it be a chemical imbalance, or horrific life events that happened to you, getting to the root of the issue will help. Therapy can be very useful in this endeavor. If you have been sexually assaulted or abused, you may wish to call the RAINN hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE or the Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE.

3. See a doctor. There are many, many medications widely available to treat psychiatric illnesses. There is no reason to suffer without treatment. If you have no insurance, there are community mental health centers across the United States that will see you for a sliding scale fee or for free. Find one. Make an appointment. Go to the appointment.

4. Go to a support group. NAMI has support and advocacy groups across the United States. The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance also has groups across the United States.

5. Get involved with some type of advocacy, or activist, or volunteer work. Giving to others will make you feel like you are making a difference, and will increase your self-esteem. Plus, there are thousands of causes on thousands of issues that need your support.

6. Keep busy!

7. Write happy thoughts. Think happy thoughts. Sing happy thoughts (okay, maybe that is a bit much...) But really, for all the animosity I feel towards self-help books like Chicken Soup, etc., there is some basic advice they have which proves true in life: changing your thoughts can change how you feel.

8. Read this article on "cognitive restructuring" (also known as thinking different thoughts).

9.Read a book by SARK, or visit her website Planet SARK, where you can find some of her inspirational words of wisdom which help to do no less than cultivate creativity and transformation of the soul.

10. Read poetry that addresses life difficulties such as depression. May Sarton wrote many such poems. You can read "Now I Become Myself" here.

11. Find a few other inspirational words to read, here.

12. If you can't concentrate too long, because of depression or other mental illness, try reading poetry. Visit the Academy of American Poets site.

13. Find solace in reading memoirs of other people who lived through depression and other mental illnesses, and survived intact. A few of these and other informative books on mental illness which I've read over the years are: Darkness Visible, by William Styron, Madness by Marya Hornbacher, Manic, The Myth of Sanity by Martha Stout, The Beast by Tracy Thompson, An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfied Jamison, You Are Not Alone: Words of Experience and Hope for the Journey Through Depression, Julia Thorne, Undercurrents: A Life Beneath the Surface by Martha Manning, Prozac Nation by Elizabeth Wurtzel, Manic Depressive Illness by Kay Redfield Jamison, et al, Surviving Schizophrenia by E. Fuller Torrey, M.D., The Quiet Room by Lori Schiller, Just Checking by Emily Kolas, Manic, a Memoir by Terri Cheney, Whispers by Ronald Seigal.

13. Find free ebooks about depression at the About.com depression site