Why I didn’t see a therapist. -Living in the now.
I didn’t see a therapist. I found other tools that worked for me. This is my own experience. I am not suggesting that this is for everyone.
Back in 1996 I was depressing and my doctor did what he was trained to do. He asked me all the appropriate questions, including if all was well with friends, work and husband. The good and the bad is that my doctor didn’t prescribe medicine lightly. Sometimes meds are not needed, sometimes it is a tool to help start the healing process.
He didn’t prescribes meds right away. Not until seeing me a few times and seeing that I was only getting worst. He also eventually told me the only other thing he could do beside prescribing meds is recommend I see a therapist.
I didn’t know much about depression, burnouts and anxiety. What I did know is that I was feeling the symptoms for all three. I wanted to find tools to help myself feel good again. Yet… the thought of a moose running across the road, totalling my car and ending my life in the process was no longer scary to me. I was numb, not suicidal.
I took the list that was given to me, made the call, and booked an appointment with a partially retired therapist.
How I knew seeing a therapist wasn’t right for me.
I walk into his office, we introduce ourselves and within 10 minutes he says: “Tell me about your childhood”. Traditional therapists believe that by digging in our past, we can understand why we feel, act, think the way we do now. That by reliving the past, we can understand ourselves better and start the healing process. But… this felt completely wrong to me and for me.
I had already tried to understand, relive and heal that baggage on my own. Understanding my past and reliving it, plus living new emotionally heavy experiences is what had gotten me to the present situation. I needed tools to help me live in the now… to guide me to the end of this dark tunnel where I could start dealing with situations without depressing, without panic attacks, without draining all my energy.
“The brain does not know what is now and what was then. What I needed was to find tools to help me navigate through the now.”
What helped me.
I did a lot of reading to understand what was happening to my body and brain. I took the meds, did lots and lots of research and found my tools for healing. It involved all 7 aspects of wellness. And most importantly, I kept getting up in the morning no matter how hard it was.
Some of my tools were:
- Self-help books
- Meditation
- Journaling ALL of the emotions
- Physical exercise
- Nature walks
- Lots of sleep
- Feeling all emotions
Conclusion
Thankfully, these are tools that are free and always at our disposal. Sitting outside on the deck in the sun (meditation and nature). Books from the library. Going for walks or doing some body weight exercises in my apartment.
Have you or someone you know gone through a similar experience? I would love to know about the tools that worked and didn’t work for you. Sharing is caring.
Yours in wellness ~ Nancy
Blogger / Educator / Essentrics Instructor A Mom, a wife, a friend. A person who tries to see life through the eyes of her inner child. I have passion for life, for family, for learning, and for healing through movement. Finding happiness, health and success through authenticity and simplicity.
Originally published at https://nancyshimmy.com on September 21, 2020.