Thanks for this one, Walter! I’ve been depressed in the past and still battle the “Noonday Demon” (yes, an excellent book) at times. In a few months I move to Mexico, and it will be an immersive experience and I will test your hypothesis.
Good for you for moving to Mexico! If you want a Spanish lesson, let me know. The more you study now, the easier it will be for you. We could do a zoom chat if you wanted!
i have been brushing up my high school French (surprised how much i do remember) and also have been learning some Italian. i grew up with Spanish but don't speak fluently, in my opinion but i do pretty well when i go to Mexico. with all this political turmoil and being in Flori-duh away from family and friends, i have been getting pretty depressed as well. trying to learn something new every day is helping. thank you for writing about this Walter. 💖
it really does open the mind and the world. and when you have a willingness to attempt to communicate in other languages, people open up a bit more, i think. i traveled to Turkey and Bosnia and i tried to learn Turkish and Bosnian before going. Both languages were really difficult for me but the little bit i did learn helped with basic communication. I'm finding the romance languages all have a lot of similarities that make it easier to learn (for me anyway)
I began learning French some 5 years ago as a way to push down depression. Why French? Because I'd always wanted to, I think it's beautiful. I began learning with frenchfluency.net and a friendship and a job grew out of that. Now in addition to improving my French I'm studying German because Vienna is my favorite city and I will spend a month there soon. Also learning Spanish since it is a common language here in the US - it was amazing how much high school Spanish my brain retained from 45 years ago. Highly recommend learning languages, like travel they broaden your mind and give your brain a workout.
I raised my kids to be fluent in Spanish. It's fun watching how easy it is for my daughters at school. They're seeing the benefit of it now. Languages are beautiful!
Walter this post was great. I suffer from Anxiety and depression which I believe I have mentioned before. The other day on my birthday I was majorly depressed thinking about how I haven't done much with my writing goals and at 54 I feel half my life is over and a failure. Your post gives hope and provides great insight into how we can combat this dreadful condition. Thanks again for always providing a positive outlook and a way to handle the most challenging situations.
First of all, writing is a slog. Just keep at it and don't wish you'd done more. You've done as much as you could, that's the way the story was intended to be told :) I'm planning an article that relates to this subject for my column in the Writing Cooperative, and I'll import that to Substack eventually. Yes, immersing yourself in language helps soothe the soul! Best to you Bill!
Hi Walter, your writing conveys the desperation and motivation you felt! That story of how you combined the two is unexpected and heartening. Learning Spanish has been the joy of my later decades. I can’t pull off immersion but I believe you that it is the best way to learn. I admire your guts! Daniel
Thanks for this one, Walter! I’ve been depressed in the past and still battle the “Noonday Demon” (yes, an excellent book) at times. In a few months I move to Mexico, and it will be an immersive experience and I will test your hypothesis.
Good for you for moving to Mexico! If you want a Spanish lesson, let me know. The more you study now, the easier it will be for you. We could do a zoom chat if you wanted!
Just FYI. Mexico has outlawed vapes.
No importa.
You’re on! I know I need to work on learning Spanish now, but I am so busy with moving details and general panic that I let it slide
i have been brushing up my high school French (surprised how much i do remember) and also have been learning some Italian. i grew up with Spanish but don't speak fluently, in my opinion but i do pretty well when i go to Mexico. with all this political turmoil and being in Flori-duh away from family and friends, i have been getting pretty depressed as well. trying to learn something new every day is helping. thank you for writing about this Walter. 💖
Yes, the great thing about foreign language is that it completely opens up your mind and the world!
it really does open the mind and the world. and when you have a willingness to attempt to communicate in other languages, people open up a bit more, i think. i traveled to Turkey and Bosnia and i tried to learn Turkish and Bosnian before going. Both languages were really difficult for me but the little bit i did learn helped with basic communication. I'm finding the romance languages all have a lot of similarities that make it easier to learn (for me anyway)
I began learning French some 5 years ago as a way to push down depression. Why French? Because I'd always wanted to, I think it's beautiful. I began learning with frenchfluency.net and a friendship and a job grew out of that. Now in addition to improving my French I'm studying German because Vienna is my favorite city and I will spend a month there soon. Also learning Spanish since it is a common language here in the US - it was amazing how much high school Spanish my brain retained from 45 years ago. Highly recommend learning languages, like travel they broaden your mind and give your brain a workout.
I raised my kids to be fluent in Spanish. It's fun watching how easy it is for my daughters at school. They're seeing the benefit of it now. Languages are beautiful!
Walter this post was great. I suffer from Anxiety and depression which I believe I have mentioned before. The other day on my birthday I was majorly depressed thinking about how I haven't done much with my writing goals and at 54 I feel half my life is over and a failure. Your post gives hope and provides great insight into how we can combat this dreadful condition. Thanks again for always providing a positive outlook and a way to handle the most challenging situations.
First of all, writing is a slog. Just keep at it and don't wish you'd done more. You've done as much as you could, that's the way the story was intended to be told :) I'm planning an article that relates to this subject for my column in the Writing Cooperative, and I'll import that to Substack eventually. Yes, immersing yourself in language helps soothe the soul! Best to you Bill!
Thanks, Walter you rock. :) :)
Hi Walter, your writing conveys the desperation and motivation you felt! That story of how you combined the two is unexpected and heartening. Learning Spanish has been the joy of my later decades. I can’t pull off immersion but I believe you that it is the best way to learn. I admire your guts! Daniel
Thanks Daniel! Even a week abroad can be an amazing experience :)
Excellent post!
Thanks Pam!
The Noonday Demon by Andrew Solomon is a great book on the beast of depression.
I added that to my list! Somebody else just mentioned it!