Saturday, September 11, 2010

Have you gone mental (XIII)

I've spent quite a bit of time writing about how difficult these mixed (co-morbid) disorders, anxiety and depression, have been. What does a good day look like? There are a few aspects of life that move me closer to having a generally nice day.

1) Fellowship; 2) Journaling; 2) Meditation; 4) reading over my affirmations; 5) An outing; 6) Spending time with my family (wife, kids, and grand kids.

By fellowship I mean either personal or telehone contact with my close support people. My journal involves recording my struggles and how I dealt with them. Meditation is a part of each day. This involves mindfulness, this may involve paying attention to my breath and contemplative prayer. I read over my affirmations (positive statements about myself and my life). My outings involve going places where there are not many people. This also means avoiding places where I may not know "anyone". Going to a familiar place. Each of these often involves being accompanied by my wife. Spending time with family is self evident: Communication, play, getting more comfortable with a room full of people.

If these, or most of these are in play, the potential exists for a good day. I also must include taking a walk and taking my prescribed medication and vitamins on schedule.

During a good day, there are at least as many periods of lightness as there are darkness. The darkness does not seem as heavy. I require signicant time of solitude. This is helpful in order to take stock of progress, etc.

Nice days are scarce, but they sure are helpful. Having totally bad days everyday is, as one person said, "not as fun as its sounds"! Each day I expect some lightness, although it seems brief. When I slip back into a negative place, I am grateful for the nice moments and what I have optimistically called nice days.

If you suffer from either or both of these disorders (depression and anxiety) I wish you times of lightness; days in which the good aspects of your life outshine the negative.

God Bless.

No comments:

Post a Comment