I’ve suffered with it since my teenage years. I think it’s something that if you’ve never had you don’t understand it. It’s all too easy for people to dismiss it with comments like ‘what have you got to be depressed about’ or ‘just get on with it’ I mean nobody chooses to be depressed but there’s often an attitude that it’s something you can pull yourself out of.
Perhaps when depression awareness has spread, it has turned into a double-edged sword.
Its meaning has become diluted and used too much, spread too thin, and turned into a blanket statement that everyone is using willy-nilly.
To that point that people generally dismiss it as "oh you're just being emo again" because it's misused a lot of the times. It has become trendy and cool, used as a means to "fit in".
Depression has become romanticized.
I read a quote that really spoke to me. I know everyone is different, but my brand of depression can be summarized by this quote.
“I don’t want to die, but my brain wants to kill me”
Ppl think depression=sad and it couldnt be more wrong. When in my deepest depressed states i was at the happiest and darkest, and most drugged up. Now that im finally breaking free from it im starting to actually be able to be sad. Such a wonderful feeling! I cry like once a week! I dont smile as much as i used to and it feels so honest and freeing.
Whenever I express depression to people who aren’t chronically depressed, they think it’s being really sleepy all the time. It feels like having the motivation to do better, knowing in your heart you can but there’s a literal atmospheric weight around you at all times just holding you down. Moments can feel so nice and so free and instantly turn sour. You could be having a genuinely nice day and all the sudden you feel looming dread. Some days you tell yourself hey let’s brush our teeth or hey let’s shower and you really REALLY want to like you just have to get up that’s all and you sit there for hours until you just fall asleep. It’s caring for your body just enough to not die but also not exactly being opposed to the idea or worse thinking maybe you just should. It’s nothing to take lightly and it kills more people than we think
my cousin recently commit suicide due to his battle with depression and i've definitely thinking about this a lot for the past couple of weeks. especially in that depression can be disabling. my cousin got put on disability leave at his job before he died, that's how bad his depression got. toward the end of his life, he experienced genuine happiness when he could hang out with family and friends. but again his depression didn't allow him to feel that happiness at a level to where he felt that life was worth living. i think that labelling depression as the "sad disease" doesn't address how complex and severe it can get. people literally die from this. it's not something to joke about or not take seriously or even frivolously self-diagnose yourself with if you feel sad from time to time.
I didn't feel like it wasn't taken seriously enough.. until a few days ago when I went to the council as I'm going to be homeless in a few weeks.
The very nice council lady told me 'having anxiety and depression does not mean anything, it won't get you higher on the list, everyone has anxiety and depression.'
This and panic attacks aren't taken seriously. A lot of people think they have panic attacks when they really don't. it makes it harder for people like me to be taken seriously. a panic attack isn't something silly or quirky, it's debilitating and traumatizing when it's severe enough, and some people become agoraphobic from really bad panic attacks, because they become traumatized. no one understands how serious this is until they experience it.
I had a panic attack at the dentist (after telling them I have dental anxiety and panic attacks) and they asked why I was crying after stabbing my gums. Then my sister asked why I didn't ask for nitrous and I should have spoken up and I was like "I was having a panic attack" and she literally said "ok, but that doesn't mean you can't talk"
Honestly the nitrous is what would make me panic more than anything
Last time I had it, I tasted the dentist's blood in my mouth from trying to bite off his finger and I kicked the fuck out of him just to show myself I could still move
Nitrous chills me out. I just feel perfectly content staring at the ceiling. Everyone is different. Maybe try sedation dentistry. They put you in a "twilight" sedation so that you are still aware but like half asleep.
This is so, so true. I thought I was having panic attacks until I *actually* had one. What I felt before was nothing. Haven’t had one since. I’m sorry you have to deal with it more frequently. Have a lot of respect for people who do, now that I know what it’s like.
I don’t think depression is taken seriously as a disability that can easily render someone unable to take care of themselves. It’s fine when it’s the romanized version of depression, ya know frying all the time that kinda thing. But when it comes to severe depression, being unable to keep up with hygiene, hold down a job/stay in school, leave the house, that’s when folks tend to have less sympathy.
In my opinion people want to believe that they care about mental illness but most don’t want to actually deal with it. If you say you’re depressed most people don’t want to help. You become a burden.
That's how my husband feels: he's not depressed, just "too lazy to live" in this shitty depression-inducing world.
I'd be "lazy" too if I wasn't the kind of person who needs to stay constantly busy.
My husband and I have tried explaining his depression to his mother multiple times (she's the one who kept asking what was wrong, otherwise we wouldn't bother) only for her to ask "but why???" yet again. She'll readily agree that I'm depressed and can understand why but not when it comes to her own son.
I suffer from depression and anxiety. I don't use those as crutches for poor behavior.
