today I have a million things to do but something is heavy on my mind. Its Thursday June 19 2013. Raising Daniel, in my life, has been a personal trial of ups and downs. Emotionally, I have battled with my depression demons, at times it has even gotten to the point where I was almost lost to my sanity. But deep deep within me a voice calls me out of this sad, dark and panic filled place. I pray for help. I talk and I write about the feelings inside me. I make the call to my doctor. I go immediately to seek medical care and counseling. I have a flashlight to help me out of those dark woods, its batteries are called, Sarah, Daniel, Thomas, and Julie.
Or I have the image in my imagination of the ocean. We are a boat on the ocean and the world is filled with fog. Someone is screaming with anxiety and anger at me because I dropped the navigation tool into the water. As I pray and try to concentrate the frustration in the air escalates, buzzes, makes me dizzy, sweaty. Then the swears and the threats. Someone kicks the side of the boat. I hold Daniel's hand and keep the inside piece of my brain steady. Steady. Eyes are focused, heart is protecting my focus. And there out of the darkness I see that lighthouse. The frustrated passenger has long since jumped overboard. It starts to rain and I have an image of that lighthouse guiding us in. The children and I hovered over Daniel keeping him dry while we cry tears of joy.
I know that a happy life is not intended to be filled with negative despair. No matter what you have or do not have, being happy is a choice. As I wrote about in the last two blogs. Choice. Living a purpose driven life is our God given choice. There is always hope when you have faith.
But sometimes, depression is NOT a choice. We can be depressed, just like we can have diabetes. It happens. Regardless of the underlying causes such as childhood abuse, hereditary factors etc. It happens. BUT ERGH!!!! It is exasperating when I look at my life as a pursuit of great things, of love, of happiness, of friends, of family, of living the God intends us to live, of laughing, of joy, of seeing the beauty in life, of peace, of teamwork and togetherness. And then once again, it happens, whatever IT is that falls under the category of either anger, pessimism, frustration, disgust, annoyance, avoidance, isolation, disappointment... etc etc
I know we have all of these things in life, of course I know. I am seriously not that altruistic. But I do know that being able to forgive and surpass and continue on a road of resolution is what sets apart the dark from the light. Yes, there is the "choose Happiness" reference again.
I am perplexed and astonished that I have turned a cheek to the depression in my home for so long. There is no way to excuse or explain it. I am raising a severely medically fragile child, a teenage daughter and a 12 year old son. Their mental health and emotionally stability is critical as life moves forward.
How can I provide them with the most love and support I can, if I face them with depression, anger, saddness, and hopelessness. That is not, never will be, never can be a possibility. I have goals, and dreams, and focus. I know who I am, and where I want to be. But I have a spouse who is not on common ground with me. How do we tell the difference between depression and abuse if the person never communicates what is in their heart? I conclude that it is not our job to define the distinction. It is our job to protect ourselves and do the best WE can to follow the road out of the dark woods. Fast. Even run if we can. Pushing that wheelchair, over the bumps, rocks and roots I will not let it get my innocent boy.
Look for signs of irritability and bad temper. Depressed men typically don't express their feelings. This leaves them feeling irritable and short-tempered.
Look for signs of withdrawal and isolation from other people. Depressed men tend to spend more time alone, watching TV, playing computer games, and pursuing solitary activities.
I am just Julie. Not a doctor. I can not diagnose. What I can do is research, read, watch documentaries, talk to my therapist, be aware, and be informed. I know what the symptoms of depression are. I know what verbal abuse is. I have 20 years of journals that document these events, as well as the joyful events.
When you love someone , you want so badly for them to be your soul mate, your life partner but they are lost deep in a hole somewhere you just cant reach them. I'm not sure what to do. The hole is too deep and they keep taking your rope and throwing it back up at you.
So I've read that I need to take care of me. Take care of the kids. Teach my kids that they HAVE A CHOICE as to how they can proceed with life and there past does not have to define their future. Choose Happiness, is the strength to make a choice to step out of our box and into a world of new and bright possibilities.
Some thoughts, and some facts. If you have someone in your world who you feel is depressed but denies it, rejects it, is getting worse, and won't listen to you. You are not alone.
