Stress and depression are inextricably linked. Stress often leads to depression and depression certainly causes a person to be stressed out. It's also easy to think of stress and depression being at different ends of the same stick.
Now with De-Stressing Meditation Video Featuring Meditation Music: Sunrise by Nicola Quinn.
Stress being the tightly wound up state, ready to snap under tension and pressure whereas depression is a kind of fallow state of non-acitivity and an inability to move, trapped under a heavy cloud, though in reality depression and stress are both at the opposite end of the spectrum of emotions to joy and happiness. That's where they lie, both together, unhealthy, unproductive, pretty miserable states.
I don't care how many people cite stress as being useful as a driver, a way to move forward in some circumstances, there are other ways, healthier ways to achieve motivation and action that do not destroy the immune system and spirit.
Stress releases cortisol into the blood stream which is very bad for you long term as it breaks down healthy cells, shreds the blood vessels and weakens the heart and yes here comes a tranquilliser to calm the system and help sleep. Depression is often attributed to a lack of certain hormones which are then replaced by a different drug, anti-depressants.
These are not long term answers and when you can reconnect someone for even a millisecond to something that touches them, that can reach in and touch their heart, you can see a flash, you can see it happen, a slight softening of the shoulders, a light back in the eyes, maybe a sigh, then you know you can help pull that person back up.
We all have the capacity to be touched by something that is greater than us, to be inspired, and there is nothing that can bridge those barriers to well being easier than music.
Powerful drumming was often used to drive out demons and as strong rhythms have been shown to affect the release of certain hormones essential to maintaining a positive attitude I'm wondering if that's what it may have been about, that those deep pounding rhythms really did drive out the demon of depression by kick starting seratonin and endorphins into action. Interesting.
I know what it's like to reach a point of darkness where everything seems pointless and the thought of doing anything is, well, pretty much not there, is unthinkable even. Luckily there is one small thing, one thing I can do, and did do when I needed it most and that was to create some music to lift my spirits. With the encouragement of a good friend I wrote some music that I needed right then to get me out of those hideous feelings of lostness and depression.
When you're there, depressed, it's difficult to do anything, see anything, and certainly doing therapy seems pointless, you need something to lift you up, bit by bit, and then as things get lighter and lighter you can see what needs doing, start taking a look at what first drove you there. You need a kick start, and with a distinct lack of shamans around to drive out the demons, music to lift depression is just the right place to start.
It helped me and I hope if you are suffering depression and are stressed out music can help you too.
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