Have you ever noticed that the worse your mind makes you feel the worse your body feels, too?

I’ve been fighting a bout of depression for the last few months. Still managed to go to work and take care of myself, but just didn’t really care about anything or anyone. Nothing felt good. Didn’t want to see anyone or talk to anyone. And the longer I stayed down, the worse I felt physically. Like I’d used up all my money and there was nothing left to pay for anything at all. I finally started to feel better, and wouldn’t you know it, I became physically too ill to work. It was a drag, like an albatross around my neck to finally be in a better place mentally, but have my body say “Oh no you don’t!”

But, I did get over it (mostly). I went from feeling trapped in a cage made of my sick body to being able to venture out and get things done. I still have a symptom. A weird one. My mouth hurts. No sores. No cavities. No burns. It just hurts all the time. So, I’ve come to believe my psychatrist is right. My mental state is affecting my body. I am still concerned about things. Can we afford groceries this week? Will we pay all the utilities? What else can people do to ruin this country and make it harder to live in?

So, I’ve decided it’s time to let it go. Picture blowing the seeds from a dandelion. Each seed under its fluffy parachute a care that I cannot do a thing about. Money problems? Puff — there go several seeds. The puff is accepting that no one is hiring an over educated, too old, fat, and mentally ill woman, so all I can do is do the best I can to pay things. Let the rest go on the wind with the seeds. I can’t control what others do. Some will always use others to make themselves richer, without regard to the others they are hurting. Some will be bullies that no one can stand up to. Some will take away things other than money to make themselves more important and powerful. Blow! Blow! Blow! There go the bullies and greedy people. I can’t change them. I shouldn’t let them take up room in my mind like dandelions taking over my garden. The things in my garden, I can affect. I can pull up the weeds in my space. I can address a bully in front of me. I can be more frugal and stretch my money farther. I can blow harder and the dandelion seeds will go farther away, to where they cannot grow in my garden. Blow your seeds away. Letting them go will help your garden flourish. You’ll be happier and healthier. Remember radical acceptance and circle of control. Those are how you blow the weeds away from your garden. Those tools will help you thrive in your own, personal garden, decorated with flowers and herbs of your choice, not someone else’s.