Today’s beautiful peacock butterfly crochet mandala for the Mandalas for Marinke project comes to us from Josie Yarn of Wrap The Kids in Crochet, who loves who colorful Wink’s work is. Josie shared,
“I started crocheting just over three years ago and it’s taken over my life. My husband and two children are always subject to my creations, as are the dogs and my soon-to-be new addition.”
And on her website, we learn a little more:
“In the summer of 2013 I was innocently drinking tea in my sister’s house when she says to me “Here, try this.” Next thing I know I have a crochet hook and wool in my hands and she’s teaching me how to make a mobile phone case. Eighteen months later and I started this site and now have an online shop. Crochet has enveloped my life in a very good and cosy manner.”
She also shared with us,
“I decided to contribute to this project because I and many people I know have been profoundly affected by depression. I believe each sufferer of depression has to find his / her own way of dealing with it. For me, crochet is a kind of focus and meditation, which relaxes me, whilst simultaneously giving me a focus for my busy mind.”
She adds,
“I was only diagnosed three years ago, and I am glad I was. I knew very little about depression before, and it was a steep learning curve. I underwent counseling but stayed off of medications. This proved tricky, but I wanted to do for myself.
My diagnosis helped save my marriage, and counseling let me talk as much as I needed to. Since this time I miscarried but due to the lessons I learned from counseling, I didn’t need to return, and this time I could talk to my husband; it helped so much.”
I’m so glad that Josie shared this because counseling can be so beneficial for people who are living with depression. Learning to communicate our feelings and what’s going on with us in the presence of someone who validates those feelings and provides reality checks for them at the same time is invaluable for a lot of people. Therapy was really important for me in my deepest depression, although for me it was combined with meds (and yoga, and crochet).
It’s important to know that there are many different types of therapy and not every therapist will be the right fit. Not every therapist is even good at all. It can be super tough to find the right counseling at any time, especially when decisions seem so difficult in the midst of depression, but it’s often worth it to take the risk and make the effort as a first step towards getting better.
Josie added a message for Wink,
“I’m sorry you couldn’t find your way through the darkness, but I hope you have found the peace you so desperately sought. May your new world be full of the light and color your beautiful creations were full of. Blessed be.”
Connect with Wrap The Kids in Crochet on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram. Josie is also on Ravelry.
This post is part of the Mandalas for Marinke project. You can see all Mandalas for Marinke posts here.