Spring Has Sprung

My blog has transformed with spring and has a new look. I hope you like it. It was time for a change. A new beginning…

My title is a bit deceiving as spring has not sprung yet, but it is working on it. Spring has a lot more springing to do before we can say spring has sprung. I have a lot more springing to do before I can say I have sprung. But, the beauty is knowing that we will get there.

Spring is a time for change. A time when we glance back at reflections of the past with a sense of pride knowing we survived once again. After conquering the gloom and doom and many obstacles of winter, we get a sense of satisfaction. We made it again. It is time to celebrate our inner victories. Let out a sigh of relief and pat ourselves on the back.

Spring gives us an inner strength and motivation to mimic nature and transform ourselves.  Spring brings sunshine back into our lives giving us a sense of hope for making positive changes and improving ourselves. It is a time for new beginnings and a fresh start.

Seasons in life, especially if you live with a mental illness of any kind, are similar to the seasons in nature. After Christmas, the colors of winter become dull and bland. Everywhere we look, our vision is overwhelmed by the colors of brown, gray and white. No colorful leaves, flowers or rainbows.  The melting snow turns the pure beauty of the first snowfalls into many brown dirty piles of mess.

Spring becomes much more spectacular and beautiful because of the dreary colors of browns and grays that surrounded us during the winter season. It is like we have been living in a black and white television set for months. When Spring finally arrives, we transform into a high-definition vivid color television set again.

The arrival of spring is similar to the movie “The Wizard of Oz.” The movie begins in black white. As Dorothy slowly opens the door of her sepia toned farm-house, the vibrant colorful scene of Oz explodes through the doorway.  Because of the sharp contrast between the dull sepia tone and the vibrant colors, Oz appears much more spectacular. Color and beauty have awakened our senses.

Depression is similar to winter and Dorothy’s sepia-toned farmhouse in Kansas. Depression is like looking through a narrow gray tunnel. Never being able to see the entire picture, only an obscured vision of the world which may not be reality, but instead a false perception of realty. Depression effects the perception and realities of your life.

Your depression mood pole changes back to a normal level of functioning when your brain chemistry is working well. Even if your  environment and situations are identical to what they were before and during your depressive episode, life becomes more manageable again.

When depression subsides, it is like your brain and vision have transitioned into the land of Oz. Recovering from a severe depression is like slowly opening the sepia toned door of your life into a beautiful, bright and vivid technicolor world of Oz. Everything looks brighter and better. Life becomes easier. Things you couldn’t see awaken and come back to life. The fog and clouds you lived behind vanish.

For me, after surviving a severe depression and getting out of the thick fog from depression, life seems even better than it was before the depression. After my suicide attempt, I have a new lease on life and perceive and define my life differently. I am thankful to be alive and appreciate each moment of my life.

I know God saved my life for many reasons. I am beyond blessed to be alive and am enjoying the beauty of living. I had to redefine my life. This does not mean my life is perfect or even easy, but I have been given a second chance.

It is beautiful that there are new beginnings and fresh starts. Depression and suicide attempts are definitely not necessary for new beginnings. Renewal of your spirit for living can occur for many reasons.

Spring has not fully sprung yet, but it is working on it. Let’s work on ourselves and may blue skies, sunshine, tulips, ducklings, bunnies, Easter and Jesus rising again give us all a sense of hope and a new beginning for our lives.

Happy spring.

“What the caterpillar calls the end the rest of the world calls a butterfly.” ~Lao Tzu

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings’s end.” ~Seneca

“Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes yet.” ~L.M.Montgomery

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Copyright © By Susan Walz and myloudbipolarwhispers.com – All written content and personal artwork is © myloudbipolarwhispers.com and Susan Walz. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author/owner/artist is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to My Loud Bipolar Whispers and/or Susan Walz with appropriate and specific directions to the original content. 

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