There’s a dangerous standard in mainstream medicine. One that treats illness like an external enemy to be eradicated at all costs, instead of an internally generated signal regarding important inner workings gone awry.
Nowhere is this trend more disturbing than in psychiatry. In a commendable effort to remove the stigma from depression, there is a move to frame depression as a disease. According to the disease framework, depression has nothing to do with the individual, and how they live their life.
Depression is given the role of a villain, and the patient the victim. The hero, of course, is the prescribed medication and treatment.
But the worst part about the disease framework for depression is that it implies that only happy states are good and healthy.
I disagree wholeheartedly.
For me, depression was a painful, terrifying, yet crucial experience that ultimately led to understanding myself better than I ever had. Without going through depression, I would not be as clear about my purpose and as committed to living my truth.
The key phrase here is “going through.” Not “getting rid of” or “treating” or even “curing.” It was only by surrendering to the process that I got the lesson I had already paid for in the form of pain and suffering.
If I had taken an antidepressant and it helped me feel less terrible, I’m not sure that I would have experienced the transformation that I did.
It was the agony, and the belief that I had something to learn from it, that pushed me to go deeper.
But our culture is obsessed with painlessness. You see this in the “everyone gets a trophy” mentality in children’s sports, and the over-the-top compliments that are practically required in common courtesy.
It’s no surprise that when you have been feeling hollow, empty, and hopeless inside, you think there must be something wrong with you.
There is nothing wrong with you. Your inner alert system is working perfectly. It’s pointing you in the direction of what needs to change. It needs you to pay attention.
Look, I’m not a masochist. I’ll pop a couple of Advil when I have the occasional splitting headache. But if you have a headache everyday and all you do is suppress the chemicals that cause pain, you could be missing out on something vital that needs to be addressed.
In the same way, suppressing your range of emotions (a common side effect of taking antidepressants) may cause you to miss out on the spiritual growth and transformation that is knocking on the door of your soul.
It may help you get through a tough time, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Sometimes an antidepressant is your best choice for the time being.
Hear me on this – there is no shame in wanting to feel better and treating the symptoms, whether through medication, diet, exercise, supplements, etc.
What’s important is that you know there could be another way for you. One that gives a voice to the part of you that hurts. One that recognizes your Infinite nature, and believes in your ability to grow – not in spite of, but because of the ache in your heart.
All of you is welcome on this path.
Teray Garchitorena Kunishi, ND
Get in touch at http://www.deeplyhappy.com/contact/
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