I Don’t Want to Talk About it…Period!

This is a tough one…the pandemic has left many of us with a questionable mindset or mental fatigue. Sure, many have become creative, increased their resilience, and feel much stronger because of the pandemic. To you I applaud and say KUDOS! You are an overcomer for sure!

This is for the rest of us whose mental muscles have been stretched beyond their elasticity and has affected our mental fitness far past our comfort zone. You think… “Am I losing it?” “Why is my fuse so short, and what about these anxiety surges? That’s not me! What’s up with that?” “Am I depressed? Is this what depression feels like?”

Hang on my friend, you are not alone – “Depression Has Skyrocketed During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Study Says” Three times as many Americans met criteria for a depression diagnosis during the pandemic than before it, according to The Journal of the American Medical Association.

This appears to be quite a dilemma for those souls that are experiencing some degree of depression, whether it be a loss of self-worth or confidence, feelings of despair with truly little hope, or just an energy drain due to job loss or insecurity. This is very real to these folks! This is serious and no laughing matter. They need HELP! And herein lies the problem…they are told by the “experts” to “ask” for help; We are ALL in this together…yeah right! Good luck with that lie!

You see, “I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT! It’s too embarrassing and shameful! It’s a private matter; you think I’m going to show you my weakness? I’ll work it out myself. I don’t need anybody ‘meddling’ in my head or my business. It’s different with me. I’ve never really fit in anyway and have always been pushed by ‘them’ to be ‘like them’…it’s Bullsh..!” LEAVE ME ALONE, THANK YOU!

You see…we are a proud species and even though “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” ~  Proverbs 16:18, we ignore the warning signs and unwittingly hide them in the cellar of our minds.

Negativity has taken over the psyche. The thoughts are no longer pure. The self-talk is poison to the spirit and a downward spiral is in play. Everything looks different. The old healthy perspective is warped and has morphed into a disrupted being that has entered the realm of cognitive distortions.  Normal, pre-pandemic behavior and emotional reason has very quickly led us away from the path of reality. What good can come of it?

The short answer is – a lot! Thomas Paine said it best: “These are the times that try men’s souls.” It’s when one’s soul is tried that the most is learned. Inner growth comes from hard times. Help arrives whether we ask from “within” or from “without”. If you are too proud to ask “without”, humble yourself to go “within”, search your heart and your soul; trust that a promised answer will come and you will be rewarded…in full!

The long answer is – it depends! Things could go either way. They can be built up or they can be torn down and disintegrate. “Ugh!” you say. “How do I do this? How will I get through this? I lost my job, I’m too old… It’s too late…I can’t…” You see where this is headed? Yes, toward disintegration. It is “Decision” time! And that’s the best news yet because it is YOUR decision! Still scared? No problem, it happens to ALL of us. Yup, we have all been in the same dark place just at different times; it’s a universal human experience.

Maybe this will help. Depression is not a malfunction or a wiring problem. It is a signal. A message that is telling us something. The first step is to stop insulting these signals, by saying they’re a sign of weakness, or madness, or purely biological. We need to start listening to these signals. They are telling us that something is missing in our lives. They’re telling us something that we really need to hear. We need to honor these signals, respect them, and sincerely listen to what they are trying to tell us.

Something considerably basic in nature is now missing and we have to identify, recognize and reconnect to it. It is only when we truly listen that we begin to see liberating, nurturing, deeper solutions that are awaiting and available within us and all around us. More to come…