By Therese J. Borchard Associate Editor According to Mental Health America, depression is as costly to the US economy as heart disease or AIDS, resulting in over !" #illion lost due to a#senteeism $rom %or& and productivity losses. The average lost time at %or& due to depression is appro'imately "() million days yearly. Staying productive at %or& is undou#tedly among the most challenging components o$ my recovery. It*s hard enough to get out o$ #ed some mornings, not to mention %rap my #rain around a press release, #log post, or, +od $or#id, a presentation. Some days I %onder %hy I #othered to put my t%o $eet on the $loor, as I accomplished nothing #ut staring into a computer $or eight consecutive hours. ,ther days I am success$ul at s-uee.ing a spec& o$ productivity out o$ my depressed #rain. Here are a $e% strategies I use to get there. 1. Break it up Ugly, really ugly is the panic I $eel %hen assigned even a petty tas& %hen I*m depressed. I envision the completed pro/ect li&e an island $ar, $ar a%ay and immediately start hyperventilating accompanied %ith a $lurry o$ negative intrusive thoughts0 1There is no %ay in hell you are going to get there.2 1This /o# is simply impossi#le $eeling the %ay I am.2 1Should I even attempt this32 1I*m a loser %ith a mal$unctioning #rain.2 A$ter my emotional out#urst, I usually had to the &itchen to eat something unhealthy. Then I ta&e the #east o$ an assignment and #rea& it do%n into very small pieces. As a %riter %ith poor concentration %hen depressed, I tell mysel$ that I need only %rite t%o paragraphs o$ the piece right no%, this very minute. That*s all. I$ I*m $eeling over%helmed #y t%o paragraphs, I #rea& that do%n $urther into one sentence at a time. I$ it*s a longer pro/ect 4 li&e my #oo& 4 I loo&ed at the calendar, and gave mysel$ $ourteen separate deadlines, one $or each chapter. Then I separated the chapters into sections. 5inally the pieces %ere so small that the island $ar a%ay could #e reached #y #oat. 2. Start in the middle I$, a$ter #rea&ing do%n the tas&, I*m still paraly.ed, I $ollo% a piece o$ advice I learned $rom an accomplished %riter $riend o$ mine. I as&ed her %hat she does in the midst o$ a severe case o$ %riter*s #loc&. 1I start in the middle,2 she said. 1The #eginning contains too much pressure. I don*t yet &no% the end. So I ta&e a shot at the middle.2 Another %riter $riend o$ mine says he simply %rites do%n any thought that comes to him. It can #e completely unrelated to the piece he is %riting, as it*s merely an e'ercise to %arm up his stalled #rain. That unrelated sentence might lead to another unrelated sentence, %hich might lead to a sentence that has something to do %ith the memo or essay he is supposed to complete #y the end o$ the day. 3. ake !reaks Brea&s are the allies o$ persons %ith depression. 6e o$ten thin& %e are most productive %hen %e plug through a pro/ect %ithout loo&ing up7 ho%ever research indicates that ta&ing #rea&s can decrease stress hormones, increase dopamine and other $eel8good chemicals, and strengthen the neural connections that aids memory and e'ecutive $unctions. In other %ords, #rea&s ma&e us more productive. They are especially necessary $or depressed persons, #ecause our #rains are already %or&ing overtime. Trying to re$rame negative thoughts )9:( consumes an incredi#le amount o$ energy. ;our delicate noggin is going to #lo% a $use i$ you don*t stop and #reathe. <onsider your #rain as a %eary #ody in a #oot camp class at the gym. Best to ta&e the %ater #rea& and hydrate. ". #ean into the $ind J. =aymond De>aulo, M.D., author o$ Understanding Depression uses a great phrase %hen tal&ing a#out %or&ing %hile depressed0 1;ou have to lean into the %ind.2 This means di$$erent things $or di$$erent people. My /o# is $le'i#le enough that I try to cran& out as many tas&s as I can %hen I am $eeling good so that I can allo% a little do%ntime %hen I*m depressed or an'ious. I reali.e many positions don*t allo% that lu'ury. Ho%ever, perhaps there is some %ay you can ta&e advantage o$ your stronger days to allo% you the cushion on the days you struggle. %. #earn some calming techni&ues I #rea& the rule on corporate eti-uette #y #lasting calming music into a set o$ earphones %hen at the o$$ice. ,$ course, %hen someone snea&s up on me to tell me something, I scream, and that negatives the e$$ect. But the music really does soothe my nerves. ?ven ;anni. I also practice deep #reathing as I %rite, usually the s-uare #reathing method0 inhaling to a count o$ $our, holding my #reath to $our, e'haling to $our, holding my #reath to $our, and starting again. It*s Deep Breathing $or Idiots. ;ou can also simply #reathe out o$ your nose, %hich constrains your #reathing and has calming e$$ects. I also tighten my $ist, envision the person I*d li&e to punch, and release. '. (et venting !uddies I*m $ortunate to have several people at %or& that &no% I*m $ragile, stressed, depressed, an'ious, and the good &ind o$ cra.y. So %hen I $eel the tears coming on, I can usually gra# one o$ them and head to the #athroom. ,pening up to one or t%o people you thin& you can trust %ill ma&e you $eel less isolated. And, since they already &no% all the players at the o$$ice, they have an advantage over your therapist i$ you $eel com$orta#le enough airing your $rustrations related to %or&. Just don*t gossip too much, #ecause that gives you #ad &arma, and you don*t need anything else %or&ing against you. 7. Personali)e $orkspace My des& is, %ell, a re$lection o$ me and my pursuit to stay alive and $unctioning. 5irst, I have a massive Happy@ite that screams 1Dar&ness, go a%ayAA2 Then there are the spiritual sayings hanging every%here 4 the Serenity >rayer, the >rayer o$ St. 5rancis, and others 4 that scream, 1Dar&ness, go a%ayAAA2 5inally, there are some $avorite pictures o$ my $amily that scream, 1;ou need this /o#AAA Don*t -uit yetA2 All o$ them inspire me to &eep going. I get discouraged. I %ant to give up. I loo& at one o$ these things, and I thin&, 1,h yeah.2