Letting people live their lives and GALing...

[AntoniaB]

Well quick update and some interesting info about depression/anxiety that may help others: my friend needed time to process things. We had one lengthy email exchange and tonight I'm going over to his house for pizza and movies. I think things will work out after all as there seems to be a commitment on both sides to turn what was going on into a friendship. We've been extremely open with one another and I'd say we know the deepest, darkest parts of each other's lives now, which is not a place I get to with people quickly (nor does he). I think we might actually have a good basis for a friendship with this. Time will tell...one day at a time.

I had appts with both my naturopath/counselor and psychiatrist this week and both have given me a lot of insight on things I'm still stuck on and areas I need to work on for myself. Both have said that I do not need any medication for depression/anxiety, that what I go through are normal blips when something triggers those states in me, and that since I seem to be able to recover in anywhere from 48-72 hours to the emotional state I was in before I plummeted, that's a sign that this is all normal with bumps in the road as expected.

I got some interesting advice from both about how to work through episodes of depression and anxiety, namely this great visual illustration: I'm in a blizzard, and the snow is all around, and my only job is to find footing. That's it. I should not attempt in a blizzard to fix things, to try to get out of the blizzard, but WAIT IT OUT. Just get my footing. That's it. I really like that visual as imagery sometimes helps me understand something that isn't concrete. I was also told "don't try to escape depression or anxiety because that tends to make it worse. Just try to breathe into it and tell yourself anxiety is your way of settling things down for later."

So I don't know if it helps any of you to hear those tips, but they are helping me.