![\"how](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.attorneyatwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Depression-doesnt-want-to-do-anything-2.jpg?resize=770%2C495&ssl=1\" "\\"\\"")
Table of contents<\/h2>\n\n- The Demands of Work Don\u2019t Stop When You\u2019re Depressed<\/a><\/li>\n
- Mornings Are the Worst<\/a><\/li>\n
- You Can\u2019t Wait Until You \u2018Feel Like It\u2019<\/a><\/li>\n
- Keep Your Day in Perspective<\/a><\/li>\n
- Related Articles and Resources<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
Getting things done when you are depressed or have depression symptoms is tough.<\/strong> You have difficulty getting going in the morning. Your concentration is less than optimal. You may feel worn out or be sleep-deprived. Your motivation is low.<\/p>\nDoes this sound familiar? If you\u2019re struggling with these symptoms<\/a>, you\u2019re not alone.<\/strong><\/p>\nIn 2016, the Hazelton study<\/a> of nearly 13,000 practicing lawyers from 19 states found that approximately 28% struggle with some form of depression \u2014 a rate several times higher<\/a> than for the general population. Since the pandemic, the mental health crisis in the U.S. and among lawyers has only worsened. In the 2023 report on Lawyer Well-Being in Massachusetts, researchers with the Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers<\/a> and NORC at the University of Chicago found that lawyers across the state, 77% reported feeling burned out, 26% reported high rates of anxiety, 21% reported depression and 7% reported suicidal thoughts.<\/p>\nThe Demands of Work Don\u2019t Stop When You\u2019re Depressed<\/h2>\n
So how do you go about getting things done when you are depressed?<\/p>\n
Because depression affects the brain<\/a>, depressed lawyers need to go about getting things done differently when slumping.<\/p>\nIn the book\u00a0\u201cGet It Done When You\u2019re Depressed, Second Edition: 50 Strategies to Get Your Life Back on Track,\u201d\u00a0<\/a>the authors spell out the maladaptive things depressives tell themselves when trying to get things done \u2014 and how this actually leads to things not<\/em> getting done:<\/p>\n\n- You decide there\u2019s\u00a0no use in starting if you don\u2019t have the desire for the project.<\/li>\n
- You search for the\u00a0feeling of wanting to get something done\u00a0even when you know that lack of motivation is a normal symptom of depression.<\/li>\n
- You\u00a0wait so long to get a good feeling\u00a0about what you need to do that you never even get started.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The takeaway is that you cannot wait around until you feel motivated enough to be productive.<\/p>\n
Mornings Are the Worst<\/h2>\n
Ideally, this is how things normally work: You are inspired, move forward, and get things done.<\/p>\n
That is not how the mind of a depressed person works. <\/em>And it\u2019s even more so in the morning, the time when many depressed folks have difficulty with drive and focus.<\/p>\nSo, after you get up and have your coffee, recognize that to get things done you will have to actually start doing <\/em>things. Only then will the motivation follow.<\/p>\nYou Can\u2019t Wait Until You \u2018Feel Like It\u2019<\/h2>\n
Remember, depression doesn\u2019t want to do anything and never will. It\u2019s an inert illness, not an active illness. If you wait until you \u201cfeel like it\u201d to start something, you\u2019ll wait forever.<\/p>\n
If your depression is mild to moderate, push until you feel even a small sense of accomplishment, and hold on to that.<\/strong><\/p>\nIn the process, be practical and realistic about what you want to get done that day. Take it slow. Start with the \u201clow-hanging fruit\u201d \u2014 return some simple emails or clean and organize your desktop.<\/p>\n
Build some momentum.<\/p>\n
Keep Your Day in Perspective <\/h2>\n
Years ago, when I first started struggling with depression as a lawyer, I would wake up feeling depressed and conclude that the whole day was shot. \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d I would tell myself. \u201cI\u2019m just going to feel like crap anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n
I have learned over the years that a better approach is to think of my depression as subject to change in intensity throughout the day. Just because I had a crummy morning does not mean the afternoon will play out that way.<\/p>\n
If you pay attention, you\u2019ll notice how your depression ebbs and flows.<\/p>\n
Related Articles and Resources<\/h2>\n\n- Dan Lukasik\u2019s Lawyers With Depression podcast<\/a><\/li>\n
- American Bar Association Directory of State Lawyer Assistance Programs (LAP)<\/a><\/li>\n
- Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers<\/a><\/li>\n
- \u201cDepression: A Lawyer Pandemic\u201d <\/a>\u00a0by Ruth Carter<\/li>\n
- \u201cFive Steps to Confront Burnout, Addiction and Depression\u201d<\/a> by Link Christin<\/li>\n
- \u201c10 Hacks for Beating Procrastination\u201d<\/a> by Paul Burton<\/li>\n
