(Written in January 2009)
Dear Guides and Guardian Spirits, I’m having a pretty rough time. My psychiatrist telling me I’m bipolar flipped me into a state of overwhelm. I’m feeling sad, scared, ungrounded, cold and dry. Non-flesh, non-human, disconnected. Can you help me?
Dear Jenny, we love you very much. Relax and let your weight sink down. Karen and Lynelle have both told you that nothing has changed, the doctor’s diagnosis is just her interpretation of what’s going on with you. You have been triggered into overwhelm by how you are thinking about yourself. Of course it would be comforting to have a definite diagnosis and a clear protocol for treatment, and then you’ll be just fine. But what you are up against is not so simple as that. Even without the diagnosis of bipolar, your life is still a bit like a fun-house floor, because either anxiety or despair can be triggered by external events you have no control over. It’s the lack of control that’s scaring you so badly. But you’ve never had any control over external events: something someone says to you, or the ups & downs of the stock market. What you do have control over is where you put your attention, how you interpret what is going on, and the choices you make. You are doing as well as you possibly can with these things. You are refusing to go down the path of catastrophic storytelling, you are putting your attention on body sensations in the present, you are continually making choices for compassion, sustainability, peace and justice. You are truly doing the best you can, you are truly being of service to the world you love. We love you very much and wish that you could receive the fullness of the love we are sending your way.