STAGE 1 DENIAL
STAGE 2 ANGER
STAGE 3 BARGAINING
STAGE 4 DEPRESSION
The Supreme challenge
to anyone facing catastrophic loss involves facing the darkness of the loss on
the one hand, and learning to live with renewed vitality and gratitude on the
other..............Loss can diminish us but it can also expand us...........Loss
can function as a catalyst to transform us – Jerry Sitser
As we
proceed through the Grief Cycle, we have come to the most contentious of the
steps. We live in a world that tells us that depression is bad; if you are
depressed you should just snap out of it etc. But depression is a step to recovery
through the Cycle of Grief. (Kübler Ross)
4 things we
should know about depression in grief:
1. Depression is universal and no respecter
of persons (La Haye)
2. Depression is a natural response to
loss
3. Depression includes a component of
anger whether visible or invisible, whether conscious or unconscious.
4. This is not Clinical depression, it should
pass after a few months
There are so
many misconceptions regarding depression so what is it really, can we define
it?
INSULT OR
INJURY/LOSS OR REJECTION + ANGER x SELF-PITY = DEPRESSION (La Haye)
(Self-pity
may be considered normal, and in certain circumstances healthy, so long as it
is fleeting and leads to either acceptance or a determination to change the
situation.) What we have learnt as abnormal and detrimental can become the
pathway towards acceptance and healing.
What
symptoms to look out for:
ü Unconnectedness
ü Profound sense of sadness
ü Hopelessness, pessimism
ü Losing interest in favourite things
ü Sleep routine disturbed
ü Change in eating habits
ü Substantial loss of energy
ü Hard to concentrate
ü Thoughts of suicide
ü Impacting your spiritual life
ü Unforgiveness
(Even though
I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You (God) are with
me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Ps 23:4)
When we try
to mask our depression it will show itself in other ways i.e. hypochondria, aggression
or impulsive behaviour e.g. drinking alcohol, gambling, working to forget the
pain (Collins)
The most
important thing I wish to convey in this blog is that “Depression is not a sin!”
nor can it be prevented in grief.
STRATEGIES ON
OVERCOMING DEPRESSION
-
Take care of your physical body – nutrition, sleep, exercise
- Keep moving – don’t allow yourself to lie around
- Catch those negative thoughts – talk them over with someone you trust or write them down. It is better to get them out into the open where you can deal with them.
- Eliminate untrue beliefs
- Find an accountability partner – someone who will call you just to make sure you are okay and up and about.
- Connect with others
- Get professional help if needed
- Forgive ( we will deal more with this next week)
- Meditate on God’s word and Journal, journal, journal
“We’ve been
surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralised; we’re not sure
what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually
terrorised, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t
broken.” (2 Cor 4:6-9 Msg)
The Jewish Mourner’s
Kaddish is a prayer bringing praise and glory to God and is said at every
prayer meeting throughout the mourning period.
It is a public declaration (10 or more people) of those who mourn that
their faith is still in God. May we find
in this a lesson worth learning, by giving God praise through our grief, not
only are we reaffirming our faith but we are raising ourselves to a place
beyond this world. It is good to give Him praise and I have learnt that by
following this path, even on days when I didn’t feel like it, it was balm for
the soul.
Psalm 148:1-5
Praise the Lord from the heavens
Praise Him in the heights above
Praise Him all His angels
Praise Him all His heavenly hosts
Praise Him sun and moon
Praise Him all you shining stars
Praise Him you highest heavens
And you waters above the skies
Let them praise the name of the Lord
For He commanded and they were
created.
All is grace
Margie
No comments:
Post a Comment