Where were you 25 years ago? What was happening in your life? Where were you living? Who were you friends with? Perhaps dig a little deeper, and ask yourself – who were you 25 years ago compared to who you are now? What mattered to you most then, and is that still true of you…
Choosing to be disciplined
Choosing to be disciplined – not a very glamorous idea, and nor always a very popular one. Being adventurous, or being a free spirit, or going with what feels best at the time seem to fit more in our oft individualistic and consumerist society. The unspoken assumption sometimes sounds like… I want it and I want…
Lessons from Depression Part 4: People are worth fighting for.
These past weeks have been an interesting process of stopping to explore lessons learned from depression, and living alongside our Black Dog. To step back, look under the surface and hunt for the treasure in the bleakness. Often we hurtle through life at crazy speeds, living a never-ending-to-do-list. We risk getting to the end of…
Lessons from Depression Part 3: Respect your own needs
In reflecting on our Lessons from depression, here is my second: Respect your own needs. Take time to understand yourself and what it is that you need. Of course, this is true for all of us, not just in a relationship or friendship dominated by a Black Dog. This is not about being selfish and…
Lessons from Depression Part 2: Talk about it.
As I look back over our experience of living with and alongside depression – our breed of Black Dog – I am musing on what would have made a difference. I have learned to understand and accept myself and my needs more. MB (My Beloved as he is referred to in my blog) and I have…
Lessons from depression Part 1. Or, how have we tamed the Black Dog.
These last few weeks have been something of an opening out of life, an unfolding of lots of things that have been closed away for some time. I guess I should have seen this coming – you don’t start talking about depression without it causing some ripples outwards. And maybe a few internal waves too. Several people…
Putting our Black Dog on a leash
Last week I started talking about the Black Dog in our marriage – the depression that my beloved (MB) has suffered from for many years, and the impact of living with it. How do we learn to put our Black Dog on a leash? Or – to put it another way – what happens when…
Our Black Dog. Or Living alongside Depression.
We have a large black dog in our marriage. For more than two decades, this Black Dog has played a role in our lives and impacted on our relationship, communication and emotional well being. My beloved – or MB for short – has suffered from depression for a large chunk of his adult life. And…