Winter Solstice 2014

Winter Solstice feels more meaningful to me than Xmas or New Year, neither of these have played a significant part in my life, religiously or otherwise. Each celebration however, does have some themes and rituals which bring me pleasure and time for reflection. Whist thoroughly enjoying a recent carol service and remembering each hymn word perfect, my companion, a visitor from the East, (not a King), listened spell bound as I told the Bible story behind the words. A perfect baby, the Magi, how charming. Try explaining the virgin birth, or the slaughter of all Jewish baby boys ordered by Pharoah, when the Magi told him of the Savior’s birth. It was interesting to hear how in her experience, coming from a predominantly non-Christian country, what Christmas traditions they have adapted totally detached from the Bible story.

Traditional church services have little spiritual appeal for me, but I do enjoy church buildings.The interior of churches are where many find comfort and where they also find space to create meaning. The above photograph was taken in Wakefield Cathedral. I was pleased that my phone camera captured, unaided by flash and in the candlelit space, or without later editing, this rather other worldly image.

The dwindling daylight of the season means I rely more on the lighting of lamp or candle, which I find cozy. I’m happy I don’t feel obliged to observe too many of the season’s other razzmatazz trimmings. It’s good to remember, as one of our last posts mentioned, that this season’s celebrations can be a very difficult time for some people, the reasons may be numerous. Loss of natural light at this time of year can lower peoples general resilience; the perception that everyone else might be having fun.when they are not, can be isolating; lack of money to choose which rituals they might want to join, a lack of adequate heating or essential food, or in addition poor health can severely disadvantage many. (If you need support over the holiday period here are the details again)

My preference for Winter Solstice is because of it’s fewer trappings. I no longer observe any of it’s Pagan rituals that I once found novel in contrast to my earlier Christian but non-conformist traditions. It is the Winter Solstice physical descent into darkness which helps me confront symbolically the life journey I’m on.

Winter Solstice is the “shortest day and longest night of the year”. Daylight hours may be short but it also marks the return to increased daylight, which though imperceptible at first, by a fraction of a second on each successive day returns us assuredly to the sun’s Spring light.

During last year’s Winter Solstice I was moved to write about the different names people have given the moon that signals Winter Solstice. Moon cycles never fail to fascinate me, and that afternoon the sighting of the moon and sun in a bright blue afternoon sky inspired.

Though I feel able to give as much or as little attention to Christian or Pagan rituals as I wish, as the mood takes me. I think the everyday rites we as  individuals re-create are just as valid and meaningful as the ones we might traditionally and collectively.enjoy. It may be tempting to regard disdainfully those who celebrate in different ways to ourselves, especially when commerce and excess appear to drive their enjoyment, but it is meaningful to them in what otherwise might seem a humdrum existence. Dr. Dorothy Rowe describes all of us as “meaning.creating” beings.

Lighting a candle for those in physical or emotional distress, or for those who have died was never part of my religious tradition. I’ve adopted it nowadays as a gesture when words have been insufficient for seemingly unsolvable situations; in memory of  those who’s mood has tipped them into darkness more times than is useful, and for those who’s ill health dims or extinguishes their future.

Sue

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The three R’s

…Reading, Writing and Arithmetic have always been and still are highly valued. Reading and writing have been pleasurable and therapeutic for me for many years. Contributors to Leeds Wellbeing Web and other re-blogs posted on the site, show this to be the case for many who have experienced mental illness.

Reading Dorothy Rowe’s work was one of the biggest factors in my recovery. I was lucky enough to attend events where she spoke, and I found her to be as clear, warm, compassionate and non-jargonistic in person as she appeared to be in her writing. Despite having physical health problems of long standing, following her talks she willingly engaged with individuals from the audience…even little ol’ me. I admired the way she coped with those in the audience, keen to identify themselves as mental health professionals, in opposition to her approach, she had answered them calmly and with clarity.

need someone to talk to?

Some years ago in a television documentary I watched David Smail, a former psychologist, speak about the nature of depression. David suggested that counselling or therapy might for some, be the only place they receive emotional comfort. I  found his acknowledgement of this comforting in itself as I’ve been drawn to the comfort talking therapy can bring. It has been a way of telling my story, at times I have felt ‘addicted’ to its comfort , David acknowledges this can be an outcome.

