Fill Your Bucket with 3 Different Types of Love

One of the most powerful things in conquering depression is the ability to feel love. For many of us who feel depressed, we often isolate ourselves like Elsa from Frozen. We may not have created ice castle fortresses, but we often put up emotional walls so that no one could enter into our hearts. However, this only makes the depression worse. The theme of Frozen was that only love can thaw a frozen heart. Feelings of depression are no different. I have found that each time I have feelings of depression, the way I always conquer it was by filling my heart with love for the many different people in my life; my family, friends, and significant other. These are the people who are my support system. They would do anything for me and I for them.

Imagine your heart as an empty bucket and each quality moment you spend with your friends, family and significant other, your bucket is filled with a drop of love. Each drop is unique to the different types of love there are. For instance, think of your love for family as the color blue, your love for your friends as the color yellow and your love for your significant other as the color red. Now imagine having your bucket filled to the brim with all these different types of love. Can you imagine how powerful that would be? Having a heart full of love would help to conquer the feelings of depression and allow you to become happy once again.

Family:

Not everyone can say that they have a loving family. Thus, for all those out there who do have a loving family, cherish the moments you spend with them! In my experience, each moment I cherish with my family has been the greatest memories that I have. These are the moments I look back on every day. Your grandparents, parents, siblings and children aren’t getting any younger. Every moment soon becomes a memory. The simplest of moments can become one of the sweetest of memories that you look back on when you think of these people. And one day when they pass away, these memories will live on in your heart. Don’t hesitate to answer a call from a parent or grandparent. Treasure the time you talk with them. Let them know that you love them! Don’t procrastinate. Spend time with your family today! Talk with them, reminisce with them and laugh with them. There is a great strength that comes from family and it is unconditional love. It doesn’t matter how many times we argue with our siblings or parents because at the end of the day we still love them and would do anything for them. Therefore, a family bond has incredible power. It’s strength allows us to press forward during the hard times; even when the fight seems impossible.

Friends:

For many of us, our friends become our family. I certainly have some friends who have developed into my siblings. Much like my family and husband, they are always there for me. They never allow me to isolate myself or to feel depressed. For instance, when I went to college out of state, I was away from my boyfriend (now husband) and my family. The long distance relationships were very hard on me. I also never took breaks in between semesters which led me to grow weary of school very quickly. Fortunately, my best friends were also attending the same university. Due to this, they always made sure that I was never alone. They helped me to have fun in the midst of stressful times. And by doing so, they thawed my frozen heart. Thus, the lesson here is to always make time for friends. We need people to pick us up when we are down and vice versa. Friends allow us to get out of our comfort zone and to be spontaneous. They help us to get out of our house on Friday nights when we binge watch the Vampire Diaries on Netflix. Sometimes your friends understand your trials better than a family member or a significant other and are able to help in ways others can’t.

Significant Others:

I think most people search for that special someone to share their life with; a soulmate that understands them in every way. If you have this, be incredibly thankful! Romantic love is very beautiful, like a delicate rose. And much like a delicate rose, it always needs to be attended to. I like to think of a significant other as a best friend and partner in life. You know each other better than you know yourselves and you face everyday challenges together. Sometimes, we allow the everyday challenges to get in the way of expressing our love for our significant other. Cherish every moment you spend with them. If you are married, continue to date as you did before you were married. Be spontaneous together! Explore new places and try new things. Always make time for each other even when your lives are insanely busy. Enjoy the simple moments of sitting on the couch and talking after a long day of work or cooking together on a Friday night. And allow your significant other to be your strength when you feel depressed. Whenever I am feeling down, my husband always picks me up in the sweetest ways. He gives me words of affirmation, makes me a dessert, and cuddles me. Even though he may see them as small gestures of affection, they make a great deal of difference for me.

Conclusion:

Fill your bucket with all these different types of love. It can heal internal wounds and conquer great external challenges. As someone who has been suffering from feelings of depression, I must admit that it can be very scary for me to open my heart, even to people I already know and love. However, when I do open my heart, I am often blessed beyond my comprehension. Love is a powerful thing. If we look back at our personal history, we see that love has always gotten us through each life trial, whether it be directly or indirectly. It gives us the strength to press forward each and every day. When we fill our bucket with these different types of love, we become more powerful than our feelings of depression.