The daffodils are out very early this year and I happened to see a whole beautiful field of them the other day. Suddenly my memory was triggered to years ago when my children's ages were still in single digits. We were sitting in the lounge of our Scottish home looking out on a field of beautiful golden daffodils loving this taste of spring on a lovely sunny morning. To my utter amazement I suddenly saw there was a little baby lamb walking through the flowers that must have somehow got through the hedge from the farm next door. Immediately we were all jumping up to go to the rescue. The whole family were putting on shoes then running outside to catch the lamb.

This was no easy task. This lamb could run fast, jump logs, and hide under prickly bushes. We were definitely not giving up as we knew that is we did not get this lamb back to its mother it would not survive but to tell you the truth we had spent so much time running and trying to catch the lamb we were running out of steam. We were trying to keep it away from the wood, as we all know there are no such things as lambs in the wood, they just get eaten. My small son was as red as a plumb and a river of sweat and so desperate to catch this lamb. We were breathless, panting, scratched to pieces yet there was no giving up.

There were signs that the lamb was tiring too but it just kept going. When we thought we were never going to do it, my daughter suddenly caught a leg and we all immediately formed a scrum over the lamb. We held her tightly and carried her indoors looking like a rugby squad. We took the lamb into the kitchen, everybody was exhausted but nobody was angry. Now we were all looking and deciding what we should feed her, warm milk. The bleating baby just wanted to be back with its mother in safety. Off we went to the field of the farm next door and found its mother. The two had been separated for many hours now but immediately knew each other and baby started to feed.

We all marched home, exhausted, famished and filthy. We were all so happy we had saved the lamb. As I reflected on this I could not help but think that many women in depression each one of us may have felt like that lost lamb in times of despair and helplessness. How our families may have been doing everything they could to help us but we would just keep running. Finding your emotional home is so worth it, I hope you have found yours.

When people are in transitions in their lives it seems that emotional needs are pushed to the back burner as everybody is just looking for a way to make things work. There are those transitioning in and out of jobs, in and out of houses, in and out of relationships. Each of the transitions cause feelings of aloneness, and with the spring months looming the inherent need all have to be loved, accepted, wanted seems to make loneliness more acute. Early spring seems to be the period of greatest emotional starvation when somehow there isn't enough emotional warmth to hold on to.

I have noticed that those who are experiencing transitions in their lives greatly under estimate the emotional resilience it is going to take to succeed in adjusting to the changed circumstances. If you know you are going to have a major transition in your life you need to try to prepare for it as nothing is going to be the same as you had known things to be. Emotional, starvation leads to all kinds of mood and thinking disorders, so take it seriously and plan ahead. If you feel too numb to plan then you need to get immediate help.