May 24, 2025 • 20 mins
We explore the concept of commitment and how it relates to managing mental health conditions, discussing the importance of self-evaluation and living up to promises we make to ourselves and others.
• Commitment defined as a promise to deliver an expected outcome
• Importance of self-evaluating your commitment to mental health improvement
• Personal example of recording through COVID to honor podcast commitment
• The problem with societal overcommitment and learning to say no
• Connection between cluttered spaces and depression symptoms
• Benefits of creating at least one clutter-free zone to improve concentration
• Embracing change as a necessary part of mental health improvement
• Celebrating small wins in your depression recovery journey
Please consider leaving a comment about how this podcast has helped you. You can find Win Over Depression journals that complement the podcast episodes at winoverdepressionorg under the products tab. If you're struggling, please call 911 or reach out for help—your life is worth living.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Hello and welcome to Win Over Depression.
I am your host, tamara Trotter.
This podcast is dedicated tothose of us who suffer with a
mental illness but who aretrying every single day to
understand our disease and tolive the best life possible.
(00:30):
This podcast is also dedicatedto those individuals who are
trying to understand thisdisease so that they can be more
supportive to those friends orfamily who suffer with a mental
health condition.
Today, we'll be talking aboutcommitment, and I would like for
(00:53):
you to take notes, if you'reable to, and as I am sharing
this episode.
I would like you to think aboutthe commitments that you have
made in your life and I wouldlike for you to complete a
self-evaluation, which basicallymeans to weigh in or think
(01:16):
about whether or not you areliving up to that commitment.
So let's first define what is acommitment.
A commitment is the state orquality of being dedicated to a
cause or an activity.
It is a pledge or undertaking,an engagement, engagement or
(01:41):
obligation that restrictsfreedom of action.
There are many commitments thatwe have in life.
We make commitments to ourchildren, to our spouses.
We make a commitment to our jobupon being hired.
We make a commitment toourselves to fulfill whatever it
(02:06):
is that we want to accomplishin life.
And so, because we are acommitment-driven society, I
want you to think about howimportant it is to in order to
overcome many of the symptomsand circumstances that have
(02:54):
caused us to suffer from amental health condition, and I
want to talk about sufferingfrom a mental health condition
for just a moment.
It is true that having a mentalhealth disorder does involve
suffering, but the extent towhich we suffer is largely up to
(03:21):
us, the individual.
And so what is your commitmentto handling your mental illness,
managing your situation on adaily basis?
Are you 50% in and committed?
(03:42):
Are you someone who needs torecommit because you know that
you just have not been puttingin the work?
Can you recognize that you werenever fully on board with being
committed to what you said youwere going to do?
(04:04):
How has your commitment changedand why has it changed?
Have people in your lifeinfluenced the change and, if so
, how can you get back on tracktrack?
(04:30):
Is your commitment one-sided?
Because oftentimes life isabout relationships and if you
(04:53):
are in a one-sided relationship,whether it is with a friend, a
spouse and even a co-worker,that will affect your ability to
stay committed to thatsituation, person or thing.
So, as we continue, I submit toyou that having a commitment is
a promise to deliver theoutcome someone is expecting.
Let me repeat that A commitment, in my opinion, is a promise to
(05:20):
deliver the outcome someone isexpecting.
Now let's put that inperspective a little bit.
When we're talking aboutcommitment to overcoming our
mental illness, we have made thecommitment ourselves, and if we
(05:42):
expect an outcome that is goingto help us to feel better, to
be a better parent, a betterfriend, a better sister or
brother, then we have toself-regulate and determine
(06:04):
whether or not an adjustmentneeds to be made.
When we make a commitment,there is something that is
expected on the other end, andso you know that I am very
transparent with my listeners,know that I am very transparent
(06:32):
with my listeners.
So I am actually sick and Ihave been diagnosed and tested
positive for COVID for the firsttime in my life.
But in January of this year 2023, I made a personal commitment
(07:01):
to this podcast, win OverDepression, and I have lived up
to that commitment the entireyear up until now, except for
two occasions when I had toupload the episode on a Saturday
morning because I was havingtechnical difficulty, so we
(07:26):
always give room for human error, and so, even though I'm not
feeling well, I made thecommitment that, without fail, I
owe this episode to mylisteners.
