
Depression, often called the common cold of emotional disorders, can be a perplexing and sometimes debilitating experience. More than just transitional blues, when I looked up quotes on depression, most of them focus on avoiding it, snapping out of it, not dwelling on it, and not letting it get to you. This can be good advice, especially when it comes to avoiding chronic depressions and perpetual self-pity that keeps one from going anywhere, becoming an Eeyore, the chronically depressed and down on himself donkey of Winnie the Pooh.
But to return to the common cold metaphor, when we have a fever, many are inclined to try to "get rid of it" by taking aspirin, etc. However, except in fevers of 104 degrees Fahrenheit or more, fevers have actually been found to mobilize the body's immunological abilities. In other words, when allowed to play its part, it can be part of the cure. So is there an example of this with depression?
While most do not want to enhance their depression, what can depression be telling us? Depression often signals that something is no longer working. We cannot move through life freely. Our energy can fill zapped. Something ails us that needs our attention. For some, an ungrieved part of themselves intrudes into the present by holding us back from opportunities, a relationship, or some other pleasurable activities.
The author Thomas Moore sees depression as having "gifts," or a perspective on one's self that cannot be seen until depression brings its darker moods that can be of help. In my experience, depression brings many clues that can tell us about what ails and what needs mending to get us back onto the road to recovery. These clues cannot be found by merely avoiding, thinking positive, or the proverbial, "going shopping." Learning from depression does not have to be morbid dwelling on depression, but the road to recovery and finding out how to live a more fulfilling life.
But to return to the common cold metaphor, when we have a fever, many are inclined to try to "get rid of it" by taking aspirin, etc. However, except in fevers of 104 degrees Fahrenheit or more, fevers have actually been found to mobilize the body's immunological abilities. In other words, when allowed to play its part, it can be part of the cure. So is there an example of this with depression?
While most do not want to enhance their depression, what can depression be telling us? Depression often signals that something is no longer working. We cannot move through life freely. Our energy can fill zapped. Something ails us that needs our attention. For some, an ungrieved part of themselves intrudes into the present by holding us back from opportunities, a relationship, or some other pleasurable activities.
The author Thomas Moore sees depression as having "gifts," or a perspective on one's self that cannot be seen until depression brings its darker moods that can be of help. In my experience, depression brings many clues that can tell us about what ails and what needs mending to get us back onto the road to recovery. These clues cannot be found by merely avoiding, thinking positive, or the proverbial, "going shopping." Learning from depression does not have to be morbid dwelling on depression, but the road to recovery and finding out how to live a more fulfilling life.