To vinod

[Guest guest]

vinod wrote:

>> I am vinod and a new member to this group.I live in Michigan .I am

hoping to find a friend >> thru this group who lives in Michigan.I am

quite depressed at present and it will truly help >> me,if I could

find at least one kind soul as a friend.Nothing has so far helped my

>> depressed mood and is very heavy on my chest.I had asked swamiji to

pray on my behalf >> and he agreed to do so.

Dear vinod ~ welcome to the group. I believe you will find much here

to help you in your depression ... the fellowship of the group, the

shared classes and sankalpas, the ways of devotion and worship we

learn here.

I know what it is to be depressed. My childhood was rather tough on

me, and I have had Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, and

Panic Disorder most of my life. And I have experienced the heaviness

of the burden on the chest you speak of. I am so glad you asked

Swamiji to pray for you, and he said yes. This is a most wonderful

thing.

Another thing you could do is ask to be put on the Devi Mandir prayer

list. If you don't know about it, it is a weekly sankalpa we

participate in. Anyone may request prayers, for themselves or for

anyone else. I would ask to have you put on the list, but I have

already sent in my names for this week. But it is not too late. Just

send an email to:

_prayer_club and ask to be put on the list. Karen

coordinates the list, and it is wonderful to do the praying and to

know you are being prayed for, by so many, from so many different

places.

I have found that just reading the list puts me into a state of

peacefulness, and I say none of this lightly because I am struggling

with depression right now myself. My family is not speaking to me;

they are angry at me for choices I have made (which is actually,

nothing new in my life), and holidays are a time when this kind of

situation can flare up. I have found that some of the things that

help my depression are doing mantra japa, reading or reciting some of

the holy scriptures that Swamiji has translated, doing some of my

creative work (I am an artist, musician, and jewelry maker), or

sometimes I just go down to my favorite coffee shop, say hello to all

my friends there, and that lifts my spirits.

I hope you find someone in Michigan who is a like minded person to be

friends with. But you have all of us too. Jai Maa , Jai Swamiji