It is 1138 pm Pacific StandardTime.
(07:51):
I have 22 minutes to finishthis episode.
Make any edits.
Complete the show notes,complete the episode information
.
Complete the episodeinformation.
(08:13):
Do the cover art and launch iton buzzsprout in the next.
Now 21 minutes.
That's what commitment lookslike.
That's what it feels like.
So, yes, I am doing it at thelast minute because I just was
not up to it, because I'm notfeeling well, but my friends,
oftentimes, most of the time,more than we'd like to admit,
(08:36):
when we suffer with a mentalillness, we are not always at
our best, but there are stillpeople counting on us and
expecting us to deliver on apromise that we've made, with a
unexpected outcome, and so I amnot expecting you to be me, but
(09:02):
what I'm saying is I want you tothink about the commitments
you've made in your life, andhow many of them are you truly
living up to?
In society, we tend to be overcommitted.
It is almost an addiction.
(09:24):
The truth is, our jobs, ouremployers expect way too much
and we continue to do the workbecause we need our job.
We don't know what will happenif we say we're not able to keep
up and so we continue to allowother people to add more and
(09:49):
more to our plate.
I am telling you that there isnothing wrong with you speaking
up about not being able todeliver.
Deliver on every single promisethat you've made, but guess
what that means?
(10:09):
Before you commit, you need tofind commitment of any type.
(10:32):
You have to decide howimportant it is in your life.
So my question is how important, how important is it to you to
improve your mental health?
How important is it to you topractice self-care?
(10:52):
How important is it to you tofinally stand up for yourself
and start saying no?
Remember this year I talkedabout that I would spend more
(11:18):
time sharing information aboutmyself.
People that I coach is to helpthem to see their potential and
the natural strengths andtalents that they are equipped
with, and how to leverage thosetalents to get their work and to
(11:44):
be able to relax and enjoy yourlife.
So, to me, if I cannot be 100%committed to what I say that I'm
going to do, then I reallydon't want to do it.
(12:06):
However, there have been manytimes when I have been over
committed, and so that is noone's fault but my own, but I
have learned to say no and totake several items off of my
plate mainly desserts, justkidding.
(12:29):
So think about your commitmentsand, whether or not you need to
recommit, recognize if you werenever fully on board.
Has your commitment to acertain project, to something
that you wanted to do at yourhouse, has that changed?
(12:52):
And if so, then do somethingdifferent.
Sometimes we want to stick towhat we've committed to because
we are afraid to feel as if wehave failed, and so that means
that there are many projectsthat are not completed because
(13:17):
we have taken on too many.
So, also, when we talk aboutcommitment, there are a few
other things I wanted to share.
The first is your personalspace in your home has a direct
correlation to whether or notyour mental health or you are
(13:43):
sinking into an episode ofdepression, and I know when I am
about to experience an episodeof depression because the area
in my personal space at homelooks cluttered.
So it is very true that when wehave a cluttered space, it's
(14:08):
very difficult for us to focusand concentrate, and therefore
we all know and if you don't,I'll share it with you that many
of the side effects ofdepression is not being able to
concentrate.
So what I would like for you toconsider doing and I don't
(14:29):
expect you to clean up yourentire house in two days.
That would not be a commitmentthat you can keep.
So what I would ask is that youlook around and ensure that you
have at least one or two areasin your home that are
clutter-free, and you will beable to see a lifting of the
(14:55):
inability to concentrate and youbeing able to focus much better
.
So again, are you committed toyour mental health and getting
better?
Are there some commitments thatyou've made that you need to
(15:16):
make changes in?
And so, when we think aboutchange, change is difficult for
a lot of people, and not justthose who suffer with the mental
illness.
Nobody really likes changebecause it's new.
People don't know what toexpect and they are afraid of
(15:38):
what is unknown to them.
That is a natural humanbehavior human behavior.
However, when you decide thatyou are going to take a look at
your commitments, you have theright to make changes Now.
(16:04):
Does that mean that you mayhave to disappoint a few people?
Absolutely, because your mentalhealth depends on it, and your
friends, or whoever it might be,should understand that you need
to practice self-care.
So I encourage you to not beafraid of change, because change
(16:26):
is absolutely predictable,because there are millions of
changes every single day.
