Depression: The Problem & Solution, Simplified

Depression is, to oversimplify, what happens when you do not have enough dopamine.

Chronic depression is a combo of low sensitivity to dopamine (genetic) & then not "succeeding" enough to earn the extra release necessary.

If you want to stop being depressed, you need more dopamine release.

The way we usually try to solve this is through consumption.

TV, video games, drugs, social media, Youtube, etc.

"Cheap" dopamine.

The problem is that this system makes depression worse in the long run.

This is because it perpetuates a lack of success, preventing "sustainable" dopamine release, thus perpetuating the necessity for these cheap "crutches" to feel good.

The best way to get "good" dopamine is by accomplishing something productive.

The problem here is that you have low motivation/focus because you have low dopamine, the motivation/focus drug. If you were motivated, you'd already be doing productive things!

This is why mindset hacks are one of the best ways to beat depression & are critical skills to learn.

With the right mindset, you can "trick" your brain in to winning.

And winning -> dopamine release -> motivation -> action -> success -> winning

Like a bicycle wheel, starting this cycle will carry the momentum for quite a while, needing only periodic power to keep it going.

There are dozens of ways to do this and it's best to employ as many as possible. Just a few examples are:

• Gratitude practice

• Visualizing wins as if they've happened already

• Automatic Negative Thought (ANT) therapy

• incremental improvement/review systems

• Meditation

The truth is that we are ALL both winning and failing all the time, and it's largely a matter of perspective.

And further, that the greatest creations, inventions, and productions in the history of the planet came from people with brains like yours.

Being a depressed "loser", stuck in your head, scrolling the internet, trapped in potential

VS

Having massive impact, leaving your mark on the world with some amazing creative endeavor

Is simply a matter of systems, tools, and skills.

Some of us got these early in life, some of us didn't.

Those who did, are off changing the world with amazing creative works.

Those of us who didn't, are on drugs or homeless or playing video games and scrolling reddit.

The difference is simply a matter of learning and implementing these systems, tools, and skills.