A Work Ethic for the Recovering Manic Depressive

There is much lost in initiative when one is struck with mental illness. Drive dries up like autumn leaves cast adrift by the wind. Caught in a mental maelstrom, one is often imprisoned in the world of the mind. The enduring quality of mental aberration often leads to a paralysis of activity and action. The best-trained and raised with an attitude of productivity often become enmeshed in a net of mental stricture which leaves one immobile and uninspired. Stamina is lost.

Recovery takes work, and success takes tenacity. How do you cultivate an ethic of work that will carry you through the successes and failures of creating a life, when motivation seems to have left you behind? Not only is mental illness fraught with inaction and faintness of heart, but its course over time leads to a loss of vitality and a lack of impulse to act. With this in mind, here are some ideas to help carry you through:

Never take no for an answer. When in treatment, don’t be discouraged by early failures. Turn frustration into persistence.

Angry at the rejection of a job application? Allow your anger to be channeled into positive action. Depressed at the daily lack of routine? Allow your melancholy to form a response. Shy and withdrawn after an episode of mania leaves you unsure of yourself?

Sit and let the discouragement wash over you. Use it as an expression of impotence. When you get done with feeling sorry for yourself, make a resolution to fight back. You are not a failure.

Read books and attend lectures that promote hope and a positive image. Take your life one day at a time. Make a list of daily tasks to complete, and do your best to complete them. Gauge your ability to persist as you go through your list. Acknowledge that your ability to persist will vary from day to day. Over time, your ability to pursue a goal will fluctuate. Accept this as you accept the need to push yourself.

Though anxiety may be your opponent, never let it define you. Learn from your struggle with depression and anxiety. Know you are more than your illness and don’t let others (professionals included) define you. When all seems lost, rest. Rest as long as you need.

When you lose hope, allow time for hope to return. In the end, motivation will surface, perhaps slowly and in small pieces. Let it move you. Eventually it will come.

Like a muscle atrophied after disuse, hope and tenacity must be toned and retrained. Be patient with yourself. Know you are more than your illness. The ethic of work is in your attitude. It is to that you must apply yourself. And so, a work ethic is born or recovered.