I recently came across a book in Ireland called "Depression; An Emotion not a Disease," by Aine Tubridy and Michael Corry.
I was happy to see the authors articulate a different approach to understanding and treating depression, anxiety and panic.
It's incredible that we have managed to split the atom and send people to the moon but we still don't know how to eliminate loneliness, fear, anger, sadness, sorrow, grief, hatred, resentment, guilt, worry.
Why? Well I think it's because Western society does not teach us how to transform our emotions. We don’t even know where our emotions are stored, how to connect to them, how they affect us and others around us and the implications of not been able to control them.
We need to understand that if such destructive emotions are not confronted in the correct way they will have a negative impact on our lives and the lives of our family and friends.
And this failure to transform them will eventually lead to panic attacks, anxiety and even depression.
The traditional medical response is medication which is fine in the short-term.
However, the patient must also learn to manage the internal problem of destructive emotions.
I don’t believe that depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain and it has never been medically proven that it is either.
What we can say is that every disease has a particular chemical ratio but what is causing these problems is far more complex than we realize.
The time has come, I believe, for our society to educate itself about emotional wellbeing.
We have to realize that we are always going to go through different types of emotions and if we allow the negative ones to build up they will lead to depressive-type symptoms.
If you are feeling negative, lack hope and see no light at the end of the tunnel, this might be just the very first step in a normal and natural response to a negative experience in life like rejection, trauma, shock, grief etc.
What you need to do is to connect to where the specific negative emotion is stored and transform it into a positive one.
I was fortunate to study for a time with some of the eastern cultures like the Taoist system and they strongly believe that our bodies react to the stress coming from our thoughts and feelings.
Quantum physics can now measure the effects of our feelings and thoughts on our body and also how they can even affect other people as well so the need for us to be responsible for our thoughts and feelings are absolutely essential.
Eastern cultures have always believed that our emotions are stored in the organs and if we find ways to connect to the organs and transform the emotions it can be the key to health and happiness.
So, let me explain some of the ways the Taoist deal with their emotions.
Firstly you need to know where the emotions are stored.
1. The lungs retain the negative emotions of grief, sadness and depression while the positive emotions associated with the lungs are courage righteousness strength and integrity.
2. The kidneys are influenced negatively by the emotion of fear and are stimulated by the virtuous quality of gentleness and stillness
3. The liver is influenced by the negative emotion of anger and aggression and can be replaced by the qualities of kindness and generosity
4. The heart is negatively influenced by hatred hastiness and cruelty where as the positive quality for this organ is the virtue of love joy and happiness
5. The organ of the spleen is destructively influenced by worry and yet the qualities of openness and fairness can be a constructive in replacing this negative emotion.
- Sit or lay down for a few moments and breathe slowly in through the nose and out through the nose as this will help you relax.
- Focusing on your breathing takes your mind away from what you are thinking.
- Wen you feel relaxed connect to the specific emotion for eg:- grief, depression and sadness in the lungs by leaving your hands on both your lungs and as you breath in slowly breath in a calming, peaceful, content feeling and hold that feeling for a little while in your chest area, then as you exhale feel the courage to let go the depression and grief out of the lungs.
Now you are connecting to the negative emotion and replacing it with positive emotion and this in turn has a direct affect on the type of neurohormone that is secreted from your hypothalamus which in turn will make you feel much better.
You can apply this approach to transform any of the above negative emotions and eventually you will see a beneficial effect and be more in control.
Your aim is to make the positive emotion the predominant one not allowing yourself to become negative and depressed.
Practice this as often as you can, make it a part of your health-care program.
Add good diet and regular exercise.
Learn to practice chi-kung (Active meditative Techniques)
We have to expand our consciousness as human beings if we are to evolve out of our present state of fear, anxiety or depression because the approach that presently is been taken is not yielding success. People need to be educated not medicated.