There is a book called whoMoved my Cheese, and if you're
not someone who likes tonecessarily read a book, I
encourage you to get theaudiobook version of who Moved
(16:50):
my Cheese, and that is going tohelp you when it comes to
accepting change, because changeis the one thing that you can
count on in life.
So the more adaptable andresilient you become, the easier
(17:11):
change will be in your life.
I never want to end my podcastwithout thanking you so very
much for listening.
There are some things that Iwould love for you to consider
doing for me.
The first one is when you havelistened to any of the 80 plus
podcast episodes of when OverDepression, would you kindly
(17:37):
consider leaving a comment?
Let me know how a particularepisode resonated with you.
The more comments that I have,the more growth I will
experience in the podcast, andit is growing, but I would
encourage you to talk about howthis podcast has helped you.
(18:01):
Several people have reached outto me to tell me personally,
but if you would be so kind asto leave a comment, I would
really appreciate it.
Remember, you can reach me onPinterest at
TTMentalHealthExpert.
You can also find me onInstagram, twitter and Tumblr at
(18:23):
Tamara Trotter.
That's T-A-M-E-R-A last nameT-R-O-T-T-E-R.
You can join my Facebook group,also called Win Over Depression
.
Win Over Depression now has ajournal that goes along with the
podcast episodes.
Each journal will have 25episodes and it will have
(18:49):
homework places for you to writenotes and really be able to
keep a record of how well youare doing in combating and
reducing your episodes ofdepression.
In addition, this journal willalso give you the opportunity to
(19:10):
have in front of you proof ofyour journey and proof that you
are making strides.
One of my episodes we talkedabout how important it is to
celebrate every single win thatyou have experienced, no matter
(19:30):
how small you believe it is.
If you have gone from twoepisodes of depression per month
to one episode, that is a 50%improvement.
That is a 50% improvement.
You can go to my website,winoverdepressionorg, go to the
(19:57):
tab that says products and youwill be able to make the
purchase of your journal thereIf you would like to reach me
personally.
You can reach me at TamaraT-A-M-E-R-A at
winoverdepressionorg.
Stay in the game of life.
Remember.
Giving up is never an option.
You are important.
(20:17):
Your life is worth living.
If you are listening to thispodcast and it's late at night
and you're feeling down, Iencourage you to go back and
listen to many of my episodes.
I have several on why youshould not commit suicide, as
well as why suicide may comeinto your mind in the middle of
(20:38):
the night.
Don't take your life.
Please call 911 or call anaccountability coach.
Or call an accountability coach.
I would love for you to knowhow important you are.
No-transcript.
Hello and welcome to Win Over Depression.
I am your host, tamara Trotter.
This podcast is dedicated tothose of us who suffer with a
mental illness but who aretrying every single day to
understand our disease and tolive the best life possible.
(00:30):
This podcast is also dedicatedto those individuals who are
trying to understand thisdisease so that they can be more
supportive to those friends orfamily who suffer with a mental
health condition.
Today, we'll be talking aboutcommitment, and I would like for
(00:53):
you to take notes, if you'reable to, and as I am sharing
this episode.
I would like you to think aboutthe commitments that you have
made in your life and I wouldlike for you to complete a
self-evaluation, which basicallymeans to weigh in or think
(01:16):
about whether or not you areliving up to that commitment.
So let's first define what is acommitment.
A commitment is the state orquality of being dedicated to a
cause or an activity.
It is a pledge or undertaking,an engagement, engagement or
(01:41):
obligation that restrictsfreedom of action.
There are many commitments thatwe have in life.
We make commitments to ourchildren, to our spouses.
We make a commitment to our jobupon being hired.
We make a commitment toourselves to fulfill whatever it
(02:06):
is that we want to accomplishin life.
And so, because we are acommitment-driven society, I
want you to think about howimportant it is to in order to
overcome many of the symptomsand circumstances that have
(02:54):
caused us to suffer from amental health condition, and I
want to talk about sufferingfrom a mental health condition
for just a moment.
It is true that having a mentalhealth disorder does involve
suffering, but the extent towhich we suffer is largely up to
(03:21):
us, the individual.
And so what is your commitmentto handling your mental illness,
managing your situation on adaily basis?
Are you 50% in and committed?
(03:42):
Are you someone who needs torecommit because you know that
you just have not been puttingin the work?
