Sensory Strides #68: depression; support ystems; trails; Shannon Alder

Quote “A best friend is the only one that walks into your life when the world has walked out.” Shannon  Alder

Welcome to the Sensory Strides podcast.  Observations of the world through activity, reading, listening, and everything else.

The last two weeks have not been my best.  I thought I was coming out of my depression along with the weather getting warmer.  Then, I had an interaction with someone that shut me down.  I felt belittled and dismissed.  I shut down so much that I couldn’t even talk with my husband.  I needed to shut myself in my room alone for a few hours.  It took me a couple of days before I was able to bring down the walls I had built up and interact with others on a more normal basis.

Then, a series of smaller interactions kept me from climbing all the way out of the hole I was in.  I relied on my different support systems and managed to feel strong enough to have a face-to-face conversation with the person that was most central in the different tensions.  We had a great conversation and I feel much more positive going into this next week.

It is important to have those crucial conversations when something isn’t going the way you would expect, and you aren’t sure why.  You don’t know what is going on in the other person’s life that could be affecting them.  Just like I am experiencing depression and know I am being more sensitive due to that condition, other people may have similar conditions that you aren’t aware of.  By talking to them on a personal, non-confrontational way in order to learn how to improve you open the opportunity for those more personal conversations and may learn more of the why from their perspective.

It is also important to have support systems with different perspectives. Of course, I have my husband.   I also have a very good friend that I rely on who is very analytical and process driven. Additionally I am part of an accountability mastermind group that I meet with every week.  While the group mainly helps me with my fitness and activities external to my work environment – like my podcasts and speaking engagements – there is a large trust factor we have built with each other that allows us to share us successes and troubles candidly and know we will receive honest feedback.

I am not sure where I would be right now if it weren’t for these different people.  I hope each of you have similar people that support you.

On a positive, the weather has been very warm, my husband has been out working in the fields, and I’ve made it to the county park to hit the trails twice in the last week.  Trails are so much more interesting than walking the same route through town.  However, I would rather walk with my husband in town than alone on the trails.

Thanks for joining me.  Be sure to check our show notes for links to inspiration items and …  don't forget to stop and smell the roses.

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