Emotions are celebrated and repressed, analyzed and medicated, adored and ignored—but rarely, if ever, are they honored.
—Karla McLaren
We have been conditioned to believe and respond to certain emotions as bad, negative and even dangerous. Nowhere is this truer than with depression, and our typical (and expected) reaction to this emotion is to get rid of it. Yet, research has shown that depression is neither good nor bad and can even be considered effective as a behavior and mood regulator (Zettle, 2007). When we encounter loss or fail to achieve goals, depression is the natural, appropriate and temporary emotional response to that reality (Zettle, 2007). It is our inability or unwillingness to accept the reality of loss and failure that can change the regular pain of depression into suffering.
If you are suffering from your depression rather than accepting and (dare I say, honoring) this emotion, then perhaps Bayview Counseling Services can offer you some tools, techniques and resources to help you change your perspective and responses to your depression, and reduce your suffering so that you can move forward toward your goals and be driven by your values rather than your thoughts and emotions.
Zettle, R.D. (2007). ACT for depression: a clinician’s guide to using acceptance and commitment therapy in treating depression. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc. www.newharbinger.com