Re: Depressed...the wisdom in sadness

[Guest guest]

,

Sorry I haven't responded before now. At Varian, our European and

Canadian tech writers are in town, and I've been in meetings with them

9-5 for the past 2 days. Then Monday night I helped host them for

dinner in Palo Alto until 9, and last night I had an IV patient until

9! So both nights I got home just beat and didn't check my email.

I am sorry you feel so down. Now, what I have to say in the following

paragraphs DOES NOT APPLY TO CLINICAL DEPRESSION. I'm talking here

about the normal, situational, existential depression we all feel...okay!?

I know that feeling: I've felt worthless, like I'm fooling myself

about all my good qualities and abilities. I've felt totally alone and

like my friends are faking it. I've felt like I was gonna be alone and

lonely for the rest of my life.

Of course, when I looked at these things logically, I knew they

weren't true. But that didn't make the feelings go away. Fortunately,

things in life always change. No matter how solid the feeling feels,

it will move on (unless it's clinical depression, which doesn't

budge). Now...I have a radical idea: There is wisdom buried in these

feelings of sadness and loneliness.

If you can feel that sadness and loneliness and realize that everyone

feels it, and everyone hurts with it, it can really open your heart

and light a flame of compassion and tenderness inside you. That

feeling of open heart and compassion/tenderness makes the sadness

bearable and gives you tremendous energy to reach out to other people

and be gentle with them, even when it's tough.

BTW, everyone knows what a curmudgeon I am. I like you because of who

you are, not because I have to. So don't you dare think I'm fakin' it.

Martha

[Guest guest]

LOL Martha thank you!!!

Yes, sometimes I wonder if anyone will catch on that Im a fake LOL

that I have no clue as to what Im doing!!!

Im much better today...is or was there a full moon LOL

>

> ,

> Sorry I haven't responded before now. At Varian, our European and

> Canadian tech writers are in town, and I've been in meetings with

them

> 9-5 for the past 2 days. Then Monday night I helped host them for

> dinner in Palo Alto until 9, and last night I had an IV patient

until

> 9! So both nights I got home just beat and didn't check my email.

> I am sorry you feel so down. Now, what I have to say in the

following

> paragraphs DOES NOT APPLY TO CLINICAL DEPRESSION. I'm talking here

> about the normal, situational, existential depression we all

feel...okay!?

> I know that feeling: I've felt worthless, like I'm fooling myself

> about all my good qualities and abilities. I've felt totally alone

and

> like my friends are faking it. I've felt like I was gonna be alone

and

> lonely for the rest of my life.

> Of course, when I looked at these things logically, I knew they

> weren't true. But that didn't make the feelings go away.

Fortunately,

> things in life always change. No matter how solid the feeling feels,

> it will move on (unless it's clinical depression, which doesn't

> budge). Now...I have a radical idea: There is wisdom buried in these

> feelings of sadness and loneliness.

> If you can feel that sadness and loneliness and realize that

everyone

> feels it, and everyone hurts with it, it can really open your heart

> and light a flame of compassion and tenderness inside you. That

> feeling of open heart and compassion/tenderness makes the sadness

> bearable and gives you tremendous energy to reach out to other

people

> and be gentle with them, even when it's tough.

> BTW, everyone knows what a curmudgeon I am. I like you because of

who

> you are, not because I have to. So don't you dare think I'm fakin'

it.

> Martha

>