Some of us tend to forget what we’ve accomplished in our lifetimes and we find ourselves feeling like we’ve never done anything meaningful, useful or worthwhile.

Some of us may even go through low spots when we feel that our lives haven’t had any validity.

But when we express that to friends, they're aghast, because that’s not their sense at all. They may think we’re highly accomplished, but we feel like impostors.

So, after a couple of years of feeling that way, I decided to start questioning that belief. Just for a few days.

And in that few days I looked back at all the things I’ve done and you know what? Just scrolling through the ridiculous number of things I’ve made, tried to make, or failed to make, I felt better.

Here’s an example: Episode 1 of Anything I Can Do – “Fountain Do” – how to make a meditation fountain. It was my first day on set with this show (early 2000) and I was giddy to the point of hysteria. But it was kinda fun. And I got to shoot the show on the same farm we used when we shot Road to Avonlea. Such beauty and happy memories. 

And if by some chance DIY isn't your thang, here's Episode #1 of my relationship show, Men On Women, which aired in Canada in 2000-2001. 

Topics:

• Detecting attraction 
• When a guy says "I'll call you" after a date, how long does a girl wait for him to call before she knows he was fibbing? And do women ever say "I'll call you" and not call?
• Call from viewer: Why do guys make a distinction between a woman they'd want to marry and a woman who they want to fool around with?
• Breast implants
• Manly Moments: Kissing on a first date
• Physical affection parameters
• Rushing or not rushing a relationship
• Audience question: On a first date, how do you know when you're not interested in a girl, and how do you let her know?
• Relationships in art

• Crafting can help those who suffer from anxiety, depression or chronic pain, experts say
• It may also ease stress, increase happiness by releasing neurotransmitter called dopamine
• Leisure activities such as reading and crafting may protect brain from aging, study finds

via www.cnn.com

I abandoned my blog over a year ago. In a sense I abandoned myself, because my self was in a weird downward spiral.

When you can't pull up out of a gnarly place, sometimes it's better to not pay attention to your own thought processes.

Knitting got me through the last 18 months, which featured abrupt changes of fortune and emotional lows.

Recent neurological research shows that creating something - anything - interrupts negative emotional loops that can keep us stuck. Knitting helped me release stress and I'm certain that it prevented me from crashing into depression. I didn't quite have the heart for woodworking, welding or more challenging hobbies. But the soft, cozy yarn and the quiet click of my needles seemed to be the perfect tonic.

The CNN article above documents how others have experienced emotional healing through crafting. Maybe you'd like to share your own experience in the comments below. Or maybe just read the article and take comfort in knowing that there's an inexpensive, gentle solution waiting for you if you're in a dark time.

One pair of more than 40 sets of socks I've knitted in the last year