Debunking Depression (aka Eat the Kale)

It seems depression is at an epidemic level these days with the incidence of people on anti-depression medications, which treat the symptoms but not the cause, on the rise.  But what is depression exactly, and what is its root cause?

My theory is depression is the direct result of falling out of gratitude and one’s consequent disconnection from Divinity.

First, remember where attention goes, energy flows.  This is the foundational principle behind the law of attraction.  In this context, depression can be viewed as nothing more than a negative spiral of unhappiness attracted by a person’s choice to focus only upon that which they don’t want (ie their fears) or what they do want but don’t believe they’re getting (ie lack).

Humans are endowed with divine creativity.  Every thought we have is an expression of creative energy.  In fact, every tangible element of our physical reality here on earth began as a thought which, through the further application of physics, became translated into cars, houses, computers, microwave ovens, pencils, and every other object you can look around yourself right now and see, touch, smell, etc.  Even nature began as a thought in the mind of God (or more accurately in the mind of our Creator Son, Jesus).

When you talk to a person suffering from depression, it becomes readily apparent they can only see what’s wrong – wrong with themselves, wrong with the world, wrong with the people around them, wrong with the life they’re living.  This of course isn’t true in that the rest of humanity isn’t having this same experience, but the depressed person’s thoughts are making them believe it to be so.

Using a scientific analogy, white light is polychromatic meaning it is made up of the full spectrum of visible colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, etc.)  There are camera filters designed to block certain light frequencies so the lens can only see, for instance, red.

This is how the mind of a depressed person functions.  It’s like they’re wearing special sunglasses which filter out the fullness of reality so they only see and experience what they perceive as negative.  And as the law of attraction unfailingly works, the more they focus on what they don’t like, need, or want, the universe responds by sending more those things, experiences, and situations for them to dislike.

By contrast, a truly grateful person looks out upon the very same world, people, situations, and circumstances, and instead see a wondrous tapestry of perfection, beauty, and goodness for which to feel grateful.  The universe then responds to this gratitude focus by sending more for them to feel grateful for.

Has objective reality shifted?  No.  Reality is reality – changeless, timeless, universal.  The grateful person is just wearing a different pair of shades through which to view it.

It is a fact that unhappiness [or depression] and gratitude cannot coexist.  People who embrace life and all it has to offer without attaching labels of “good/bad” “positive/negative” “happy/sad” to the events, people, and circumstances that show up in their experience are typically even tempered and calm.

Rather than fighting against the things which show up in their lives and feeling anger, resentment, or discouragement, grateful-centric people tend to be detached observers – accepting of what comes their way as nothing more than an experience to absorb and understand.  And from that unqualified perspective, they can see through to the wisdom and perfection of this God-organized and managed universe, trust that what’s happening is what God wants, accept that God knows best, and feel grateful for participating in God’s plan, even though it  might not make sense to them at the time.

Consider kale.  Kale is a green leafy vegetable packed with healthy nutrients and antioxidants that nourish our bodies in ways other vegetables can’t.  But what normal kid wants to eat kale?  Nevertheless, as responsible, loving parents who want our children to grow up healthy and strong, we at least try to get them to choke it down, no doubt kicking, screaming, and gagging.

Set a bowl of ice cream in front of your child three times a day, however, and you’ll hear very few complaints.

To a child, forcing them to eat kale is cruel and unusual.  Feeding them ice cream, conversely, is a sure sign that you love them, right?

Of course not.

We mortals tend to forget that God is no respecter of individuals, so what we want doesn’t really matter to God.  We are here to serve at the will of the Father of us all.  God is perfect, all knowing, and all seeing – existing outside of our circumscribed time-space continuum, thus existing in the past, present, and future simultaneously.   

I’ll spare you the lecture on quantum theory, but suffice to say he foresees the future repercussions of each and every event in His far-flung physical universe and arranges all of our lives to be in alignment with that future.  Most importantly, we each are His children, and just as we who are parents know what’s best for our kids’ welfare, so does God know what’s best for us.

So how does falling out of gratitude disconnect us from God?  By resisting what God sends us, we are telling God we don’t trust Him or have faith in His plans for us.

Fast forward to the teen years.  Teenagers constantly remind us that they don’t trust us or have faith in our plans for them.  Sometimes, the resistance becomes so intense and awful that all we can do is step back, let go, and say, “Fine. Have it your way.”   

Same with God.  We are each God-endowed with free will, so if you choose to resent or deny what God sends you and second guess his genius, expect Him to back off and let you learn the hard way.

Simply put, to receive God’s cooperation, we need to cooperate with God. The way we do that is to trust that God knows best, is looking out for us, has our best interests at heart, and to feel true gratitude for having the most perfect parent a mortal being could ever ask for.

In the same way we want our kids to understand that we fed them kale for their own sake, God wants us to realize that he has our backs, no matter what, and all we need to do is trust Him.

Moral of the story?  Eat the kale, no matter how awful it tastes.