Depression is isolation (and that is a terrible thing). By no means do I want the person who is experiencing depression to feel guilty but I want to explain the results of depression and why you need to break that terrible cycle.

A person’s natural reaction is to become terribly egocentric. You simply do not want to see anyone. I would tell my daughter to do anything, walk to the post office, buy a stamp, anything to get out of the house.

Depression makes you very selfish. You can not see beyond yourself. It is so important to break the cycle of depression. It is done in small degrees by grabbing the power you have.

Every person can gain more control of some aspect of their life. You do it in small steps and eventually the depression will lift.

By all means if a doctor or therapist will help use their services. You do not have to do it alone. You can break the sphere of isolation. It will not happen overnight.

Why should anyone care about you if you have not reached out to them.  Roots in a community take years, maybe decades to develop.  First of all you have to stay put.  For a long time.  And reach out to others in ways you are able to.

Why should anyone care about you if you have not invested time in them, reached out to them when they were in need.  It is not always money others need.  Often it is just taking the time talking to them, lending an ear.

All that takes time.  But that is the way you develop roots in a community.  You can also get involved in a local church.  There are different ways.  Whatever suits you.  Don’t be a hermit.  Get out of the house.  Go to the local store, diner or post office.

Take a chance.  Learn other peoples’ names.  And take the time to have on going conversations with the inhabitants of your town.  All that takes time and effort.  But if you don’t how you you possibly learn about other peoples’ needs and wants if you don’t get to know them?

And your roots become deeper and deeper in a community if you do some of these things.  You have to put yourself out there.  It just takes a long time and effort on your part.  Roots do not happen overnight.

Why Isolation Is So Bad

Author: siggy

The isolation you impose on yourself is bad because the problems you face become inflated.  When you break your silence and share your problems with trusted friends, you gain more of a proper perspective of your problems.

When you go beyond the borders of your house and mix with others, you usually find out others are also dealing with difficulties sometimes even worse than yours.

My favorite Norman Vincent Peal anecdote is when he was once walking with a acquaintance and this person ranted and railed about all the difficulties he was undergoing.

Norman interrupted the person in the middle of his conversation and asked him, “Do you want to know where you can go where you will no longer have problems?”  And the person exhorted him to tell him that immediately and Norman simply pointed to the ground.

Sometimes we forget difficulties are just normal state of affairs and we need someone to remind us of that fact.  Isolating yourself prevents you, often, from finding this elementary fact.

When you connect with someone and suddenly during the course of the conversation you find this out there is often a sigh of relief from you.

Life is full of problems and worries and concerns and it is important to find out yours are really not that unique and all are part and parcel of being alive.