Background
There are so many things I love about Dawn sharing all of this but one thing that I think deserves extra attention is how articulate and wise she with her mental illness. It’s like she sees it both through her own eyes and experience but also through the eyes of some looking from outside and also someone looking with a clinical lens. We cover quite a few topics including what it actually feels like to live with depression and anxiety. She paints a very visceral picture of what it feels like in her body and the thoughts that go through her mind. If someone has ever questioned the physicality of depression and anxiety, they should hear how Dawn describes it. But I want to make it clear that this took A LOT of courage for Dawn to share this and then allow her name to be attached to it. She’s so articulate and seems to comfortable with all of this that it’s hard to really tell with her. But she deserves a huge applause for doing this. I am truly grateful and know her sharing her story is of benefit to others, whether it’s people with similar experiences feeling less alone or for people without these experiences to grow more compassion.
Resources
Treatment-resistant Major-Depressive Disorder (MDD): http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/depression/Pages/default.aspx
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/GeneralizedAnxietyDisorder/Pages/default.aspx
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD): http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/Social_Phobia/Pages/Social-Phobia.aspx
Postpartum Depression: http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/Postpartum-depression/Pages/default.aspx
Postpartum Anxiety: http://www.postpartumprogress.com/the-symptoms-of-postpartum-depression-anxiety-in-plain-mama-english
Panic Disorder: http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/PanicDisorder/Pages/default.aspx
Anxiety Disorder: http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/health_information/a_z_mental_health_and_addiction_information/anxiety_disorders/Pages/Anxiety_Disorders.aspx
We are not our thoughts:
Eckhart Tolle: https://www.eckharttollenow.com/new-home-video/default.aspx?shortcode=qb8jfh
Mindfulness, with Jon Kabat-Zinn and Krista Tippet: https://onbeing.org/programs/jon-kabat-zinn-opening-to-our-lives/
Mindful Way Through Depression Book: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1593851286?tag=knoyoubra02-20&camp=8641&creative=330649&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=1593851286&adid=0F7R69JBHSSQCXQFWG4T&
Reflective Questions
How is fear of judgment affect your mental illness?
How do you respond to the question “How are you?”
What do you think is the relationship between anxiety and depression? Are they the same? Does one lead to the other?
Are you surviving through life? Or thriving through life?
At one point we discuss “psychosomatic” as confusing term with reference to the relationship between the mind and body. How do you understand that?
What does it look like to be compassionate with people with mental illness?
How self-compassionate are you? Can you practice it more?
What is the point of living if you’re going to be able to be yourself?
Yet, do you feel like you can be yourself?
How comfortable are you with others expressing their negative emotions?