If you or someone in your life has ever been seriously depressed, you may know that depressed people will reject help if it is packaged in the pseudo-wisdom of “look on the bright side” or “you’ve got so much to be grateful for.”
And so I must be mindful. How does mindfulness help heal depression? Looping over and over through negative thoughts and problems is typical in depression. Mindfulness can help break the loop. Instead of cycling repeatedly through What’s wrong with my life? we can learn to say to ourselves: The depressive feeling is here again, I am aware of it again …” When I am going through this cycle, I remind myself: “This is not who I am, but what I’m going through.”
YOU ARE NOT YOUR DEPRESSION. Your body may very well be challenged by the symptoms of chronic or clinical depression. But your spirit is only damaged as much as you allow it to be. Breathe with me. Meditate. Your higher self. The amazing person you are is still WITHIN YOU. A spiritual approach to depression also includes the possibility that depression can be a spiritual wake-up call. Perhaps it’s telling us we need to accept a loss, let go of an outdated understanding of ourselves, deal with a dysfunctional relationship, or find more meaning in work or life. When we see depression only as a set of symptoms to get rid of, we may miss that it is asking us to transform our habits, thought patterns, and lives so that we can live closer to peace and joy. This helps you accept the truth along your journey.
SAY THIS WITH ME IF YOU WOULD LIKE:
“I am by no means perfect. I have flaws as we all do as humans. But I know I’d like to continue to use my gifts to help others. But first, in order to help others, I must know when to step back and help MYSELF. “
BREATHE AGAIN.
Just because you have made it your purpose to be there for others to lean on, doesn’t mean you don’t need someone you can talk to as well. Offer up your struggles, your challenges and your shortcomings for an individual or individuals you know who could use the extra love. Identify with a reality larger than yourself, in that your struggles and your triumphs, your highs and lows are all part of a grander plan than what we can see at the moment. Whether your depression manifests itself as a loss of appetite, decreased sense of self-worth, lost productivity, feelings of helplessness, prolonged worry or any other symptom, spirituality can absolutely help an individual along their journey toward purpose. Beyond living as part of a whole, there’s purpose in spirituality. Just as you wouldn’t want to spend all your time working out your upper body and neglect your lower body, you wouldn’t want to focus all of your time on your body and neglect your soul.
DO NOT NEGLECT YOURSELF. No matter your degree of spirituality, spirituality itself is founded on the principle that there is a reality larger than yourself. In other words, you are contributing to a greater good that is larger than the simple positives and negatives in your own day.
CHOOSE TO ADDRESS AND HEAL. While I do meditate, pray, surround myself with crystals…I also take medication. I have a therapist. YOU DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU. Whether you want to try medication, natural remedies, therapy or a spiritual group, or all of those together…YOU took the first step.
Know that figuring out ways to treat the depression and having to get help is NOT A SPIRITUAL BLOCK. It is a SPIRITUAL WORK.
You have purpose.
You are incredible.
You are needed.
You are loved.
Blessed be,
Erica