Embracing the Blues
(Page 2 of 2)
May - June 2008
by Julie Hanus
These writers all take care not to conflate sadness with genuine depression, or otherwise trivialize major depressive disorder. They agree that people who are experiencing depression should seek treatment, as should those who are, as Satel puts it, “intensely sad” and want professional help. It’s just that with nonclinical sadness, there’s often a good reason for the season.
RELATED CONTENT
After a great loss or a profound disappointment, or when general dissatisfaction with life summons the blues, sadness serves as a powerful signal that something needs to change; it helps crystallize and prioritize a person’s values. It’s a true compass to what someone values the most—or valued, if that person, place, thing, or idea is no longer. To stop sadness from running its natural course is to avoid confronting its true origin, which could lead to even more misery down the road. Wilson even argues that melancholy inspires great art, although that seems the least pragmatic of reasons to embrace the mood.
Sadness doesn’t only prompt us to recognize that something has gone awry in our world; it helps the world recognize that there’s something going wrong inside of us. In this way, according to Horwitz and Wakefield, this time appearing in Greater Good magazine (Winter 2007–08), unhappiness serves an evolutionary purpose. Playing the blues can temper our enemies’ aggression, saving us from getting kicked when we’re down. And tears send a clear signal to others that we need help.
Conversely, treating legitimate sorrow as an aberration, or a weakness, leads to feelings of shame. It becomes something to hide away until it can be dealt with in private. In those cases, not only do we miss our chance to learn from the blues, we also prevent people from helping us. And that may be the greatest loss of all.
Page:
<< Previous 1 | 2 |