I'm writting this in blue, cause this is how I feel....I HAVE been under alot of stress lately, with business and etc...and usually I"ll run to my sewing to help me overcome this..but for awhile now I will just stare at my projects...flip through my books...straighten up around the sewing area alittle, turn the machime on...and off...but cannot sew. Maybe it's because my 7 month old granddaughter might have to have surgery...our exchanges students are getting ready to return back home to their country...and we will be empty nesters again ( which I really don't mind)..I don't know what it is ...I can't work even on a simple apron I want to sew for my niece...I don't even want to WASH the fabric I bought 3 weeks ago ...What's wrong with me!!!!!??? See ..the font doesn't even come out in blue..aaagghh, did it? P/S. and that darn ghost in my avater is starting to #%@@ me off...now I have gone bonkers!!!!

Sounds like the blahs. I usally get them once I complete a project and need to start the new one, but just don't want to. Do something fun to take your mind off of everything for a little while. Read a magazine, pick up a good book, watch or go to a good movie. All of those things will help relax you and your mind too. It'll make you feel better and ready to tackle the world. Go out for ice cream! That's a good one for me especially if it is chocolate. There is nothing better to take your mind off of wat ails me than chocolate!
Let me know if any or all of this works! Hope you feel better soon!

I know every now and then you have to get away from it all, yes even quilting. Find other things.....take a pet to the park or yourself, with a lunch, are there museums or places of interest nearby........Go shopping....in stores or thrift stores and buy yourself a "pretty"........buy a cd of old favorite love songs and dance with the broom......Take a friend for coffee.......On and on , now I am going in the woods with the dog for a walk.......hop[e you feel better soon :D

I have found that it helps to write down a list of everything that is wrong at the moment (and I mean everything!). Then, make a little ceremony of burning it or shredding it, followed by a large glass of your favorite beverage (mine is icy Dr. Pepper) and a huge pile of chocolate. It doesn't make all the stuff go away, but it's something you can control and manage, and maybe it will help a little. The chocolate can't hurt! :-)

Thank you...all of you, for all the encouagement and kind words....i feel like I'm in Limbo!!!

Catherine: I hope you are feeling better. I get so aggravated with myself for not getting things done. Then the things I didn't get done bother me. I hate it when my house is messy. Right now it is at its worst! Everything needs cleaned and dusted. I stay home all the time and take care of the kids. Yesterday, I let the baby play (he's two, now) in the spray from the hole in the water hose. Stupid water hose was new and has a hole! BUT>....The kids love it! I guess it is one way to look at the positive side.
While the baby was playing the the spray, I washed my Durango! I usually never get to do things like this. Usually the baby runs off...won't stay near, bothers the cats or something! I got it washed, though. It felt so good to get outside for a while! We came back in and baby took a nap. Then, I started up the grill and made supper.
My house is still a disaster area, and I still feel depressed to be in here in the middle of it, but being out for a while lifted my mood some!

Better go get some more cleaning done before the baby gets back up from the nap!

Also, I've not been bothered by the avatar ghost since everyone else is getting it! WEIRD!

I'm not feeling better yet..but I know I will..because I have all of you....

What a nice thing to say! Thank you. We jsut hope that any or all of the suggestions work. Take care of yourself.

I'm going to try a new avater, apicture of my grandaughter, perhaps this will lift my spirit and get me back on track!! So, here she is!!! Isabella Rose.

What a darling! Nothing more beautiful than the heart of a child shining through eyes like hers.

looks like you have a pretty daughter yourself!!!

My oldest granddaughter a few years ago. She is bigger now, though just as sassy!

Girrrrrrl, pleeeze. there is definitely nothing wrong with you. a person would have to be heartless to not get a case of the blues in your situation.

So! Your first order of business is to stop kicking yourself for being normal. feeling guilty and "wrong" about feeling bad is only going to make you feel worse. it's a vicious circle.

i get serious bouts of depression at least a few times a year. i take my daily dose of what a friend of mine calls "pretty pills", but it isn't always enough. i've developed a system that i'll admit is pretty wierd but it works for me most of the time.

i assess the situation. if i have a logical reason for being depressed, i give it a little thought then "allow" myself a specific amount of time to wallow, whine, moan, and lay around all i want. this almost always includes making mental or actual lists of all the things i think i should be doing or really should be doing. when i've "spent my allowance" i force myself to pick something from the list and just do it. doesn't matter if i do it quickly, if i do it well, or if i enjoy doing it. i just drag myself kicking and screaming into the task. (and the work i get paid to do doesn't count. it has to be something in my personal life.) for me, being able to accomplish even one little thing again is like breaking out of prison and sets me free to get back to the rest of it.

