Seratonin

My doctor put me on Seratonin about fifteen years ago. I had had armed robbers tie me up in my own house, our family firm had gone through and my father had died all within a short space of time, and I thought I was depressed. Seratonin induces the production of endorphins, which are the hormone (or chemical) that is credited with creating happy feelings in the brain.

I was rather ashamed that the doctor thought I couldn’t cope on my own, but after a few days, I told the half a dozen friends I drank with in the local pub.

“I thought you were already on them”, said one, “we all are and our wives… and most of our friends. Great, aren’t they? I look forward to my happy pill every morning!”

I had never heard of them before, but it seemed that I was the last to know.

I stopped taking them after a week, and a television documentary appeared a few days after that condemning them.

Anyway, the feeling that the Seratonin gave me is what I feel now – a slight buzz of happiness even when it is irrational.

I am happy to be going to Spain next week, but I am no longer under the illusion that being there will solve all our problems, which is what I did think last May.

Spain is/was supposed to be our springboard back into the UK, but it is far from as easy as the rulebook says it is, or as I thought it would be.

And then there’s Brexit. That could put the mockers on my wife getting into the UK completely. If Brexit puts a block on my taking my wife to the UK to live, she will need a sponsor. However, I have lost touch with all my friends after being in Thailand for thirteen years, and my I can’t rely on my family to help.

We will get to Spain, but there is a dark cloud hanging over the future further ahead than that.

If you have any suggestions, please let me know – we’re desperate.

Please LIKE and SHARE this article using the buttons below and visit our bookshop

All the best,

Owen

PS: there are probably errors in relation to Seratonin (serotonin) in this piece, but the basic message is the same.

Podcast: Seratonin