Can you recognize that you werenever fully on board with being
committed to what you said youwere going to do?
(04:04):
How has your commitment changedand why has it changed?
Have people in your lifeinfluenced the change and, if so
, how can you get back on tracktrack?
(04:30):
Is your commitment one-sided?
Because oftentimes life isabout relationships and if you
(04:53):
are in a one-sided relationship,whether it is with a friend, a
spouse and even a co-worker,that will affect your ability to
stay committed to thatsituation, person or thing.
So, as we continue, I submit toyou that having a commitment is
a promise to deliver theoutcome someone is expecting.
Let me repeat that A commitment, in my opinion, is a promise to
(05:20):
deliver the outcome someone isexpecting.
Now let's put that inperspective a little bit.
When we're talking aboutcommitment to overcoming our
mental illness, we have made thecommitment ourselves, and if we
(05:42):
expect an outcome that is goingto help us to feel better, to
be a better parent, a betterfriend, a better sister or
brother, then we have toself-regulate and determine
(06:04):
whether or not an adjustmentneeds to be made.
When we make a commitment,there is something that is
expected on the other end, andso you know that I am very
transparent with my listeners,know that I am very transparent
(06:32):
with my listeners.
So I am actually sick and Ihave been diagnosed and tested
positive for COVID for the firsttime in my life.
But in January of this year 2023, I made a personal commitment
(07:01):
to this podcast, win OverDepression, and I have lived up
to that commitment the entireyear up until now, except for
two occasions when I had toupload the episode on a Saturday
morning because I was havingtechnical difficulty, so we
(07:26):
always give room for human error, and so, even though I'm not
feeling well, I made thecommitment that, without fail, I
owe this episode to mylisteners.
It is 1138 pm Pacific StandardTime.
(07:51):
I have 22 minutes to finishthis episode.
Make any edits.
Complete the show notes,complete the episode information
.
Complete the episodeinformation.
(08:13):
Do the cover art and launch iton buzzsprout in the next.
Now 21 minutes.
That's what commitment lookslike.
That's what it feels like.
So, yes, I am doing it at thelast minute because I just was
not up to it, because I'm notfeeling well, but my friends,
oftentimes, most of the time,more than we'd like to admit,
(08:36):
when we suffer with a mentalillness, we are not always at
our best, but there are stillpeople counting on us and
expecting us to deliver on apromise that we've made, with a
unexpected outcome, and so I amnot expecting you to be me, but
(09:02):
what I'm saying is I want you tothink about the commitments
you've made in your life, andhow many of them are you truly
living up to?
In society, we tend to be overcommitted.
It is almost an addiction.
(09:24):
The truth is, our jobs, ouremployers expect way too much
and we continue to do the workbecause we need our job.
We don't know what will happenif we say we're not able to keep
up and so we continue to allowother people to add more and
(09:49):
more to our plate.
I am telling you that there isnothing wrong with you speaking
up about not being able todeliver.
Deliver on every single promisethat you've made, but guess
what that means?
(10:09):
Before you commit, you need tofind commitment of any type.
(10:32):
You have to decide howimportant it is in your life.
So my question is how important, how important is it to you to
improve your mental health?
How important is it to you topractice self-care?
(10:52):
How important is it to you tofinally stand up for yourself
and start saying no?
Remember this year I talkedabout that I would spend more
(11:18):
time sharing information aboutmyself.
People that I coach is to helpthem to see their potential and
the natural strengths andtalents that they are equipped
with, and how to leverage thosetalents to get their work and to
(11:44):
be able to relax and enjoy yourlife.
So, to me, if I cannot be 100%committed to what I say that I'm
going to do, then I reallydon't want to do it.
(12:06):
However, there have been manytimes when I have been over
committed, and so that is noone's fault but my own, but I
have learned to say no and totake several items off of my
plate mainly desserts, justkidding.
(12:29):
So think about your commitmentsand, whether or not you need to
recommit, recognize if you werenever fully on board.
Has your commitment to acertain project, to something
that you wanted to do at yourhouse, has that changed?
(12:52):
And if so, then do somethingdifferent.
Sometimes we want to stick towhat we've committed to because
we are afraid to feel as if wehave failed, and so that means
that there are many projectsthat are not completed because
(13:17):
we have taken on too many.