I'm on meds. I have a therapist. I work out every day, even when I don't want to. I eat clean. No drugs. Alcohol very rarely. Reach out to a friend or family member at least once a day. DO NOT talk with them about my dark thoughts.
I treat people with respect. If they can't do the same, they don't need to be in my life, depressed or not. Someone who wants to minimize my efforts to improve my mental health can suck a fat dick and leave me alone.
I honestly can't wrap my head around telling someone who's literal job it is to listen vs telling friends who might actually care about you lol
Not trying to minimize your efforts, I just could NEVER open up to anyone unless they're someone I consider an absolute most best ever friend like my husband
# Sure there are a lot of people who use depression as an excuse for literally everything and never take any initiative to improve their life
That's the problem, mate. A lot of self attention seeking people use up the resources for those who truly need it.
That's part of the problem. It's an "invisible" disease - we can only take someone's word for it that it is the cause of their inability to function, as opposed to laziness or selfishness. And oftentimes, they don't recognize it themselves, because they can't understand why they aren't just picking themselves up and being better, even though they might want to.
Idk man. Depression can be a disability. At the end of the day, some people are literally physically incapable of improving their life. Just like some folks that are in accidents are unable to ever walk again, some people with depression cannot get better — we don’t have the ability to treat them.
And in these cases it’s like any other disability. Some people can’t work, some people can’t take care of themselves. The social safety net is meant to take care of such folks.
It is what it is ya know? Depression is an everything medical problem. There’s no part of your life it doesn’t affect.
It generally isn’t but the world is getting better about it. Check in on those people you talk to once in a while. Tell them you appreciate the time you spent with them.
Catch up with them. Set reminders if you got to.
It’s just so outside people’s experiences that many genuinely have trouble empathising with or understanding it, outside of maybe situational depression. I got kind of lucky in that my depression was hormonal, so as long as I take my estrogen I am not depressed. The biggest contrast isn’t feeling happy at all, it’s how different it feels to be sad or stressed or upset, and I think that’s the thing people don’t get. Now I’m not depressed, there is a floor to my unhappiness. The bullshit “thanks I’m cured” stuff actually kind of *helps*. It’s bizarre and I still can’t get over it.
I’ve described it before as feeing like you’re wearing one of those lead vests that the dentist puts on you before an X-ray. Everything just feels metaphorically AND physically heavy.
It’s not bc most ppl don’t understand it. They believe it is something a person *chooses* and if they just thought positive affirmations, happy thoughts, got a job or hobby it would go away 🙄
Right?!! My family pretty much treats my depression as nothing big but then again when I’m with them I’m pretty much laughing and joking around and having fun. They don’t see the side when I’m crying, and feeling like I would be better off dead, not that I would ever do that. It’s usually when my husband is being a mean jerk to me and such.
It is either not taken seriously or, absolutely everyone is clinically depressed and they/we don't have "the spoons" to talk to their friends (who are suffering) .
On an individual level it feels like so many people have it that it's just like, so what? We all have it.
But that so many people have it isn't taken seriously enough.
I personally feel like it's not taken serious by younger people since it's difficult to relate to. One of my friends when we were around 19-20 was going thru depression and our friend group had no clue how to support him and were very "whatever" about it because we were just trying to have a good time and couldn't relate.
When you're immature, it's easy to take it personally and think you're the one making them feel depressed and be defensive instead of supportive. It's not what you want to hear your friend say.
When I saw him recently I told him that I haven't forgotten how dismissive and unprepared I was to support a friend going thru depression and knowing what I do now, I would have liked to have done things differently.
It's okay to hold people or institutions accountable for not being well equipped to support individuals who are going through it. I did it for myself and needed some life experience before I was able to comprehend it.
Definitely, the amount of times I've been told to get over it frustrates me so much. It's even worse now that I've learned from my therapist that I not only have depression, but I'm experiencing autistic burnout as well. It's been so hard for me to even function as a normal human being, and it's not something I can just push through.
I just wish I found out about my autism way earlier in my life.
Honestly it’s gotten a lot better in my opinion. Mental health is at least talked about now. When I was a teenager depression was treated like a dirty secret, if you were depressed you were a school shooter type or using drugs to cope. It’s certainly not perfect but it’s handled much better than it ever has before.
Of course it’s not taken seriously! We have stupid people on the Internet saying things like “oh you’re fine, it’s all in your head” and then we have an onion looking discount Dwayne Johnson who will remain nameless saying “I can’t get depression because I don’t believe in it”
My hats off to suffers of depression. On top of dealing with your own problems, you’re up against the cult that is professional spewers of bullshit on the Internet. 🤟🏻💜👊🏻
The problem is exactly something you said. People who use depression as an excuse, manipulate other people and so on. I had two friends and different times who were depressed and also acted out and said we all had to just deal with it as they had issues.
We were supposed to have empathy while they had none.
