A metaphor for depression is “The Black Dog”, which was attributed to depression due to Winston Churchill referring to the dog to explain struggles against inactivity and melancholy periods.
The Black Dog does not fit for me, which then begs the question, what does? And if you have a metaphor for your depression, does it help you manage it?
There is similarity for me with the sky, the unpredictability and predictability of the weather. Sometimes we can tell when the rain is coming, the storms, the clouds and other times we get caught out.
Eyeing the sky, it is a beautiful thing, but it can be merciless bringing wind, rain, ice, snow, lightening and relentless storms. A cloud can be a beautiful thing as we lie on our backs in the heart beat of summer picking out shapes or The Cloud can be portent of less desired weather.
Many times I can feel the change in air pressure, the heaviness of the air, the unsettledness and see The Cloud moving across the sky obstructing the sun. And then there are days – days where lightening strikes from nowhere, bringing heavy storms and flooding drowning the landscape.
Part of me agrees, part of me says a metaphor is too singular. Too simple for something as complex as depression, the emotional turbulence it mixes continually and the depths it takes you. The Pain Locker where gods run from in fear and Death stands by a door.
The Cloud will do for now.