(if i don't have a logical reason i'm allowed no more than 1.5 more days.)

you have ongoing things to cope with. i'd say ... hmmm ... allow yourself another specific number of days to not do nuthin' if'n ya don't wants to. then pick something. like the apron. or a little blankie for your granddaughter's hospital stay. when you've done the first little something, and if you still need it, give yourself a certain number of minutes each day to just sit still and be blah. set the timer. but each day, you require yourself to work on something from your list for at least a little while. you may start feeling productive again, which will make you feel a little better, which will inspire you to do more. a much better circle to be running in.

i can't promise it'll work. just something to consider and maybe try.

and - of course - stick with us. like everybody else has said, we're here for you. we understand. and we loves ya whether you're as busy as a bee or have taken root to the couch.

;-)

You sound stressed but it will pass..... take a week or so off from your sewing and do other things.... I know the feeling..... my 14 year old granddaughter in australia has been told she has multiple sclerosis... that was about 6/7 months ago... she has had 2 relapses recently... has been put on steroids and if that doesn't work she is to have a plasma exchange.... I could cry but that won't help her.... sent her a nice get well card.. about all I can do as I don't fly.... so I am feeling like you at the moment, so decided to get on to the computer.... it is my company, husband is out fishing.... he does that often.... his way of relaxing I suppose.... I am going out to a stitch and chat afternoon so that will help. Take care of your self..... your granddaughter will be OK.... and you must be OK too for when she comes home.... I love the idea of dancing around the room to music, with a broom.... have done that years ago when I couldn't get out of the house and it works !!! What fun, believe it or not. I just love music so that helped. Didn't mean to "write a book". Love to hear how you are getting on and I am sure others will want to hear too.

well, FVG... I use to play video games..if I had a xbox I probably wouldn't be biting my nails..maybe I'll just stand under the shower and let out a war cry...I'll warn those at home first, ..don't want to be in the local paper the next day!!!

I'm in Ky....my grandaughter in KS......I won't be able to get out to see her until the end of June....maybe...but I need to stop feeling sorry about myself, your grandaughter, Joy is so much further away..I will pray for her and your family. It is difficult, isn't it....crying doesn't help anyone but yourself...and I'm going to have a good one...in the shower...cause sometimes you just gotta take care of yourself...ask Sandra, she'll agree!!!

Daughter and two grand daughters are in Perth.... I didn't want them to go and she has since had a marriage breakup... the other grand daughter has a growth problem... I won't go into that.... that is life I suppose... nice to get a reply.... thank you for that.

:cry: When I get the blues I go visit my mom and dad. They are both dead but I go out and buy new flowers for their grave and a box of kleenex. I tell them all my problems cuz I know they can still hear me. I have a good cry cuz I miss them dearly. Feels good to let it all out and then I can get back to the real world and handle anything. :D

You know PatriceJ I was going to say the same thing!! Maybe suggest make something for the exchange student to take back with them. I don't know what type of surgery your granddaughter will be facing but a small quilt for her during her stay would be wonderful. Here in Indiana the childrens hospital even takes donations of quilts for the kids (they do have size requirements and some other guidlines). I don't know if where she would be would have a project set up like that, but that may help you thru this rough patch...using your talent to comfort her and other children. Just my thoughts, I hope all is well and safe.

Catherine
Theres nothing wrong with you. The (blahs or depression) what ever you want to call it, comes from anxiety. Sounds as tho it's over your G-baby.
I can tell you what I've learned, Prayer is the answer, Give it to God. Easy to say, but not always easy to do. Most people think thats only lip service. But it's not. Prayer changes things. For everyone who has a earnest Heart.And remeber the promises that God has made to you. Once you give it to God, throw yourself into doing something for somebody else. When you throw yourself into doing something for someone else, it gets your mind off what your feeling. I know I've done it, still do it. And when I follow his plan, it NEVER fails. And then you'll be blessed from what you've done for someone else.

I have a plaque by my kitchen sink. I've had it for so long it's hard to read. But this is what it says : Sometimes the Lord calms the storm. Sometimes He lets the storm rage and calms His child. It gives me perspective when I read it over again and remember all the times that I've gotten through with His help.

Quilt making may have started out of necessity - to keep the family warm in the days before the furnace - but it was also a creative outlet. A challenge to make something beautiful and lasting out of whatever scraps had been saved or salvaged from old clothes, etc. That is making the best out of tough times!

Now making quilts is a craft - a hobby - a luxury for those who are creative and have the time and energy to give to it. So, ask yourself, what is the rush?

I think of making a quilt pretty much the same as expecting a baby. When I am planning it and picking out pattern and fabrics, it is about midterm. I pace myself. I enjoy the process of creating it, taking it slow so I get the best result.