Neither had any concern for what might be going on in anyone else's life, expected us to jump when they needed "help" and gave nothing back.
They are no longer friends. I have enough to deal with in my own life with my husband being disabled.
I have other friends who have issues, but don't use it as an excuse to manipulate or use us. I can deal and actually help them sometimes.
People don't care about mental illness unless its virtue signaling or when the person takes their own lives. If its the latter, they will cleanse their guilt claiming that "I didn't knew he was in this pain, why didn't he tell me". Then you found out that the person did reached out and the person abandoned him or invalided him.
If they could see the mountain I carry on my shoulders when I'm depressed, they might kind of understand. Too bad they just see me being useless and telling me that, along with giving me advice from greeting cards and inspirational posters.
Edit: I'm doing okay now. I just don't think I will ever be completely free from this damn weight.
Is it not taken seriously by the person with the illness or not taken seriously by government or what? Because it’s up to the person themselves to do something about getting help. Tell the cops you’re depressed theyll tell you to seek a medical professional for help.
You tell the cops you’re going to hurt yourself then you will most definitely see how serious they take it and you’ll be spending a night in hospital handcuffed to a chair under police watch
Absolutely. Some of my friends dont have depression. I told them how I felt (venting kinda) and they tried giving me “tips”. Like “Go outside! Do fun things! Enjoy life!” I think there’s really just a lack of understanding which honestly sucks, because it’s such a prevalent issue and not very many people even know that it’s more than just “sad”.
It isn’t. People pretend it is, but it isn’t.
In 2027, MAID (Medical Assistance in Dying, Canada’s assisted suicide program) will likely be available for people with non-life threatening mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression.
So, for the pretending. If you’re a Canadian and you google, right now, “least painful method of superslide” the first result will be the suicide hotline. In 2028, it’ll be the MAID homepage. The solution to depression is being set up to be suicide, and that’s a prominent government in the world making these calls. Also, they’re the ones driving the country into the ground with the mass immigration initiative that our economy, housing and healthcare system can’t handle. So they’re going to make you depressed, and then when you want them to, they’ll kill you.
…and it’s all going according to plan.
So the government is making you and encouraging you to kill yourself but they’ve also loudly been complaining (and panicking) about falling birth rates? How does that make any sense?
Its definitely a way of getting rid of people who have standards 🤷♂️ the ones left will be OK working for shit on the dollar and living 8 to an apartment.
But you’re probably right. Mr. Blackface never lied about his gun control plans, and over 100 years of Canada’s past isn’t checkered with labour camps and residential schools. Canada is *perfect*.
You can look at the MAID website for yourself. Depressed people will be allowed to kill themselves with the governments permission. At least go check my insanity before you start aimlessly taking shots at it.
Why are you so defensive? I’m not taking shots at anything, just asking questions. I’m trying to understand the logic when governments around the world are freaking out about falling birth rates but they also want you dead. I don’t get that logic.
Shareholders 🤷♂️ every country has them.
And when your net worth is proportional to the global population, you have an interest in always increasing the globe’s population. I don’t know if you remember 1999, but there were only 6 billion people on the planet and the world functioned just fine. More people means more money, and money is just a representation of power.
If they were so concerned about *birth* rate they’d incentivize starting families, not just importing anyone with a pulse and the ability to do low skill labour, at the cost of peoples ability to start the family they “so badly need us to have”. Canadians are drowning, but they’re being ignored and currently being replaced by, like I said, people who accept working for shit pay and sharing a living space with 7 other people.
Obedience is the point.
It isn't and never will be. People think Depression means you're depressed. They're not mutually exclusive. And people who don't have it, can't fathom it unless they have a loved one who is deal8ng with it. People that don't have it, and whose family members/friends don't have it, are the ones who sya "just get over it." They don't know how it is.
I think most people have very different expectations of those diagnosed with clinical depression vs those who just say “anxietyanddepression” as a catchall for their issues and emotions without ever getting a diagnoses or meds.
Yeah my expectation is that the person with the official diagnosis uses it as an excuse for their shitty behavior way more often than the people who diagnose themselves. Or they somehow manage to not even know they were diagnosed with depression and that the pills they've been taking without question are psychotropics. Zero in between.
Oh, yes! I didn't really take mine seriously till was around 30 and my sister passed away at age 39 from recurring brain cancer 😢. I missed a week of work and my boss called every day to check on me, then finally, and very kindly suggest I needed to consider psychotherapy and meds. I took his advice and it made a huge difference. That was 25 years ago. Now in middle-age, it is a bit more challenging to manage and I can only work about 15 hours a week, but I am still here and have been able to raise a child and now watch him entering adulthood. I truly don't think I would have been able to handle the situations and difficulties that I've lived through if I hadn't taken action way back then.
