Taking a moment to echo a beautiful post made by my dear friend Amy Shelden. Perhaps the death of Robin Williams can shed some light on things. If you know someone who suffers from depression, please know that your words and approach to them can be damaging. Please do not say pointless and stupid things like: - Why are you depressed? - Think of all the good things in your life. - Cheer up. - Count your blessings. - Oh, just choose to be happy instead. etc. etc. etc. That shit is stupid, ignorant, insulting and hurtful! YES. . . IT IS! We would not say these things to those with any other illness as a way to snap them out of it . . . so lets not say it to those who live with depression. Like any illness, it can be and is successfully treated in many cases. We need to understand depression. If we are NOT able to understand and grasp it fully, we need to at least accept that, like many diseases (addiction included), we are powerless over it. The depressed person clearly knows their pain. Forget the cheer up crap and start by simply letting them know that YOU recognize their suffering. Beneath the darkness that envelops them, is a person who wants out. The escape from that darkness is sometimes suicide. No, they are not cowards or selfish, they have suffered horribly to their breaking point. Get them to professional help or get help to them. A trained and certified mental health professional will help them or at least can be the first step on a road to living productively with their illness.
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 03:42:29 +0000
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