TOM@RICHHABITS.NET
Edgar Allen Poe suffered from depression. If you lived his life, you probably would have been depressed too. He was born in 1809 to a couple of actors. He was two when his father abandoned him. His mother, unable to take care of him, left him with John and Frances Allen. His mother died soon after that.
Poe was rejected by the literary circles of his time, which was a result of his reputation for being a crazy drunk without any talent. Poe often referred to bipolar disorder through his themes using the “double self.” Later it was called a split personality and today it is referred to as bi-polar disorder.
There are days when everyone gets depressed. Monday mornings can drag you down. An end to a family vacation is another thing that can make you sad. Seeing your kids off to college is another trigger for sadness or depression.
You are definitely not alone when it comes to feeling the blues every now and than. We all experience these momentary bouts of sadness.
One of the anti-depression strategies I uncovered in my five-year study of the daily habits of the wealthy involves engaging in a creative activity. Sadness and depression fade away when you’re engaged in any creative pursuits.
Why?
It’s in our genes to create and our genes hardwired our brain to reward us with dopamine every time we engage in a creative activity. When we create, we are at our most natural human state and when we are at our most natural human state, we feel happy and fulfilled.
Creativity produces the feeling we call happiness and happiness and depression cannot coexist.
We all have some creative skills. It’s hardwired into our DNA. We are all creative beings. For me, it is writing. For others, it is painting or music or knitting or building.
When you are immersed in any creative pursuit, the creative part of the brain takes control and suppresses that part of the brain that creates the feeling we call depression.
It’s hard to start a creative project when you are in the midst of depression. That is why you should make creativity a daily Rich Habit. That creativity Rich Habit will keep depression at bay.
If you’re feeling down right now, find something creative to do. Even if it’s just organizing a closet. That will create a creative spark inside the brain. That creative spark will begin to overpower the brain areas responsible for creating that depression.
Tom Corley is an accountant, financial planner and author of “Rich Kids: How to Raise Our Children to Be Happy and Successful in Life”, “Effort-Less Wealth”, “Change Your Habits Change Your Life”, “Rich Habits Poor Habits”, “Rich Habits: The Routines Millionaires Use Daily to Build Wealth” and “Rich Habits Wealth Academy.”
There’s quite a difference between “feeling blue” and clinical depression, bipolar, or other actual mental health illnesses.
In response to Wesley yes definitely. Clinical depression is a whole body disorder. Feeling low is common as Tom said.
I’m so pleased to see we talk about it mental illness these days because there can be a real stigma.
I write about mind stuff with real trepidation because it’s a fine line of scientific understanding and also empathy for how people feel day to day.
Thanks Tom for opening up the discussion and I agree with Wesley too.
I agree with Wesley, there is a difference between clinical illnesses and feeling blue. Creativity can be a great way to move past depression. I know you comment that you should start a project before a depression triggering event but I don’t think you should ever stop your pursuit. As Pablo Picasso said, “Work is a necessity for man. Man invented the alarm clock.”