Awareness and discussion about mental health have reached an unprecedented level post-pandemic and while I’m not sure whether to perceive it as a negative or positive consequence of the virus mutation across the globe; however, I certainly believe that this subject is finally getting the attention it desperately needed.
This is my 2nd article for Reiki Rays (the first being published on 23rd November 2022). Yeah, it has been a long gap of 1.5 years and this is something I feel so bad about because depression played a big role in this delay and pushed me to the edge. According to the American Psychiatric Association (APA), depression is defined as a serious mental disorder that negatively affects how one feels, thinks, acts, and perceives the world.
As I’d mentioned earlier, mental health crises drastically increased after the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. Our lives have not been the same since then. Every human being was affected, the only difference is the degree to which they were affected. While everyone has a story to tell, I would like to share mine and offer valuable input on how I’ve been able to cope with it.
Depression has always been part of my life; however, it was in its subtle form. I worked in the UAE for 4.5 years, I came back to my home country, India, in January 2020 and before I could start applying for new job vacancies, coronavirus obstructed the world, and everything halted. We were indoors 24X7, educational institutes were shut, businesses were closed, traveling was suspended, and groceries were available for specific periods to avoid physical contact.
I didn’t have a job but mercifully I’d my savings from my previous work experience, besides that I have a loving family who supported me through thick and thin but soon, my savings got exhausted as a result of ever-increasing expenses. Lockdowns and curfews were in place for almost 2 years and in between I suffered from prolonged illnesses like Urinary Tract Infection and got COVID during the first wave where it took me 6-7 months to properly recover considering vaccines weren’t even developed at the stage. Somewhere in the process, depression started to show up in the form of a lack of enthusiasm, emotional eating causing weight gain, fluctuating between insomnia (lack of sleep) to hypersomnia (sleeping too much), I was despondent throughout the phase, had no determination to make things work.
Amidst the second wave, I almost got a remote internship, but I left after a month because the task was too difficult to handle, and I had a hard time working with my employer due to miscommunication. When I left, scared about my inability to work, and contribute, I started having suicidal thoughts. As I was broke, I couldn’t afford to go to therapy hence to get rid of these drastic thoughts, I called a helpline number and released all the woes I had in my heart all these years.
The dark clouds of depression continued to loom upon me. However, one day when I got in touch with my teacher after ages, who attenuated me to Reiki a decade back, reminded me of this beautiful gift and asked me why I was abandoning it. This hit me like a tonne of bricks. How on earth did I forget that? I remember how Reiki benefited my friends who came to me for sessions, and cancer patients for whom I volunteered in UAE. I have seen life-changing moments before me but somehow, I didn’t take the same effort to care for myself. But then, that’s what depression does – drains you of all the enthusiasm and deprives you of all the happiness. The fact that I couldn’t do tarot reading and self-Reiki, two practices I love the most, only shows how depression paralyzed my mind.
It wasn’t easy to establish my ritual again. I found doing 30 minutes of self-Reiki a laborious task, I would procrastinate a lot for weeks, but soon I resolved to stay on the right track by incorporating activities into my daily routine with a lot of effort.
- I start my day with 1 hour of meditation (as a beginner, start with 5 minutes and gradually increase the time), followed by self-Reiki for 30 minutes, placing both my palms on 7 chakras for 3 minutes. While doing Reiki, I mentally recite the Hooponopono prayer.
- As a practicing Hindu, I read and recite Hanuman Chalisa, a devotional hymn consisting of 40 verses, 11 or 21 times a day. (If you follow another religion, you can choose your respected holy books and if you are agnostic, simply believing in the universe is enough).
- I maintain a journal where I write about 5 things, I’m grateful for every day. That’s a must. Having an attitude of gratitude has a positive effect on our minds when followed consistently.
- Since I tend to put on weight fast because of emotional eating, I keep track of overeating and whenever I have the urge to eat a lot, I always keep a bottle of water to remind myself that ‘I’m not hungry, I’m just bored.’
- I’ve learned not to suppress my feelings anymore. While I don’t have access to therapy due to financial constraints (If you have a stable job and you suffer from depression, I would strongly recommend therapy as a starter), and family and friends aren’t always reliable to speak to, I write a lot, either in a notepad on my laptop or in a book which I carefully maintain and keep away from others sight. I write whatever is in my mind, I don’t worry about grammatical errors and forming structural sentences, it’s a safe place for me where I let my mind flow organically. This writing process has helped me to be kind to myself and become less judgmental.
- I make it a point to brisk walk every day. I can easily walk 15,000 to 20,000 steps a day (As a beginner, start with 5,000 steps and then gradually increase based on your stamina). Walking helps me to process my thoughts beautifully, and while gym workouts are great mood boosters, walking has the same effect on our minds. There’s a reason why medical professionals always recommend incorporating walking into our daily routine.
- I keep in touch with people, try to meet new people, and make sure not to be alone all the time because loneliness is addictive and gives comfort.
- I end my day with 30 minutes of self-Reiki and say thanks to my deities for giving me the strength to face adversities and blessing me with cherishable moments.
Following this routine has helped me tremendously and Reiki has been a catalyst in my journey to recovery. There were initial hiccups of procrastination but eventually, I remained consistent for months and now, I’m in a better space mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
I never opt for medicines because I’m not comfortable with taking pills. Having said that, some cases of depression require medication and hence if you are someone who is under-prescribed medication, continue taking it as per your doctor’s advice and don’t stop it under any circumstances. You can integrate allopathy and alternative healing beautifully as both the world complement each other.
I hope this article reaches out to those who want to overcome depression and find meaning in their life. Stay blessed.
Article by Nived Nambiar
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Nived Nambiar is a Level 3A practitioner from India and is currently based in Ontario, Canada. He’s completed his Master’s in Biotechnology, worked as a Market Researcher in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and has recently completed his second inning of education with Global Business Management.
Nived has been a Reiki practitioner for the past 11 years and intends to soon get attenuated to the Masters Level, to be more efficient in his work and eventually heal and teach people interested in being part of the Reiki world.
He can be contacted through his email [email protected] and his Facebook page – www.facebook.com/nived.nambiar6
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