Lois de Vries' Garden Views

Gardeners can tick off a litany of potential reasons to get depressed: A copse of 60-year-old trees destroyed in an ice storm; house and garden vacuumed off the face of the earth by tornado; flooding by hurricane; seasonal drought; bee colony collapse disorder; whole forests decimated by alien insects; extensive flowerbeds destroyed by mold, fungi, or white-tailed deer; an entire season’s tomato harvest infected with blossom end-rot. Then there are the more personal reasons that interfere with our ability to garden: Arthritis, caring for infirm relatives; chronic disease; job loss; increased work demands; kid’s sports practice; volunteer commitments, etc. Any of these events can generate frustration, disappointment, and sadness -- justifiably so. But there’s no need to let ourselves slip from sadness into depression. Dr. Eric Maisel’s new book Rethinking Depression offers an arsenal of tools to cope with the ups and downs of daily life, so that we will have enough energy and enth...

GUEST BLOG: On April 21 st I will interview my writing coach, author Dr. Eric Maisel, about his book Rethinking Depression, which was recently released in paperback. It blows the lid off the need to label and medicate oneself as depressed just because life isn’t one continuous bed of roses. Gardening creatives can design a pathway that carries them through tough times by developing the deeper meaning that gardening holds for them. Rethinking Depression is available in paperback or Kindle.