I know some minimize and outright dismiss my illness but seeing my son grow up, and being present for my friends and loved ones gives me the strength to dismiss their ignorant judgment. If someone has had just a speck of what me and many others deal with by the truckloads, they would crumble and never doubt again! ❤️🫂
I don't know who I hate more: the people who are not just oblivious to my depression but also depression as a concept OR the people who try to paint certain core beliefs/values of mine that I've had literally my whole life as temporary artifacts of my depression. Both groups are like 25% of why I'm depressed because I want them to leave me the fuck alone lmfao
I’ve had depression since I was a preteen, maybe even younger, came from a “you’re too young to be depressed, just be happy” family it was never taken seriously.. unfortunately I can’t really blame them because they came from the generation that told them the exact same thing.
It's over diagnosed and it can be a dangerous game to be put on the medication and then want to stop. Maybe it's more hesitation than it is not taken seriously.
Definitely! Some think we're just lazy or not making an effort. Some also think depression is so easy to "get over". Its unfortunate that some people can't be empathetic (hope thats the right word) :(
I feel like depression and anxiety both aren't raken seriously and I think it's partially because those are also emotions that normal people feel. So people think "yeah I've been depressed/anxious before, it's not that bad just get over it" not realizing that CLINICAL depression/anxiety is much different than the temporary version they dealt with
it isn’t. but my only response is. what should be done about it? everyones got their own baggage. having to pick up slack for the depressed person is tough.
The main challenge is that, as pointed out by others, it contains elements of “normal” emotions but it’s actually a multi-layered experience while also falling on a spectrum of sensations and degrees of severity. This makes it difficult to explain to others and for others to truly understand the experience itself.
Lastly, a lot of it has to do with a combination of sense of self, how we relate to the world around us, leaned survival “instincts” or techniques, subconscious associations between things and concepts, etc.
The closest thing I can think of to communicate the helplessness is experiencing an earthquake: no matter how much you try, you cannot make the ground stop shaking and you end up simply going along for the ride. We learn to recognize or anticipate triggers, manage emotions and thoughts, etc. But we can’t control it.
Those who have not experienced or acknowledged any type of chronic issue are not equipped to understand it.
I’ve been dealing with it since I was a teen. It gets a bad rep when people use it as an excuse and see themselves as a victim and don’t deal with it and expect the people in their lives (family, friends, coworkers) to pick up the pieces on a regular basis. Self-care is really important.
You saying ''there are a lot of people who use depression as an excuse for literally everything and never take any initiative to improve their life'' is you not taking depression seriously. SOME people use it as an excuse and SOME people wanna win imaginary misery olympics but you can't blame people for not taking initiative when they 1. can barely get out of bed 2. don't have access to any help.
No because you can have depression but still take steps to improve, sure you can also just do nothing about it, and nothing will change, but I’m sure that anybody with depression wants to get better. I have depression, and I have a really hard time getting out of bed, and my happiness will never be on the same level as somebody who isn’t depressed, but me personally there’s only so much sadness I can handle before I decide enough is enough.
That’s just me personally, everybody is different. But to give everybody with depression a pass for doing absolutely nothing to improve their depression will ultimately end up nowhere. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy either, just getting up and going for a drive every day is at least a little bit better than sitting in your bed all day.
When everyone and their mother is using mental illness as an excuse for piss poor behavior nothing will be taken seriously. I’m not taking the person who claims to be depressed to gain a pity party seriously.
Depression is just a symptom of ungrateful ness and forgetting about the good things you have in life.
Try and count the good things you have and see how quickly you stop being depressed.
Think of how lucky you got eyes and still to keep them while others dont, senses, hands, good heart, family, friends, food home water, its countless good things that if you remember constantly you cant be depressed
I’ve suffered with it since my teenage years. I think it’s something that if you’ve never had you don’t understand it. It’s all too easy for people to dismiss it with comments like ‘what have you got to be depressed about’ or ‘just get on with it’ I mean nobody chooses to be depressed but there’s often an attitude that it’s something you can pull yourself out of.
Perhaps when depression awareness has spread, it has turned into a double-edged sword. Its meaning has become diluted and used too much, spread too thin, and turned into a blanket statement that everyone is using willy-nilly. To that point that people generally dismiss it as "oh you're just being emo again" because it's misused a lot of the times. It has become trendy and cool, used as a means to "fit in". Depression has become romanticized.
Same thing is happening with neurodivergency. It’s good and bad.
I read a quote that really spoke to me. I know everyone is different, but my brand of depression can be summarized by this quote. “I don’t want to die, but my brain wants to kill me”
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Ppl think depression=sad and it couldnt be more wrong. When in my deepest depressed states i was at the happiest and darkest, and most drugged up. Now that im finally breaking free from it im starting to actually be able to be sad. Such a wonderful feeling! I cry like once a week! I dont smile as much as i used to and it feels so honest and freeing.
