BLACK DOG
Depression and I have been companions since my early teens.
I haven't explored the 'why'. I do not believe that it would alter the course of my life, nor the relationship I have with the various facets of depression. My depression is cyclic but not regular. It worsened with childbirth, the deaths of family members, moving house, an arson attack on my home, the dissolution of my marriage, and transitions.
I have chosen not to use drug therapy as a means of checking the worst manifeststions of depression. Instead, I
meditate;
bury myself in 'busyness' with family, community, work or church;
accompany and listen to what depression has to gift my life;
withdraw;
walk;
change my diet;
pray;
play;
simplify; and
create.
All have mitigated symptoms to some degree. Some still do. Mostly now, I accept depression as an integral part of who I am and who I am becoming. My life has been richly blessed with insights, and an intuitive comapsssion for those living with any threat to their equilibrium. It has encouraged me to listen; to explore; to invite; to pause.
I am not saying that depression is a great thing to live with. Times can be very, very difficult and the simplest of actions almost impossible to make. It can be frustrating for those I live with. But with grace, I am coming to see its richness in my life.
Winston Churchill coined the term "BLACK DOG" to describe his own depression.
I haven't explored the 'why'. I do not believe that it would alter the course of my life, nor the relationship I have with the various facets of depression. My depression is cyclic but not regular. It worsened with childbirth, the deaths of family members, moving house, an arson attack on my home, the dissolution of my marriage, and transitions.
I have chosen not to use drug therapy as a means of checking the worst manifeststions of depression. Instead, I
meditate;
bury myself in 'busyness' with family, community, work or church;
accompany and listen to what depression has to gift my life;
withdraw;
walk;
change my diet;
pray;
play;
simplify; and
create.
All have mitigated symptoms to some degree. Some still do. Mostly now, I accept depression as an integral part of who I am and who I am becoming. My life has been richly blessed with insights, and an intuitive comapsssion for those living with any threat to their equilibrium. It has encouraged me to listen; to explore; to invite; to pause.
I am not saying that depression is a great thing to live with. Times can be very, very difficult and the simplest of actions almost impossible to make. It can be frustrating for those I live with. But with grace, I am coming to see its richness in my life.
Winston Churchill coined the term "BLACK DOG" to describe his own depression.
