The Way of Spirit

In my recent book, Let That Shit Go: Learn to Process Loss and Be Happy, I share my frustration with the fact that in spite of the advances in modern science, there are more depressed and suicidal people now than ever. A reader asked, “You mention in your book that you have had a lifelong struggle with anxiety and depression. Did you ever get to the point where you just wanted to end it all? If so, how did you get past it?”  Yes, I’ve considered suicide, and I’m past it for good. Here’s how I did it.

Pablo Picasso, Blue Nude

I considered suicide when I was in my twenties, but it never felt right. Since it wasn’t my ego’s decision to be born, it didn’t seem like my ego’s decision to die, and that some higher power must know more about why I’m alive, as in “there must be some reason I’m here.”

Yes, I’m an idealist. There’s something to be said for idealism because you tend to see that somehow things will work out even though you don’t know how. (I call this “faith” but there’s no reason to think of it as religious or grand. It’s just having faith in something.) It’s an assumption I choose to make, rather than believing that life has no purpose. Continue reading →