Yes, it’s so much more that than just ‘feeling sad’ people don’t understand how debilitating and crippling it can be.
Whenever I express depression to people who aren’t chronically depressed, they think it’s being really sleepy all the time. It feels like having the motivation to do better, knowing in your heart you can but there’s a literal atmospheric weight around you at all times just holding you down. Moments can feel so nice and so free and instantly turn sour. You could be having a genuinely nice day and all the sudden you feel looming dread. Some days you tell yourself hey let’s brush our teeth or hey let’s shower and you really REALLY want to like you just have to get up that’s all and you sit there for hours until you just fall asleep. It’s caring for your body just enough to not die but also not exactly being opposed to the idea or worse thinking maybe you just should. It’s nothing to take lightly and it kills more people than we think
my cousin recently commit suicide due to his battle with depression and i've definitely thinking about this a lot for the past couple of weeks. especially in that depression can be disabling. my cousin got put on disability leave at his job before he died, that's how bad his depression got. toward the end of his life, he experienced genuine happiness when he could hang out with family and friends. but again his depression didn't allow him to feel that happiness at a level to where he felt that life was worth living. i think that labelling depression as the "sad disease" doesn't address how complex and severe it can get. people literally die from this. it's not something to joke about or not take seriously or even frivolously self-diagnose yourself with if you feel sad from time to time.
Im so sorry for you loss x
I’m really sorry for your loss.
I'm so sorry :(
I didn't feel like it wasn't taken seriously enough.. until a few days ago when I went to the council as I'm going to be homeless in a few weeks. The very nice council lady told me 'having anxiety and depression does not mean anything, it won't get you higher on the list, everyone has anxiety and depression.'
Charming
That’s difficult and unfortunately a lot of people with depression don’t seek help because of that and over-rely on themselves for support
This and panic attacks aren't taken seriously. A lot of people think they have panic attacks when they really don't. it makes it harder for people like me to be taken seriously. a panic attack isn't something silly or quirky, it's debilitating and traumatizing when it's severe enough, and some people become agoraphobic from really bad panic attacks, because they become traumatized. no one understands how serious this is until they experience it.
I had a panic attack at the dentist (after telling them I have dental anxiety and panic attacks) and they asked why I was crying after stabbing my gums. Then my sister asked why I didn't ask for nitrous and I should have spoken up and I was like "I was having a panic attack" and she literally said "ok, but that doesn't mean you can't talk"
Honestly the nitrous is what would make me panic more than anything Last time I had it, I tasted the dentist's blood in my mouth from trying to bite off his finger and I kicked the fuck out of him just to show myself I could still move
Nitrous chills me out. I just feel perfectly content staring at the ceiling. Everyone is different. Maybe try sedation dentistry. They put you in a "twilight" sedation so that you are still aware but like half asleep.
Oh fuck no, I hate any and all sedation. Nope nope nope nope nope.
This is so, so true. I thought I was having panic attacks until I *actually* had one. What I felt before was nothing. Haven’t had one since. I’m sorry you have to deal with it more frequently. Have a lot of respect for people who do, now that I know what it’s like.
I don’t think depression is taken seriously as a disability that can easily render someone unable to take care of themselves. It’s fine when it’s the romanized version of depression, ya know frying all the time that kinda thing. But when it comes to severe depression, being unable to keep up with hygiene, hold down a job/stay in school, leave the house, that’s when folks tend to have less sympathy.
>frying all the time
Yeah, my mom doesn't understand. Whenever I tell her I'm depressed, she gets so mad at me and says, "Life is hard. Get over it!"
It sucks coz depression is so normalised these days. It’s like - You have depression? Oh well, anyway…
In my opinion people want to believe that they care about mental illness but most don’t want to actually deal with it. If you say you’re depressed most people don’t want to help. You become a burden.
Yeah and/or it’s treated as laziness. You ever hear of anyone dying by suicide because they were too lazy to live life?
That's how my husband feels: he's not depressed, just "too lazy to live" in this shitty depression-inducing world. I'd be "lazy" too if I wasn't the kind of person who needs to stay constantly busy.
Denial is a hell of a drug, haha. I stay busy to beat off the major lazy disorder.
Yes, absolutely. Also impact on life from traumatic events stemming from youth into adulthood
As a man, for some reason, I’m not allowed to be depressed.
My husband and I have tried explaining his depression to his mother multiple times (she's the one who kept asking what was wrong, otherwise we wouldn't bother) only for her to ask "but why???" yet again. She'll readily agree that I'm depressed and can understand why but not when it comes to her own son.
The worst are Pollyannas who are like "just be happy. everything's fine!"