Later, as it gets close to piecing together, and thinking of how I want it quilted, its is like labor. I feel "pushed" to finish it. I am driven.

After it is finished, I may feel a pull to start something else, but sometimes I want to read that good book that's been waiting on me, or go to the beach with my family, etc And who wants to have baby after baby without a rest and a chance to get your figure back? LOL

The bottom line is, I don't let myself feel guilty! I want to make a quilt when my artistic level equals my energy level and the time I WANT to give to it. I don't ever want making a quilt to be on the same level as emptying the dishwasher and doing laundry!

So don't feel bad. You need a rest, a distraction. Do what you want, what you've always wanted to do, and enjoy yourself!

Catherine,
How are you doing today? You've received some wonderful advice here. May your 'blue funk' move along soon.

I have to share a story about our first exchange students. First off, a little background information, our three daughters were all adopted from Korea. When our girls were in high school we had a Japanese exchange student for just a month. When it came time for her to go home there the whole family was crying and sobbing. We were a mess. Once the bus pulled out of the parking lot my husband turned to me and said, "We've never had to give one back before!" He had said exactly what we were all feeling! We always want to keep them forever! So go ahead and have a good cry when the exchange students have to go home.

The other idea I've had while reading all of the posts is to be sure to get out into the sunshine. I find that if I have had too many days inside I'll get to feeling blue and it's amazing what a little sunshine will do, even if it's only 10 minutes or so.

Also, please know that there are many, many prayers being said for your granddaughter. It helps to know you are not alone and we are all here with you!

Take care of you!

Thank you everybody...My G-daughter has been put to sleep for her MRI,
I've been waiting by the phone to hear from my son, whether they will do surgery...one of our Exchange students is packing his bags now, we;ll go out to eat tonight and he'll fly back home to Yucatan Mexico in the morning, we are going to miss him...the other is from South Korea, he leaves in 2 weeks.........it has rained alot...not much sunshine here......but all the kind words will be my sunshine..cause you all have been so supportive during my blue time............I'm going to move my sewing machine back into the bedroom that "Miguel" was using...hhee already starting to feel that little excitment of sewing. This change could boost all kinds of creativity!!! You girls are the kindest ever!!!!!! I'm gonna cry!!!!

Don't cry!! Smile knowing that we all love you and wish you nothing but the best :D

Wow... I'm amazed at all of the wonderful advice on this subject. First of all, I had no idea this was so prevalent among so many. I thought I was the freak & noone else ever experienced this, or just pms on a bi-monthly basis. Second, Thank you Catherine for bringing up this subject, and thank you to everyone else for opening your hearts and being so honest. I have felt like this for the past couple of months, but I thought it was because I haven't had time to do any sewing, & when I have had time I wasn't interested and had to force myself into doing what little I have accomplished.

Thank you again to all of you. You helped me, & I didn't even realize I needed or wanted some help.

Finally, Do you think men ever, even once in a while, go through this?

Indeed I do. Sadly more often than they can admit or share.

Thats a fact, I think they just get grouchie! When they got the blaas

Then too, truth be told...in our world,especially these days, such occurances are not confined to age, or gender. I'm glad we know the vital things we do.....1. To share. and 2. To care. After that ...it's a downhill run.

Yes, men do get like that.... often...... some go to the pub every night, some play golf just to get away from troubles, mine goes fishing... he must.... is retired.... I put on a CD and turn the sound up while doing housework, patchwork, computer or whatever..... have a great chap singing on a CD at the moment.,.. the name is Dennis Marsh - a New Zealander and it is very easy listening.... just love it. Great to linedance to !!! Music has helped me right through my life. Very relaxing.

i hope you are feeling better i've found myself in those spots no reason to feel down but i try to fight it by getting my mine set in another direction s

ometimes that works some times have to have abreak from every thing for a couple hours or days.... I know it isn't always possible but reading does help. hope your better

Here is a goofy thing about being in a funk.... There is only one way to go and its up, so just start thinking about something very wonderful and special must be coming your way as you are on the way up instead of down. And trust me, you are very normal in your reaction to your sitiuation. And the Goddesses on this website are sooooo correct, chocolate is a very good thing. Hang in there- the good is on the way :):)

:? :?: Where's the ghost?? What ghost?? MMMMMMMmmmmmm???? Yea, I think it's the Blahs or I call it Quilt Block like Writer's Block and ya just can't get going and don't want to, not right now. Now when my kids leave I'll be there all over again but there's the telephone and email and snail mail, but of course then my oldest is strange and oh well my youngest is here. Now is that kids or Quilt Projects??? Ah well, Go out and buy some FABRIC!!!!!!

That is always the best tonic as far as I am concerned!