Oh boy, this is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. 

I have a previous blog post about my experience living with depression here: Depression: It's Real, and It's Spectacular(ly Horrifying)

But if you’d prefer the quick and dirty version, here it is. I’ve had depression since I was 13 years old, and up until a little over a year ago, my weight fluctuated along with my depression cycles. 

Basically, when I was up, my weight was down; when I was down, my weight was up. 

Lather, rinse and repeat for 3 decades.

The present-day looks much different. I have a protocol for the down days; I take full advantage of the up days. And I have a buttload of support to get me through the really tough times. (That last one is vital.)

None of that happened overnight. I have built this system for myself with A LOT of help, and I fucked up A LOT along the way. I backslid like a mofo many, many times. 

But what I’m here to tell you, beauties, is that perseverance pays off.

Getting motivated to lose weight when you’re depressed isn’t something that just happens. There are no weight loss fairies sprinkling motivation dust over people. It’s something that requires your will (aka your “why”) AND a way (aka your “how”).

Let me explain. 

You have to start at the beginning - wanting to get help for your depression. You have to be WILLING to believe that you can manage it. The same goes for your weight. 

So where does THAT come from?

That happens when you start learning how to value yourself. I’ve talked about this in my Instagram reels and I’ve blogged about it repeatedly, but it bears repeating forever and ever because it is the single most important thing involved in motivation.

The way that you talk to yourself matters more than anything. Learning how to speak to yourself with kindness and giving up the mental and emotional beatdown when you fuck up is the key to all of this.

Because YOU WILL FUCK UP. We all do.

You are a human being. And all human beings have that in common. We all make mistakes. We all have well-intentioned plans and protocols that go completely sideways when something unexpected happens.

Getting motivated to lose weight when you’re depressed isn’t something that just happens. There are no weight loss fairies sprinkling motivation dust over people. It’s something that requires your will (aka your “why”) AND a way (aka your “how”).

You will backslide, but that doesn’t take away any of your progress. If you’re feeling stuck, you’re still learning the lesson. If you backslide, you could be bumping up against your growth edge and about to have a breakthrough. (More on this here: Wait...Perfection Doesn't Exist?t)

If this is all new to you and you’re overwhelmed right now, then take a few deep breaths and give yourself a moment. 

Okay, now continue. 

You can do this. Begin here.

Find something that you like about yourself and work your way up. 

My beginning was several years ago now; I chose my eye color. My eyes are green and I really dig that about myself. So even on the darkest days when I really deeply loathed myself (and those days can still come out of nowhere because that’s part of my personal human experience), I would give myself the gift of looking in the mirror and saying to that woman with the tear-stained, swollen face, “At least you have those green eyes.”

If you can muster up some way to care what happens to you, then you can muster up the will to take action. And it’s action that creates motivation…not the other way around.

When you’re in the throes of depression, if you’re anything like me at least, you are not only feeling that gnawing sense of hopelessness but you’re also feeling guilty for being like this. The guilt just adds to the shitshow, so practice accepting your depression for what it is:

1. Something that is not your fault

2. Something that needs to be treated, possibly with medication

3. Something that if you ignore it just gets worse

4. Something that 280 million people worldwide struggle with in their lifetime, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) - Depressive disorder - WHO stats

You are not alone. Millions of people have dealt with it, and most of them suffer in silence.

You deserve better than that. And you already know that, because you’re here reading my blog.

So getting motivated while you’re depressed is done by setting up a tiny little goal on the hardest days. 

For example: If you typically can’t get out of bed when you’re like this, then just drag yourself across the floor to the bathroom. After you do your business and wash your hands, choose one thing to do - brush your teeth or wash your face - then you can get back in bed.

There. That’s a win.  

You achieved a tiny goal of moving forward. And the next time this day happens (which could very well be the next day, depending on how long your episodes last), do that again but add the other thing…wash your face AND brush your teeth. That’s a win.

And you work from there. 

I could write about this nonstop for days (and perhaps someday I will, but today is not that day). 

So I will conclude with this: Losing weight while being depressed is absolutely possible because I have done it myself. 

It took a year for me to lose 40 pounds. 

That’s less than a pound a week. It doesn’t happen quickly, AND IT’S NOT SUPPOSED TO if you’d like it to stay off.

I’m now at a healthy weight, and I now have protocols in place to support myself on the days when I “just can’t” with life. 

I no longer mentally beat the shit out of myself for being this way. 

I no longer fight against my depression so hard that I just make it deeper…but I also don’t fully lean into it and drown in a hopeless mindset. I set up a system and (most of the time) I follow it.

And I can teach you everything that I did to get here. Email me at dana@revolution-within.com to get on my email list. Reading my blog, along with my emails and social posts, is a great way to get started.

Love & hugs,

Dana