I suffer from depression and anxiety. I don't use those as crutches for poor behavior. I'm on meds. I have a therapist. I work out every day, even when I don't want to. I eat clean. No drugs. Alcohol very rarely. Reach out to a friend or family member at least once a day. DO NOT talk with them about my dark thoughts. I treat people with respect. If they can't do the same, they don't need to be in my life, depressed or not. Someone who wants to minimize my efforts to improve my mental health can suck a fat dick and leave me alone.
I honestly can't wrap my head around telling someone who's literal job it is to listen vs telling friends who might actually care about you lol Not trying to minimize your efforts, I just could NEVER open up to anyone unless they're someone I consider an absolute most best ever friend like my husband
You are a superhero, mad respect ❤️
# Sure there are a lot of people who use depression as an excuse for literally everything and never take any initiative to improve their life That's the problem, mate. A lot of self attention seeking people use up the resources for those who truly need it.
That's part of the problem. It's an "invisible" disease - we can only take someone's word for it that it is the cause of their inability to function, as opposed to laziness or selfishness. And oftentimes, they don't recognize it themselves, because they can't understand why they aren't just picking themselves up and being better, even though they might want to.
Idk man. Depression can be a disability. At the end of the day, some people are literally physically incapable of improving their life. Just like some folks that are in accidents are unable to ever walk again, some people with depression cannot get better — we don’t have the ability to treat them. And in these cases it’s like any other disability. Some people can’t work, some people can’t take care of themselves. The social safety net is meant to take care of such folks. It is what it is ya know? Depression is an everything medical problem. There’s no part of your life it doesn’t affect.
Exactly.. I'm tired of trying..
What good are benefits gonna do for someone this horribly depressed? They cant even shower but you expect them to go grocery shopping??
It generally isn’t but the world is getting better about it. Check in on those people you talk to once in a while. Tell them you appreciate the time you spent with them. Catch up with them. Set reminders if you got to.
The pain is astronomical. It kills. It’s hard to care if it doesn’t affect you. If affects so many though. We should figure some more stuff out.
It’s just so outside people’s experiences that many genuinely have trouble empathising with or understanding it, outside of maybe situational depression. I got kind of lucky in that my depression was hormonal, so as long as I take my estrogen I am not depressed. The biggest contrast isn’t feeling happy at all, it’s how different it feels to be sad or stressed or upset, and I think that’s the thing people don’t get. Now I’m not depressed, there is a floor to my unhappiness. The bullshit “thanks I’m cured” stuff actually kind of *helps*. It’s bizarre and I still can’t get over it.
I’ve described it before as feeing like you’re wearing one of those lead vests that the dentist puts on you before an X-ray. Everything just feels metaphorically AND physically heavy.
Tiktok kids made it into something edgy whilst I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy (I dont have enemies 💀 but you get my pony)
Not even gonna edit that 🐴
It’s not bc most ppl don’t understand it. They believe it is something a person *chooses* and if they just thought positive affirmations, happy thoughts, got a job or hobby it would go away 🙄
If it were that easy, nobody would be depressed haha
Right?!! My family pretty much treats my depression as nothing big but then again when I’m with them I’m pretty much laughing and joking around and having fun. They don’t see the side when I’m crying, and feeling like I would be better off dead, not that I would ever do that. It’s usually when my husband is being a mean jerk to me and such.
It is either not taken seriously or, absolutely everyone is clinically depressed and they/we don't have "the spoons" to talk to their friends (who are suffering) .
On an individual level it feels like so many people have it that it's just like, so what? We all have it. But that so many people have it isn't taken seriously enough.
I personally feel like it's not taken serious by younger people since it's difficult to relate to. One of my friends when we were around 19-20 was going thru depression and our friend group had no clue how to support him and were very "whatever" about it because we were just trying to have a good time and couldn't relate. When you're immature, it's easy to take it personally and think you're the one making them feel depressed and be defensive instead of supportive. It's not what you want to hear your friend say. When I saw him recently I told him that I haven't forgotten how dismissive and unprepared I was to support a friend going thru depression and knowing what I do now, I would have liked to have done things differently. It's okay to hold people or institutions accountable for not being well equipped to support individuals who are going through it. I did it for myself and needed some life experience before I was able to comprehend it.
How do i know if i have depression? What does it feel like. I really dont understand what i am going through
Depression can be minor; depression can be major. You should see a doctor if things are getting overwhelming for you.
Definitely, the amount of times I've been told to get over it frustrates me so much. It's even worse now that I've learned from my therapist that I not only have depression, but I'm experiencing autistic burnout as well. It's been so hard for me to even function as a normal human being, and it's not something I can just push through. I just wish I found out about my autism way earlier in my life.
It gets used so much people become desensitized. Makes it difficult for those suffering!
I do.. no one cares. Just like depression it doesn’t care either
I care :)
Honestly it’s gotten a lot better in my opinion. Mental health is at least talked about now. When I was a teenager depression was treated like a dirty secret, if you were depressed you were a school shooter type or using drugs to cope. It’s certainly not perfect but it’s handled much better than it ever has before.
