Ep. 007 - The New Year

Having just returned from a silent meditation retreat, Annette
shares her experience spending several days in silence in the
desert. Her year begins with thoughts about meaning-making and
self-compassion. She continues her post-law journey living in
“experimental” mode, and observing what energizes her (helping
others, yes; working for the pursuit of money, no). She recalls
how she moved through much of her early life conforming to a mold
of a good student who could get a good job, and hiding those
parts of herself that might not have fit that mold. Now she seeks
to make those unseen parts more visible and to show up as her
whole self in life.


Meanwhile, Sarah finds herself gripped, on and off, with
debilitating depression. She considers the possible contributing
factors to the depression, including being postpartum, the
physical isolation and time constraints stemming from being a
stay-at-home mom, and the absence of creative work in her life.
She describes the difficulty of creating distance between herself
and her illness and how, on many days, simply getting out of bed
is challenging. This year, she simply seeks to live her
life, with all its contradictions.


Resources and References:


Joshua Tree Retreat Center: http://jtrcc.org/


Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl (available
for purchase here)


"Improving Ourselves to Death," Alexandra Schwartz,
The New Yorker

Mental health is a serious issue. If you or someone you know
is experiencing a psychiatric emergency (including contemplating
suicide), call 911 or the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at
1-800-273-TALK (8255).



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