[puzzclar]

I have a bachelor's degree so why can't I think myself out of this depression?! Has anyone tried to just think there way out?

[Skeezyks]

Well... not exactly. What I strive to do is to accept my struggles... with compassion. However, having written that, there is a thought component to it as well. When difficult memories surface, in addition to accepting them with compassion, I also remind myself that these things are in the past... many of them in the distant past. In some instances, when I really think about it, it occurs to me some of these difficult memories involve things that occurred 40 or 50 years ago! So I think about how pointless it is to get all worked up over something that happened close to a half century ago. And likewise when I find myself fussing over things as they are now, or over things that could happen in the future, while I strive to accept those thoughts with compassion, I also think about the fact that present circumstances simply are what they are; & that those that have not occurred yet may never come to pass. But even if they do, worrying about them now, won't help. So certainly there is a thought component to the process as well. It helps.

[Fuzzybear]

[puzzclar]

How does one accept struggles?

[Cyllya]

Trying to think your way out of a mood disorder makes about as much sense as trying to think your way out of the flu, or a broken leg, or cancer.

I guess you can think your way into depression (what the CBT philosophy calls cognitive distortions), and it makes sense not to do that. But even if you get cognitive distortions under control, that's usually not the whole problem.