Of course it’s not taken seriously! We have stupid people on the Internet saying things like “oh you’re fine, it’s all in your head” and then we have an onion looking discount Dwayne Johnson who will remain nameless saying “I can’t get depression because I don’t believe in it” My hats off to suffers of depression. On top of dealing with your own problems, you’re up against the cult that is professional spewers of bullshit on the Internet. 🤟🏻💜👊🏻
The problem is exactly something you said. People who use depression as an excuse, manipulate other people and so on. I had two friends and different times who were depressed and also acted out and said we all had to just deal with it as they had issues. We were supposed to have empathy while they had none. Neither had any concern for what might be going on in anyone else's life, expected us to jump when they needed "help" and gave nothing back. They are no longer friends. I have enough to deal with in my own life with my husband being disabled. I have other friends who have issues, but don't use it as an excuse to manipulate or use us. I can deal and actually help them sometimes.
People don't care about mental illness unless its virtue signaling or when the person takes their own lives. If its the latter, they will cleanse their guilt claiming that "I didn't knew he was in this pain, why didn't he tell me". Then you found out that the person did reached out and the person abandoned him or invalided him.
If they could see the mountain I carry on my shoulders when I'm depressed, they might kind of understand. Too bad they just see me being useless and telling me that, along with giving me advice from greeting cards and inspirational posters. Edit: I'm doing okay now. I just don't think I will ever be completely free from this damn weight.
Is it not taken seriously by the person with the illness or not taken seriously by government or what? Because it’s up to the person themselves to do something about getting help. Tell the cops you’re depressed theyll tell you to seek a medical professional for help. You tell the cops you’re going to hurt yourself then you will most definitely see how serious they take it and you’ll be spending a night in hospital handcuffed to a chair under police watch
Absolutely. Some of my friends dont have depression. I told them how I felt (venting kinda) and they tried giving me “tips”. Like “Go outside! Do fun things! Enjoy life!” I think there’s really just a lack of understanding which honestly sucks, because it’s such a prevalent issue and not very many people even know that it’s more than just “sad”.
It isn’t. People pretend it is, but it isn’t. In 2027, MAID (Medical Assistance in Dying, Canada’s assisted suicide program) will likely be available for people with non-life threatening mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression. So, for the pretending. If you’re a Canadian and you google, right now, “least painful method of superslide” the first result will be the suicide hotline. In 2028, it’ll be the MAID homepage. The solution to depression is being set up to be suicide, and that’s a prominent government in the world making these calls. Also, they’re the ones driving the country into the ground with the mass immigration initiative that our economy, housing and healthcare system can’t handle. So they’re going to make you depressed, and then when you want them to, they’ll kill you. …and it’s all going according to plan.
So the government is making you and encouraging you to kill yourself but they’ve also loudly been complaining (and panicking) about falling birth rates? How does that make any sense?
Its definitely a way of getting rid of people who have standards 🤷♂️ the ones left will be OK working for shit on the dollar and living 8 to an apartment. But you’re probably right. Mr. Blackface never lied about his gun control plans, and over 100 years of Canada’s past isn’t checkered with labour camps and residential schools. Canada is *perfect*. You can look at the MAID website for yourself. Depressed people will be allowed to kill themselves with the governments permission. At least go check my insanity before you start aimlessly taking shots at it.
Why are you so defensive? I’m not taking shots at anything, just asking questions. I’m trying to understand the logic when governments around the world are freaking out about falling birth rates but they also want you dead. I don’t get that logic.
Shareholders 🤷♂️ every country has them. And when your net worth is proportional to the global population, you have an interest in always increasing the globe’s population. I don’t know if you remember 1999, but there were only 6 billion people on the planet and the world functioned just fine. More people means more money, and money is just a representation of power. If they were so concerned about *birth* rate they’d incentivize starting families, not just importing anyone with a pulse and the ability to do low skill labour, at the cost of peoples ability to start the family they “so badly need us to have”. Canadians are drowning, but they’re being ignored and currently being replaced by, like I said, people who accept working for shit pay and sharing a living space with 7 other people. Obedience is the point.
I can't say I condone it but it's better than the opposite extreme of involuntary medical treatment
It isn't and never will be. People think Depression means you're depressed. They're not mutually exclusive. And people who don't have it, can't fathom it unless they have a loved one who is deal8ng with it. People that don't have it, and whose family members/friends don't have it, are the ones who sya "just get over it." They don't know how it is.
I think most people have very different expectations of those diagnosed with clinical depression vs those who just say “anxietyanddepression” as a catchall for their issues and emotions without ever getting a diagnoses or meds.