As a child there were times the adults who cared for me,  for a variety of reasons, were unavailable to me emotionally. In later life this led me in moments of distress for a quest to be heard. Though I mostly found sufficient resilience  to be my own  counsellor, listening to my inner voice, and this calmed me, at other times that voice became muffled, jumbled and distorted. On occasion this has transferred to my ability to do practical things, I got overwhelmed, confused, the simple tasks of daily life seemed very hard. During these times my experience of counselling or therapy has been predominantly helpful,  it has ‘held’ me, the process hasn’t always been comfortable or benign, there are many practitioners, former practitioners and clients of therapy/counselling who will attest to this.

Jeffrey Masson, former analyst, in his book ‘Against Therapy’ reveals that he is one such renegade; Dr.Dorothy Rowe, former psychologist, said of therapy, something along the lines of, “all therapy works, but not all therapy works completely”. Ken Wilber and John Rowan view differing  therapies as working on different levels of consciousness, for example they consider seeing a transpersonal therapist could be inappropriate if you have little or no awareness of this level of perception, by level I didn’t understand it as a superior awareness,  just different to ‘everyday’ consciousness. Fancy and mystifying terms, and buzz words abound in the therapeutic community, just as much as they do in other circles, but woe betide if in some therapies you question the theory behind it. Depending on the skill or the orientation of the practitioner this might be interpreted as symptomatic of your ‘problems’.

I have both self referred and requested professional referral to all kinds of practitioners, mostly it aided me regain some calm and it has helped me to become more fully the person I wish to be, but at times I’ve found it almost abusive. It can be a space, either in one to one, or groups where a power imbalance exists and is misused.

My quest in finding “someone to talk to…..a new hiding place”..(Dylan), has involved sharing with friends, or even casual acquaintances along the way. It has helped as they listen to parts of my story, and I try in turn to listen to theirs. Having someone reasonably capable of ‘walking’ alongside you as you relate your story, either  in bite size pieces or big chunks can be reassuring, if that is a friend, someone you trust and who has the capacity, well and good. You may be fortunate to get a professional listener who views themselves as a ‘co-experimenter’, as some Personal Construct Psychologists describe their role, but even then these processes can unleash things that are hard to contain.

Someone advised me against the process some years ago as we had both read ‘Against Therapy’ and I was awaiting an appointment for a  therapy ‘suitability’ assessment. In part the course of therapy that followed, left me with an emotional whoosh of feelings and little way of stemming their flow. It was a ‘breakdown’ possibly a breakup/breakthrough of the then current untenable situation I was in just  prior to it. I  ‘fell into the hands of psychiatry’ with the resulting medication and electro-convulsive therapy. I’m sure the therapist did not expect that as an outcome, neither did I. Most likely I would align myself with the Post Psychiatry movement because similarly to them I think medication can help distressed people, but the commercial interests which are behind  it, makes an over reliance on it suspect.

I would not want my experience to discourage anyone from engaging with counselling/therapy if they are drawn to it. It can be a courageous step to discovering what your distress is about. Like many things it takes time to adjust to the process, but trusting your feelings about the counsellor or the theory they use is important, becoming informed about the different approaches can help, part of my recovery came from the wisdom I gleaned from books about the process, and also from song and poetry.

Stanislov Grof refers to some forms of apparent mental illness of ease as spiritual emergence, he does however distinguish between this and  spiritual emergency and what he terms ‘real’ mental illness……I’m not sure about these distinctions, though I would describe some aspects of my breakdown as spiritual.

Sam Keen refers to tapping into anger that has been turned inward ….inrage/depression once accessed, acknowledged and released becoming ….out rage, for a time a torrent or flood engulfing someone or anything  that  gets in it’s path, no matter how significant their role has been in the person’s life story., …..it.gushes muddied for some time……until the water runs clearer,….possibly channeled in a different way.

Despite my reservations,and experiences…….why am I willing to engage yet again ,with the process? I ‘ve had an appointment this week. Something happened recently which sent me into that confusing emotional spin, I made the appointment to tell another piece of my story, and because I’d had some  autonomy in choosing, where, when, how long, it might be, it seemed the safest place to test the water, for telling the next installment. The time gap between making the appointment and its arrival, had been space to regain some equilibrium and therefore I felt some apprehension about attending, ….should I cancel? Though nervous I kept the appointment. The waiting area was such a warm welcoming space, in it was an original black leaded fire range, complete with it’s oven! One of my family homes had a similar range……I felt relaxed with the memories it elicited of the family events enacted in the glow and warmth of the open coal fire….the ‘counselling’ went well, and I was given a choice of possible ways of working…..flexible follow ups with the same person seemed the most appealing on this occasion.

Writing a blog has also been partly therapeutic, another way of telling bits of my story and is my voice on wellbeing.

Sue Margaret

* details of the fireplace image by the National Trust