Words can hurt worse than physical wounds people!!!!
Whoever made up that rhyme about “sticks and stones will
break my bones but names will never hurt me” was just plain wrong! Words do
hurt. They can break a person on the inside just as surely as a whack with a
stick bruises the outside. People who are subjected to verbal abuse suffer.
People who are subjected to it over time can get so used to it that they lose
their sense of themselves as people worth loving. If you see yourself in any of
these stories, know you are not alone. There are things you can do.
Some Things to look for, things that make you go, hmmmmmmm
·
Irritability
Almost everyone becomes irritable now and then. The reasons are almost without
number. A headache, a bad night's sleep, an upcoming dentist appointment, an
unexpected bill -- any stressor can bring it on. But when there is no apparent
reason why the least little thing becomes an annoyance, and the mood persists
for days or weeks, look for depression as the cause.
·
Anger
Anger is irritability pushed to an extreme. In depression, a person may explode
over what might otherwise be a mild irritant -- or over nothing at all. It may
be a brooding anger that comes to a boil over something seemingly harmless. If
anger lasts or becomes frightening or violent, seek help for yourself or your
loved one as soon as possible.
·
Worry/Anxiety
This may present in a number of ways. For example, a person may seize on a few
daily items and worry obsessively about them. Do
I have enough sleeping pills? What will we have for dinner? Did I put gas in
the car? Another form is responding
to every issue with anxiety. I
have to call the plumber -- what if he can't come today? I'd better leave early
for my appointment in case the traffic is bad. Or it could be a more generalized
anxiousness, perhaps accompanied by the racing thoughts that are more commonly
associated wit
·
Pessimism Pessimism means taking a negative view of everything. It's going to be another bad day.
Nobody likes me. There's no point in applying for that job. In the case of depressive pessimism,
the negativity is exaggerated all out of proportion with reality: There's no
reason for it to be a bad day, some people do like you, and whether you're
depressed or not, you might have a good chance of landing the job.
·
Indifference
Simply put, indifference is not caring. The laundry piles up, the bills aren't
paid, and you don't care. A friend calls with a problem, and you can only make
polite noises or sit and listen silently, the words not really penetrating your
shell of indifference. In depression, it isn't even so much that you don't care
as that you can't care.
·
Self-Criticism
Everyone has flaws -- but in this mood, your flaws seem magnified and you find
flaws that aren't there. "I look tired today" becomes I'm ugly. "I've made a mistake in balancing
the checkbook" becomes I'm
an idiot with numbers. Forgot
to feed the cat? I'm
worthless. If you hear
yourself or your bipolar loved one frequently saying overly negative things
about him or herself, let it be a warning signal to you that depression is
taking over.
It's important to know the characteristics
of depression so that you can identify them as symptoms of a depressive episode
when they occur, whether in yourself or in someone for whom you care or are
responsible. Recognizing the symptoms as signs of depression can sometimes help
to alleviate them; knowing what to look for means you can seek help that much
sooner.h mania or hypomania. Anxiety is frequently associated with being
indecisive..
So I am trying very hard to come to grips with this. Because I love my children more than the air I breathe. But I have reached the brink where I can't connect with the depressed person in my home. They deny it. They won't take the rope. They won't listen. They won't talk. They won't try. They simply don't speak of it. And if I "expect them to seek help, I am sadly mistaken."
And I turn focus back onto to the fact that I am raising Daniel, my sweet severely disabled angel, in a home where there is a spiritual battle going on. This is a battle that I refuse to lose. I have given my worries and fears up to you Lord. You have continued to help me, to provide, to guide. So Shall I.
When the day of reckoning comes, and they me to rest, I will be remembered as a woman who worked hard to foster the skills of choosing happiness and stepping upward and forward. No matter what it took.
And that is enough for today my friends. If you wish to comment or talk, I am always open. Hugs and please remember that life is beautiful. We are all as important as the sun and the stars and the moon.
This is by no means implying that I do not love the person I am trying to help. I love him very much. He just refuses to see my view. Now, what do I do? What do I do? I have to keep taking care of my beautiful children no matter what. That's what. Tomorrow I will once again be saying, what do I do? But I will be a little bit stronger and smarter.
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