Help Put an End to Depression
Help Put an End to Depression
I started this gofundme campaign because have been invited to speak about depression at the 17th World Summit on Positive Psychology & Psychotherapy to be held in Toronto, Canada, May 1 -3, 2017
The invitation was made by the conference organizer following a successful radio interview on Radio Triple H, 101.1 FM in Sydney Australia .
Have you ever known someone who was really depressed? How did you deal with the situation? Not very easy is it? I remember walking with a friend of mine Gary during one of my states of depression except that he was much more depressed than I was.
He had lost his wife only 18 months after their wedding. She had committed suicide. I encouraged him to come for a walk because I had to do something to help him. I thought walking and talking may have helped.
We were walking along a road that ran alongside a port in a bay. There were storage depots, cranes, containers and ships. Then there was the water in the bay and beyond the water, the horizon, and a post card perfect sunset.
The cranes, storage depots, containers and ships silhouetted picturesquely in the foreground added to this scenery. My friend Gary was understandably preoccupied in his depressed state he didn’t see the sunset until I pointed to it.
As I pointed I said to him: “You know Gary, I get depressed too, and then I see something like that and I see the sun shining from the distance through all this man made stuff. It gives me a glimmer, a small, small glimmer of hope, the tiniest spark within; and I grasp that spark and it helps carry me through, because that spark can grow!’
I then asked Gary if there’s anything he wanted to talk about and I would try to help him with it. He replied “No, it’s ok; you’ve cheered me up already!”
I am raising money to attend this conference to speak to Psychologists, Doctors and other Health Professionals about my struggle with depression, how I overcame it and to present techniques that can be used to help people put an end to their depression.
I have used the techniques in a group that I run and participants respond to them well because for the most part they have not been content with the conventional therapy they were receiving.
The techniques invite active participation in the therapy and I believe that it is the active participation which obtains long lasting results.
Attendance at the conference will also add to my knowledge so that I can further develop techniques.
Please help me to attend the conference in Toronto. Your donation of $10 will get you a FREE pdf copy of 'Depression Self Help: How to break through depression'
A donation of $20 will get you the above plus a FREE pdf copy of 'Anxiety Self Help: How to overcome anxiety'
A donation of $47 will get you beautiful glossy covered paperback versions of those books posted to your address.
And of course any donation will help because I will be presenting my work to Professionals who will in turn be able to help others with it.
This is the how the money will be spent
Return airfare 1624
Conference registration and
accommodation 1619
Meals approx 240
Grand total $2583
Did you know that more than 12% of the population suffer or have suffered depression in their life? And that’s only the cases that are reported or diagnosed. There are be many more that are not reported or diagnosed.
The World Health Organization has predicted that by 2020 depression will be the second highest cause of illness after heart disease in the Western World.”
The tragedy with depression is that it can be fatal because in the worst case scenario the end result is suicide.
With a little education people can learn enough about depression to “get on top of it”.
For many years I suffered depression.
I was fortunate enough to get a momentary insight into my own depression and “got on top of it” as it were.
From that experience I discovered that you don’t have to stay depressed, that depression is manageable and preventable that you can find your way back from depression.
A few years later I was able to bounce back after a life threatening bout with cancer and surgery that went terribly wrong.
Since then I researched depression and explored the various therapies available: Depression is preventable, and can in most cases be self-managed with a little education.
My mission now is to help more people with depression, I have been running workshops on a voluntary basis through www.meetup.com/depression-anxiety-sydney.
I am the author of 'Depression Self help: How to break through depression' and have just finished my second book 'Anxiety Self Help: How to overcome anxiety.
This is what peple have said about the Depression Self Help Book:
- “Alfred Bellanti is an expert when it comes to dealing with depression. Having known him personally, I know he always has the reader's best interest at heart. It’s a book full of useful facts and encouragement. I highly recommend it.” - John Lu
- “Interesting book. Useful for everyone.” – JK
- “I found this book inspiring. Having suffered depression for many years, I do know how difficult it is to get up and resume your normal life. This book covers many aspects of depression and goes through details of the symptoms, the causes and what you can do about it. It also talks about type of treatments available and what each kind is used for. Alfred's style in writing is down to earth, simple, easy to follow and caring. I certainly recommend this book for anyone who is suffering from depression or just feeling they are slipping into depression. I look forward to reading any future books by Alfred Bellanti.” - Nadia Hakim
- “Having gone thru depression and seeking answers, I found Alfred's book was uplifting and full of good ideas that I can use in case of future situations and good preventative ideas too. Well written with solid workable explanations. Buy it” – Amazon Customer
- “If you want to read a down to earth real life experience of depression this is the book for you. It makes you realize you are not alone in your suffering. Also it is very enlightening and informative because Alfred did so much research and gave me the confidence to believe that I could come out of my depression.” - Linda Lee
- “A wise man once said: ‘Unsure if everything sucks because I'm depressed or if I'm depressed because everything sucks!’ Depression can become so bad that not even a drum session in the park cheers you up, then it's time to get professional help and gather as much information as possible. Being a sufferer myself and having read a lot about the subject I can point out all the literature that was just superficial rubbish (a lot) and what really gave me new insights and deep understanding (a few). This book is certainly one of the best, highly recommended!” – Amazon Customer
- "Alfred's book came in the mail, and I immediately read every page. It’s packed with some really good ideas, and a real explanation that can help people finally understand depression. It's easy to read, and really a useful guide to self-help solutions that work." - Dr. Richard Nongard, LMFT
- “Alfred's Depression Self Help Book has been used by many of my clients as a quick reference for their symptomatology and it has helped them understand their depression from a new perspective. The Self help section especially has been very useful for some of my clients. I strongly recommend it to people who suffer from depression and those who care for them.” - Mr Paul Risebrow - Registered Psychologist
- "This book contains the main facts about major depression and the different treatments available, both medical and alternative. It also has many workable suggestions that will help the reader break through depression."- Dr R Climie.
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