How do you feel? There are loads of correct answers to this question but only one that is incorrect. (See below)

I don’t have space or time to describe all my feelings but I would like to mention two. The first occurs infrequently but the second is fairly common and the two can be linked.

The occasional one I have mentioned before in my blog post dated 8 July (Getting back to reality). It is a feeling of losing reality and it happened again in early November. The three preceding days had been very stressful. Family arguments generating anger. My anxiety levels increased until I sensed I was not totally in reality. Fortunately I had sufficient awareness to realise something was not right and I knew from previous occasions that I had to do something.

I recalled previous therapist advice and remembered the contents of my mental tool box. I needed to do two things consecutively. I decided to get outside and take a short walk and then to sit comfortably and listen to some favourite music.

The first action was easily accomplished; I went into the garden and walked around for about ten minutes. The garden had lost its summer brightness but there was sufficient interest to occupy my mind for a while.

Then I returned inside and sat at the PC searching for “sixties music”. Most evenings I listen for about 30 minutes to a selection of popular songs from that era so it was not difficult to choose three of my favourites. I selected:

1. Can’t help falling in Love. Originally an Elvis classic but my preferred version is by Jordan and Steph Cover. It is so relaxing with little accompaniment. Such a pure sound by the two attractive performers.

2.  Our day will Come. An early sixties hit for Ruby and the Romantics. A good blended harmony with organ sounds.

3.  Blue Bayou. A slow smooth song with gentle words by Roy Orbison. Easy to feel absorbed.

I suppose the three songs took around another 10 minutes. By this time I was feeling a little like my “normal “self. In other words reality was slowly  returning.  

The aftermath of such a divergent feeling was a feeling of “fragility”. This is the second major feeling I referred to in my introduction. You may have experienced it many times. It can be slightly unsettling and somewhere between “relief” and residual “anxiety”.  

A good definition of this feeling is “The potential to be easily damaged or broken”. 

It is a feeling I have when I am unsure how the future will unfold. It seems to fall short of full blown anxiety. In the world of psychology it is often referred to “emotional fragility” and is often linked with those with more empathy and compassion. Often apparent in those of a more sensitive nature.    

Finally I return to my opening question about “How do you feel”. The incorrect answer is “With my hands!” 

Teg

A Moodscope member