A Supply of Hope

Christine (hopedespitedepression.blogspot.com) is a fellow blogger. I was intrigued by the title. If you have depression or want to understand more about it, you might want to check out her blog.

Hope despite depression.... That says it all. And so today I am inspired to write about hope and some of the ways to get from depression to hope and beyond.

Hope and depression ~ polar opposites. Depression is an ugly place. When I suffered from it and tried to describe it to someone I said it was like living in a deep, cold dark well with my only source of comfort being a scratchy damp blanket. People who have never suffered from depression have a difficult time relating to how oppressive it is.

Hope on the other hand is filled with light and color (Research has shown that when we are depressed our vision is literally washed in gray). Depression is slow, sluggish, bogged down - as if our brain is filled with quicksand - sucking us in deeper. If you look up "hope" in the dictionary you would find words like ambition, confidence, security, daydream, buoyancy. I might describe it as aliveness or engaged in life .

Whether you have some level of depression or not it is vital to understand the mind. Guard well the avenues of your mind...wish I could remember where I first heard or read that because I think that advice is priceless.

So, how do we go about this "guarding"? Well first of all GET RID OF THE NEGATIVES. What we see, hear, taste, smell and touch bombards our brain and our brain responds. (Just like it responds to medication; so this information is empowering. )You know how sometimes you have an unpleasant "mystery smell" in the house and have to hunt it down and get rid of it? Well, that is the same concept for rooting the negatives out of our surroundings, our energy field.

If you are presently depressed I know how difficult it can be to actually "do" something so bear with me - there will be notes about adding positives and you are already doing that. You are home free; you are searching out blogs that might be helpful to you.

So, what are the negatives in your life? Let's start with television. How many nasty things do you view in a day? What about negative news stations? Yes I want to know what is going on in the world but half an hour of hurricanes, greed, murders, the stock market, war and casualties and my good mood is right down the toilet. I find out what is going on in the world around me via the internet where I can peruse the stories and pick and choose what I want to look into. And keep my good mood.

You see, the problem is that television is rather hypnotic. Haven't we all sat down to watch a favorite program and remained plunked down for the evening? It is more than a bad habit. It is about the way the energy waves/pulsations of communication impact our brain. It is a marvelous invention but use it with care.

An easy key is to ask "is this positive or negative"? Because all energy DOES impact our mind. We live in a world of energy. So maybe a little more of "Dancing with the Stars" and a little less of the visually detailed crime stories.

"You are what you eat." Are we ever! So in rooting out the negatives you know where to go with this one. Food is energy - literally. Love your body, your being, enough to choose carefully. Doesn't mean you have to be a purist and give up those Klondike bars but maybe eat fewer sweets or fats and add one healthy food to your diet. Garbage in, garbage out. We cannot function at our best when we are debasing our body by eating crappy worthless food. Eventually the body and mind will reap the results.

Visual surroundings. The optic nerve goes directly into the brain so the impact of what we see is huge. We are constantly scanning and creating thoughts about our environment. Thoughts in turn create feelings. Feelings can delight us or cripple us.

I have a friend who runs the reception desk at a large business complex. There are several offices with windows that face her work center. She told me about how uncomfortable she felt because a guy in one of those offices would often be caught staring at her. I think she used the word "leering." She needed to change the negative! And her solution was very clever. She simply moved the potted plant from one spot on the counter to another - yes, directly between her and the "negative visual." I chuckle every time I think about it. He certainly couldn't complain that the plant was moved!

One of the things I tell clients and those in my seminars is to use "garage store stickers." Yes, those little colored dots. Strategically place them in your home, car, and work area. When you see the dot check your present thought. Is it positive or negative? Make the switch if you need to and be proud of yourself that you did so. It is a great way to get control of your own thinking so that you indeed are "guarding well the avenues of your mind."

Until next time ~ be gentle with yourself - your are a precious individual and your life is a work in progress.

Dr. DyAnn