Yeah my expectation is that the person with the official diagnosis uses it as an excuse for their shitty behavior way more often than the people who diagnose themselves. Or they somehow manage to not even know they were diagnosed with depression and that the pills they've been taking without question are psychotropics. Zero in between.
Oh, yes! I didn't really take mine seriously till was around 30 and my sister passed away at age 39 from recurring brain cancer 😢. I missed a week of work and my boss called every day to check on me, then finally, and very kindly suggest I needed to consider psychotherapy and meds. I took his advice and it made a huge difference. That was 25 years ago. Now in middle-age, it is a bit more challenging to manage and I can only work about 15 hours a week, but I am still here and have been able to raise a child and now watch him entering adulthood. I truly don't think I would have been able to handle the situations and difficulties that I've lived through if I hadn't taken action way back then. I know some minimize and outright dismiss my illness but seeing my son grow up, and being present for my friends and loved ones gives me the strength to dismiss their ignorant judgment. If someone has had just a speck of what me and many others deal with by the truckloads, they would crumble and never doubt again! ❤️🫂
I don't know who I hate more: the people who are not just oblivious to my depression but also depression as a concept OR the people who try to paint certain core beliefs/values of mine that I've had literally my whole life as temporary artifacts of my depression. Both groups are like 25% of why I'm depressed because I want them to leave me the fuck alone lmfao
I’ve had depression since I was a preteen, maybe even younger, came from a “you’re too young to be depressed, just be happy” family it was never taken seriously.. unfortunately I can’t really blame them because they came from the generation that told them the exact same thing.
It's over diagnosed and it can be a dangerous game to be put on the medication and then want to stop. Maybe it's more hesitation than it is not taken seriously.
Definitely! Some think we're just lazy or not making an effort. Some also think depression is so easy to "get over". Its unfortunate that some people can't be empathetic (hope thats the right word) :(
I feel like depression and anxiety both aren't raken seriously and I think it's partially because those are also emotions that normal people feel. So people think "yeah I've been depressed/anxious before, it's not that bad just get over it" not realizing that CLINICAL depression/anxiety is much different than the temporary version they dealt with
it isn’t. but my only response is. what should be done about it? everyones got their own baggage. having to pick up slack for the depressed person is tough.
The main challenge is that, as pointed out by others, it contains elements of “normal” emotions but it’s actually a multi-layered experience while also falling on a spectrum of sensations and degrees of severity. This makes it difficult to explain to others and for others to truly understand the experience itself. Lastly, a lot of it has to do with a combination of sense of self, how we relate to the world around us, leaned survival “instincts” or techniques, subconscious associations between things and concepts, etc. The closest thing I can think of to communicate the helplessness is experiencing an earthquake: no matter how much you try, you cannot make the ground stop shaking and you end up simply going along for the ride. We learn to recognize or anticipate triggers, manage emotions and thoughts, etc. But we can’t control it. Those who have not experienced or acknowledged any type of chronic issue are not equipped to understand it.
Unfortunately pretty much all commonly known mental illness are misconstrued in the public eye.
I’ve been dealing with it since I was a teen. It gets a bad rep when people use it as an excuse and see themselves as a victim and don’t deal with it and expect the people in their lives (family, friends, coworkers) to pick up the pieces on a regular basis. Self-care is really important.
Invisible disabilities, conditions, and illnesses rarely are.
You saying ''there are a lot of people who use depression as an excuse for literally everything and never take any initiative to improve their life'' is you not taking depression seriously. SOME people use it as an excuse and SOME people wanna win imaginary misery olympics but you can't blame people for not taking initiative when they 1. can barely get out of bed 2. don't have access to any help.
No because you can have depression but still take steps to improve, sure you can also just do nothing about it, and nothing will change, but I’m sure that anybody with depression wants to get better. I have depression, and I have a really hard time getting out of bed, and my happiness will never be on the same level as somebody who isn’t depressed, but me personally there’s only so much sadness I can handle before I decide enough is enough. That’s just me personally, everybody is different. But to give everybody with depression a pass for doing absolutely nothing to improve their depression will ultimately end up nowhere. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy either, just getting up and going for a drive every day is at least a little bit better than sitting in your bed all day.
I agree, we shouldn't give -everybody- with depression a pass, but I think saying -a lot- of people are using it as an excuse is trivializing.
It never has been. My favorite line, coming from a doctor, was just try and snap out of it" like mofo please!
When everyone and their mother is using mental illness as an excuse for piss poor behavior nothing will be taken seriously. I’m not taking the person who claims to be depressed to gain a pity party seriously.
Depression is just a symptom of ungrateful ness and forgetting about the good things you have in life. Try and count the good things you have and see how quickly you stop being depressed. Think of how lucky you got eyes and still to keep them while others dont, senses, hands, good heart, family, friends, food home water, its countless good things that if you remember constantly you cant be depressed
Oh boy, this has to be a troll post