Ok! How do you make yourself choose to use helpful strategies, not wallow in despair?

[DrRotten]

I have the safety plan where you list who you should contact, the reasons you need to stay alive, etc. etc. - and I know academically about thinking "What's the worst that could happen?", "Could I live through it?", "What's the most likely outcome?" etc. etc. to analyse thoughts.

However, how do you actually make yourself use these? When you're feeling ok you know self-destructive thoughts are irrational and harmful but when you're in the midst of cursing your own existence and plotting a path to perish how do you make yourself stop and think what you should do to keep safe, to get over it, to reach out, etc.?

People say call this-and-that number or remember to follow your safety plan but when you're seriously depressed you're not thinking "this is not normal" but "I serve no purpose".

What do you do? What works? How did you train yourself to think that way?

[DrRotten]

Thank you all for your helpful and thoughtful responses. I will continue to think on these ideas, and explore the apps mentioned.

[broken568]

Thanx for starting this thread Dr Rotten. It’s something I really struggle with, especially when my children are with their father for weekends or school holidays.
I don’t think I have anything of value to add which could help anybody else.

[jujusbizarrecircus]

Sometimes I will allow myself to wallow in the bad feelings, but only if I have a good outlet for it. For example listening to music, creative writing, journalling, drawing. If I find myself only stewing in the bad thoughts and turning them over and over in my head without an outlet, I'll try to distract myself by playing a video game or calling my friends to chill. Doing house chores also helps, something mechanically monotonous like vacuuming, washing and pushing away dishes, folding clothes.