Posted by Shar on November 19, 2001, at 23:42:27
In reply to Re: Whatever happened to anger turned inward?, posted by mist on November 19, 2001, at 13:02:39
I still believe anger turned inward is very related to depression, and turning emotions inward is still something I have to watch out for. In the simplest terms, turning inward is the difference between suicide and homicide.
My take on the emotional side of turning inward, is that very little gets conveyed--anger, love, sadness, etc.--and ultimately we start feeling helpless and hopeless, and my favorite, trapped.
So, we might twist off occasionally and unload, but if we don't learn to deal with those emotional things we have less of a chance to start approaching life in a more effective way. And emotions don't stay in no matter how hard we stuff them--they come squirting out in all directions.
I think maybe in clinical depression--when someone who has never had any trouble with depression gets hit with a major depressive episode--is probably the main type that is primarily chemical.
Shar
> One of the reasons I asked the question was that since use of anti-depressants became more widespread I hear much less discussion about emotions in relation to depression. Chemical and cognitive approaches seem the most common.
>
> I don't find cognitive techniques helpful (at least not methodical ones as in the book Feeling Good). Just because I change the words I'm thinking doesn't change my feeling about something.
>
> While I hope to find a medication that will help alleviate my depression, I don't want to overlook the role that emotions and how one handles or processes them play in the condition.
>
> For me, depression often follows from a sense of powerlessness in a situation. I'm not sure if it's the hopelessness or the possible unexpressed anger about it that's the problem.
>
> I'm not sure how "turning anger inward" works, either. What actually goes on when someone does that and why does it lead to depression? Is depression a way of just shutting everything down so nothing happens?
>
> I have also heard that anxiety can be a sign of unexpressed anger.
poster:Shar
thread:14065
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20011117/msgs/14101.html