| Depression
is a physical, emotional and mental response to a period of
difficulty in life, with which one feels unskilled to cope.
As such it is characterised by low energy and fatigue, feelings
of inadequacy, fear and hopelessness, a paralysis of will
and motivation, and negative streams of thought. Individuals
dwell excessively on the past, feel confused about the future,
and are disillusioned with the present. Lacking the desire
to engage life, sufferers become socially withdrawn, cease
traditional activities, and focus inwards, experiencing feelings
of regret, guilt, shame, self-loathing, recrimination, and
uselessness. If this state continues unabated, the downward
spiral may lead to thoughts of ‘ending it all’.
This programme seeks to demedicalise depression,
distancing it from labels such as ‘chemical imbalance’
or ‘clinical depression’, which merely pathologises
sufferers, turning them into damaged goods or victims of flawed
chemistry and defective genes, and which paves the way to
antidepressant medication as the ‘cure-all’, and
places the problem within the brain, or hardware, rather than
the thoughts or software. Instead, this programme asks sufferers
to see their distress as a messenger or wake-up call, requiring
them to take stock, and reflect on triggering factors. These
might include overwhelm and burn-out, prolonged fear and worry,
insufficient resources and gaps in coping skills, relationship
difficulties such as heartbreak and betrayal, bullying and
intimidation, anger turned inwards, setbacks, work and financial
difficulties, loss and grief, issues of self-worth and disempowering
roles, substance misuse, and existential dilemmas such as
life-purpose and meaning. Depression can also have it’s
origins in past traumas such as early bereavement or abandonment,
abuse or deprivation.
The learner will be introduced to a radically
new way of understanding what it is to be a human being in
terms of self-consciousness, the conditioning process, the
interplay between thoughts, feelings and actions, the ability
to witness oneself, to know one’s strengths and weaknesses,
and to learn self-mastery and confidently map one’s
future. Lifestyle changes are examined, boundary issues explored,
toxic relationships revealed, and energy banking clarified.
With such new skills in place the reliance on mood-altering
medications is transcended.
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