Dear :

Thank you for flooding my inbox with care and concern for Ed and I after my last email.

Ed is recovering. It's a long process and neither of us are patient people. But we're also not in danger. We're grateful and bored and eating very well and tired and sometimes grumpy, but still laughing at each other's jokes.

You sent so many great suggestions and quotes. Here's a tiny sample of the many I found healing:

"We make the world a better place when we show up as authentic beings. And we are. And we do."— Candace Hartzler

"Despair is a necessary and seasonal state of repair, a temporary healing absence, an internal physiological and psychological winter when our previous forms of participation in the world take a rest; it is a loss of horizon, it is the place we go when we do not want to be found in the same way anymore."— David Whyte (sent by Vi Olsen)

We don't have to push ourselves to be superhuman. It's not a race. The fate of the world doesn't rest on our shoulders. We can afford to be human and be kind to ourselves and each other.— Kathleen Burgess

And special thanks to one reader who said (half jokingly) that he was relieved I was depressed! He'd been reading my emails and social media posts and thought I no longer struggled with mental illness. He felt he had failed because he hadn't conquered his depression when I had (apparently) done so. His email echoed the other reminders about authenticity.

I guess it's not clear from what I post on social media or in these emails that I live with mental illness every day.

I'm not cured.

Yes, I'm better than I was before I took up running and meditating and regular writing practice. But I still have rough patches. Sometimes those rough patches don't show and sometimes I don't show them.

A depressive episode is like a compound fracture, except it's often invisible. There's not usually any bone sticking out or tendons hanging.

But it's still acute.

And, it's still exhausting.

So, thanks for reminding me to be real.

And thanks for not recommending I "buck up" or "stay strong."

And especially thanks for not suggesting I brought this on myself by not doing this thing or that thing or some other thing.

If a person with a compound fracture could walk, they would. If a person in a mental health crisis could be strong, manifest a different reality, or shame themselves out of depression, they would have done that long before the crisis occurred.

Thanks for getting that. 

And thanks for listening, holding space, and sending love.

Because that's exactly what helps.

EVENTS & CLASSES

My events and classes are still online. No matter where you live, you can join:

TOMORROW! Wednesday, July 21st at 4:30pm ET - Empowered Writing: Heart Wisdom Panel. To register, email Victoria.

Thursday, July 22nd at 7pm ET - DEBS' book club to discuss Depression Hates a Moving Target. Open to anyone. RSVP here.

Sunday, August 8th from 2pm to 5pm ET - Writing from the Inside Out

SEE ALL MY EVENTS ON MY WEBSITE

SUGGESTED PRACTICE:
Each time you walk through a doorway, notice which foot goes first.

On the Blog - "No time to Meditate? Try a 'Microhit' of Mindfulness"

MEDITATION LEADER TRAINING - Starts late August

The SAGE INSTITUTE 200-Hour Meditation Leader Training. I completed in June is open for registration. The program is based on the structure of 200-hour yoga teacher training, but focused on leading Buddhist meditation.

If you've considered intensive meditation training, whether you intend to lead groups or not, please consider Sage. Sensei Sean Murphy, the mentors and staff are phenomenal.

The next cohort begins August 23rd.

Nature Meditation

BOOK CLUBS

Just a reminder, the New York Flyers chose Depression Hates a Moving Target for their July book club book.  

THIS THURSDAY!!

Thursday, July 22nd, 7pm, discussion open to the public!

RSVP HERE.

If you're in a book group and would like me to join you for a virtual author visit to discuss any of my books, please contact me. I'd love to meet your group!

I created a kit to foster discussion: Book Club Kit!
 

Music Video

Watch Jason Didner's music video "Run with My Troubles." With other runners, it features Scarlet and I in "the ravine" where I started running. Jason's a fine musician so check out his other tunes too.

YOU MADE MY MONTH!
The response to my request for positive reviews of Depression Hates a Moving Target and You Should Be Writing thrilled me. Thank you so much!!

If you enjoyed either book and haven't had a chance, please leave a review. Even a few words go a long way.

These direct links to Amazon make reviews easy:
YSBW - Paperback
YSBW - ebook
DHAMT - Paperback
DHAMT - ebook
DHAMT - Audiobook

Don't have your copy yet? Purchase Nita's books here!
 

Want to chat about writing?

Whether you're a new writer, already published, or somewhere in between, chances are I've faced what you're up against. I'd love to help.

We'll hop on zoom or that phone thingie. You'll tell me your quandary, and I'll share my expertise. I have a ton of resources, and decades of experience heading people in the right direction.

I wasn’t sure where to start. Your ideas provided a 'heads-up here’s where you need to go' path. The biggest challenges with new authors are the deep-dive editing surprise, the author platform, and the publishing world. It was helpful to know what to expect.—Susan

Email me at nita@nitasweeney.com to discuss this service.

Reach Out

If I can help in some other way, please ask. Email is always the best way to reach me.

Take care and be well.

About Nita:
Nita Sweeney is the award-winning wellness author of the running and mental health memoir, Depression Hates a Moving Target: How Running with My Dog Brought Me Back from the Brink and co-creator of the writing journal, You Should Be Writing: A Journal of Inspiration & Instruction to Keep Your Pen Moving. A long-time meditator, ultramarathoner, and former assistant to writing practice originator Natalie Goldberg, Nita founded the group Mind, Mood, and Movement to support mental well-being through meditation, exercise, and writing practice, and The Writer’s Mind , to share how to use writing practice to produce publishable work. Nita also publishes the writing resource newsletter, Write Now Columbus. She lives in central Ohio with her husband, Ed, and their yellow Labrador retriever, Scarlet. Follow her on your favorite social media channels!