- \u201cLawyers, Depression and Substance Abuse: A Candid Q&A\u201d<\/a> with Ruth Carter and Brian Cuban<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Images licensed under Unplash.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The demands of work don\u2019t stop when you are depressed. Dan Lukasik, of LawyersWithDepression.com, on the struggle to get things done when you’re a depressed lawyer. The post How to Be Productive When You\u2019re a Depressed Lawyer appeared first on Articles, Tips and Tech for Law Firms and Lawyers. Dan Lukasik, the lawyer-educator behind LawyersWithDepression.com, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-legal_matters"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108178\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Getting things done when you are depressed or have depression symptoms is tough.<\/strong> You have difficulty getting going in the morning. Your concentration is less than optimal. You may feel worn out or be sleep-deprived. Your motivation is low.<\/p>\n Does this sound familiar? If you\u2019re struggling with these symptoms<\/a>, you\u2019re not alone.<\/strong><\/p>\n In 2016, the Hazelton study<\/a> of nearly 13,000 practicing lawyers from 19 states found that approximately 28% struggle with some form of depression \u2014 a rate several times higher<\/a> than for the general population. Since the pandemic, the mental health crisis in the U.S. and among lawyers has only worsened. In the 2023 report on Lawyer Well-Being in Massachusetts, researchers with the Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers<\/a> and NORC at the University of Chicago found that lawyers across the state, 77% reported feeling burned out, 26% reported high rates of anxiety, 21% reported depression and 7% reported suicidal thoughts.<\/p>\n So how do you go about getting things done when you are depressed?<\/p>\n Because depression affects the brain<\/a>, depressed lawyers need to go about getting things done differently when slumping.<\/p>\n In the book\u00a0\u201cGet It Done When You\u2019re Depressed, Second Edition: 50 Strategies to Get Your Life Back on Track,\u201d\u00a0<\/a>the authors spell out the maladaptive things depressives tell themselves when trying to get things done \u2014 and how this actually leads to things not<\/em> getting done:<\/p>\n The takeaway is that you cannot wait around until you feel motivated enough to be productive.<\/p>\n Ideally, this is how things normally work: You are inspired, move forward, and get things done.<\/p>\n That is not how the mind of a depressed person works. <\/em>And it\u2019s even more so in the morning, the time when many depressed folks have difficulty with drive and focus.<\/p>\n So, after you get up and have your coffee, recognize that to get things done you will have to actually start doing <\/em>things. Only then will the motivation follow.<\/p>\n Remember, depression doesn\u2019t want to do anything and never will. It\u2019s an inert illness, not an active illness. If you wait until you \u201cfeel like it\u201d to start something, you\u2019ll wait forever.<\/p>\n If your depression is mild to moderate, push until you feel even a small sense of accomplishment, and hold on to that.<\/strong><\/p>\n In the process, be practical and realistic about what you want to get done that day. Take it slow. Start with the \u201clow-hanging fruit\u201d \u2014 return some simple emails or clean and organize your desktop.<\/p>\n Build some momentum.<\/p>\n Years ago, when I first started struggling with depression as a lawyer, I would wake up feeling depressed and conclude that the whole day was shot. \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d I would tell myself. \u201cI\u2019m just going to feel like crap anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n I have learned over the years that a better approach is to think of my depression as subject to change in intensity throughout the day. Just because I had a crummy morning does not mean the afternoon will play out that way.<\/p>\n If you pay attention, you\u2019ll notice how your depression ebbs and flows.<\/p>\n Images licensed under Unplash.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The demands of work don\u2019t stop when you are depressed. Dan Lukasik, of LawyersWithDepression.com, on the struggle to get things done when you’re a depressed lawyer. The post How to Be Productive When You\u2019re a Depressed Lawyer appeared first on Articles, Tips and Tech for Law Firms and Lawyers. Dan Lukasik, the lawyer-educator behind LawyersWithDepression.com, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-legal_matters"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108178\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The Demands of Work Don\u2019t Stop When You\u2019re Depressed<\/h2>\n
\n
Mornings Are the Worst<\/h2>\n
You Can\u2019t Wait Until You \u2018Feel Like It\u2019<\/h2>\n
Keep Your Day in Perspective <\/h2>\n
Related Articles and Resources<\/h2>\n
\n