So, also, when we talk aboutcommitment, there are a few
other things I wanted to share.
The first is your personalspace in your home has a direct
correlation to whether or notyour mental health or you are
(13:43):
sinking into an episode ofdepression, and I know when I am
about to experience an episodeof depression because the area
in my personal space at homelooks cluttered.
So it is very true that when wehave a cluttered space, it's
(14:08):
very difficult for us to focusand concentrate, and therefore
we all know and if you don't,I'll share it with you that many
of the side effects ofdepression is not being able to
concentrate.
So what I would like for you toconsider doing and I don't
(14:29):
expect you to clean up yourentire house in two days.
That would not be a commitmentthat you can keep.
So what I would ask is that youlook around and ensure that you
have at least one or two areasin your home that are
clutter-free, and you will beable to see a lifting of the
(14:55):
inability to concentrate and youbeing able to focus much better
.
So again, are you committed toyour mental health and getting
better?
Are there some commitments thatyou've made that you need to
(15:16):
make changes in?
And so, when we think aboutchange, change is difficult for
a lot of people, and not justthose who suffer with the mental
illness.
Nobody really likes changebecause it's new.
People don't know what toexpect and they are afraid of
(15:38):
what is unknown to them.
That is a natural humanbehavior human behavior.
However, when you decide thatyou are going to take a look at
your commitments, you have theright to make changes Now.
(16:04):
Does that mean that you mayhave to disappoint a few people?
Absolutely, because your mentalhealth depends on it, and your
friends, or whoever it might be,should understand that you need
to practice self-care.
So I encourage you to not beafraid of change, because change
(16:26):
is absolutely predictable,because there are millions of
changes every single day.
There is a book called whoMoved my Cheese, and if you're
not someone who likes tonecessarily read a book, I
encourage you to get theaudiobook version of who Moved
(16:50):
my Cheese, and that is going tohelp you when it comes to
accepting change, because changeis the one thing that you can
count on in life.
So the more adaptable andresilient you become, the easier
(17:11):
change will be in your life.
I never want to end my podcastwithout thanking you so very
much for listening.
There are some things that Iwould love for you to consider
doing for me.
The first one is when you havelistened to any of the 80 plus
podcast episodes of when OverDepression, would you kindly
(17:37):
consider leaving a comment?
Let me know how a particularepisode resonated with you.
The more comments that I have,the more growth I will
experience in the podcast, andit is growing, but I would
encourage you to talk about howthis podcast has helped you.
(18:01):
Several people have reached outto me to tell me personally,
but if you would be so kind asto leave a comment, I would
really appreciate it.
Remember, you can reach me onPinterest at
TTMentalHealthExpert.
You can also find me onInstagram, twitter and Tumblr at
(18:23):
Tamara Trotter.
That's T-A-M-E-R-A last nameT-R-O-T-T-E-R.
You can join my Facebook group,also called Win Over Depression
.
Win Over Depression now has ajournal that goes along with the
podcast episodes.
Each journal will have 25episodes and it will have
(18:49):
homework places for you to writenotes and really be able to
keep a record of how well youare doing in combating and
reducing your episodes ofdepression.
In addition, this journal willalso give you the opportunity to
(19:10):
have in front of you proof ofyour journey and proof that you
are making strides.
One of my episodes we talkedabout how important it is to
celebrate every single win thatyou have experienced, no matter
(19:30):
how small you believe it is.
If you have gone from twoepisodes of depression per month
to one episode, that is a 50%improvement.
That is a 50% improvement.
You can go to my website,winoverdepressionorg, go to the
(19:57):
tab that says products and youwill be able to make the
purchase of your journal thereIf you would like to reach me
personally.
You can reach me at TamaraT-A-M-E-R-A at
winoverdepressionorg.
Stay in the game of life.
Remember.
Giving up is never an option.
You are important.
(20:17):
Your life is worth living.
If you are listening to thispodcast and it's late at night
and you're feeling down, Iencourage you to go back and
listen to many of my episodes.
I have several on why youshould not commit suicide, as
well as why suicide may comeinto your mind in the middle of
(20:38):
the night.
Don't take your life.
Please call 911 or call anaccountability coach.
Or call an accountability coach.
I would love for you to knowhow important you are.
No-transcript.
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