How to Change Depression into Deep Rest

Photo by Diego Jimenez on Unsplash

(From the Spicy Soul Mama blog)

Our past is always informing our present, sometimes sneaking up when it is least expected.

It’s all part of the healing process when depression might set in for a few days. I take this time to settle into deep rest, nurturing my memory cells, feeling the muscles on my bones, unclenching my fists and jaw, and sinking into the caress of the bed beneath me. I get through the day one breath at a time, multiple hugs from my beloved, creating a bubble of silence surrounding me, completing the needful tasks one at a time. Ambiguous grief of a mother starving to give her love to her son but can only do so energetically. At least, that’s what the depressive brain tells me, the trance of unworthiness all wrapped up in a lovely bow.

And then I remember, in a moment of clarity, the tools I learned all these years.

“Because mindfulness is a subtle form of awareness that does not stem from rational cognitive thought, its practice often involves embracing contradictions in a way that transcends logic.” —Shapiro, Siegel, Neff

(read the entire article)