Moods And Outlook can Change So Dramatically
I am by nature an optimist. I am naturally happy to enjoy little things like a nice cold drink when I am hot, a warm gush of air when I open the oven door if am cold. I get total joy from the song of a bird or a gorgeous sunset or the sound of wind in the leaves. I am happy to see pretty clouds in the sky and always think ahead to all the interesting things I want to do and see.
So, when I feel down it is certainly not my usual state. I know when I get sick I tend to get a bit depressed. All the challanges, strains and things I can't do because of my health conditions weigh on me. I worry about the future and what other limitations I will encounter like how long I can keep my job. At least I have learned this is just what happens whenever I get a virus from whatever seasonal gunk is going around. I just need to remind myself it will pass and life will look totally different on the other side.
It does not help that we are in the middle of the Alaskan winter and hours of daylight and opportunities to get outside in the dark and cold get severly limited. You can go days without seeing the sun especially if it is cloudy going to work in the morning because it is dark already when I get off work. We are gaining 6 minutes of sunlight a day though so it won't be long until the long days of summer are here. In the middle of summer it doesn't get dark at all here, just dusky. Hopefully it won't be so hot this summer since the heat is even more limiting for me than the cold. Hopefully my husband's new job won't keep him traveling all summer. Hopefully our friends and family won't need too much of our time so I can grasp the tiny bits of time I can scratch out of life to finally get outside. I feel like a prisoner living in an apartment building (with no south facing windows in our unit) and going to work every day, then dealing with rentals, doing chores and goind to bed to do the same thing the next day month after month. I grew up outside all the time so this life of concrete, looking at neighbors 25 feet away and going in and out of a car, an office, stores etc. is not life for me. I miss living on a lake, by a huge mountain and a mile wide river, having huge gardens where even chores meant being outside with the birds in the breeze listening to the rush of the river echoing off the mountains and seeing hawks and hummingbirds, swans on the lake and warblers in the trees.
If you have a loved one who is feeling down it is that much harder. That is something I know about. I need to keep myself up so I don't get too depressed too. I have family to support me though. I am lucky. I don't know how people manage who live alone. I can't imagine.
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I'm fighting illness myself this week. It is so easy to get down when our body is tired, strained, sick and low in energy. I've learned to guard my thoughts and emotions, not to take anything too seriously, not to make any important decisions, and to focus on nurturing my body, mind and health to get better. Sometimes we just are forced to slow down a while, esp this time of year. I'm learning through this particular illness (even with fever) that I am still able to find joy in the little things and keep my thoughts uplifted most of the time, hooray!
Times like these are what cats were made for! It's a great environment for snuggle and purr fests.
You are quite a good writer. You are very talented when it comes to conveying the mood and ambiance of a situation or place. Combine those talents with meditation and you could be in any environment whenever you wish. It sounds a bit cliche, but we are what we think after all. Perception is everything.
So maybe it'll help to grab a cat, get that purr going, close your eyes, and visualize taking a walk through that happy place you so intricately described above. I bet you'll come away smiling. :-)
The lack of daylight and sun must be very difficult Jessica.
Without sunlight we lack Vitamin D especially which can make us feel low.
Here in the UK people are advised to take Vitamin D through he winter months to boost the system and mood. Perhaps this could help you?
It should have vitamin C with it for better absorption. I also find magnesium and a vitamin B complex helpful.
Unless we grow our own food organically, it tends to have chemicals in and be lacking in vitamins unfortunately. All this too can affect mood and health.
Hugs for you, spring will come.
I have been taking high dose Vit D for about 10 years. I was low in it back then and doctors advised me to start taking it. I am low in many nutrients so I also take C, B's etc. I have been an advocate of magnesium for years as well and have several posts about magnesium in particular on my second website which is all about nutrient deficiency. It is a passion of mine to spread this information.
I have to take C now for erythromelalgia. I take Ester C which is buffered and time released so it is easier on the stomach.
Some health conditions make us low in nutrients and we also get less in our foods now due to overuse of the soil in industrial agriculture.
Thank you for your thoughts. It is nice to find someone else who understands all these things!
I am so glad you already know about this and are taking them, everything helps. I find magnesium, B & D very helpful for my husband and myself too.
You probably already know about these too but just in case you don't.
I also find daylight lamps help as the light is more natural. You don't need to buy the lamps as they tend to be overpriced but can get the bulbs to fit existing lights.
Good Morning Jessica,
Quite a few times in my life I had long periods where I lived alone. I do not have a problem with that as there never was a lack of things to do and I had a big group of friends so it was ok.
To not have contact with Mother Nature would be a problem for me. I am like you as I also enjoy all the marvelous things nature has to offer. A cool breeze after a hot summer day. When spring arrives the great bird's concert you can hear all over the garden. Seeing the first baby fish in the ponds, etc
Keep smiling Jessica, better times will come.
Greetings from the south of Spain,
Taetske
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No, from what I've seen of you, being down is not your usual state. I hope you find a way to pull out of it. No, the Alaskan winter does not help. I have been trying for a month to get to Juneau. We have a 9:00 flight there and a 2:00 flight back. That's it. The weather has not been good enough to let me do both flights in one day.
As I have to take the cat in to the vet and cannot leave him in town, and I have to get a temporary crown removed and the permanent one put on, it is important that we make the trip. I just wish we'd get one day of nice-enough weather to fly!
I haven't been down, but have been stressed because so many little things have gone wrong the last month. I've reinstated a technique I used to do regularly. At bedtime, I go through a relaxation technique. The important thing is to start with your head, not your feet. Relax your scalp first, then move through all parts of the head -- forehead; eyes; temples; cheekbones; jawbone; then continue down the neck arms, back, etc. I am always amazed by how much tension I hold in my head. The whole process puts me to sleep much faster, too.
Don't know if it will help, but passing it on anyway...