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Stopping self-injury (books and sites)
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Methods for coping with depression...
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self-evaluation, use rewards, change environment, observe
payoffs, atone, get support...
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desensitization, express feelings
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Skills--develop social skills, assertiveness, communication skills
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Cognitive--build self-esteem, learn to be optimistic, attribution
re-training, determinism, support groups
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Unconscious--insight by reading, find underlying emotions
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Overview
We have all been sad. We have lost loves, dreams, pride, hopes,
faith and on and on. Even periods of serious depression, like Abe
Lincoln's, are not rare events. About 15% of us have been so
depressed that it would have been wise to seek professional help
(Wilcoxon, Schrader, & Nelson, 1976). But only one third of depressed
people seek treatment (and they wait an average of 258 days to do
so). Nevertheless, one third of all people seeing a psychiatrist are
depressed. Depression is the first or second most frequent reason why
people are admitted to the psychiatric wards in general hospitals
(NIMH, 1971). A Presidential Commission on Mental Health estimated
that 1 out of 5 of us (about 1 in 10 for males and 1 in 4 for females),
will suffer from depression sometime in our lives. That is 20% in an