Things You Shouldn't Say To Someone With Depression
I guess this goes with the whole metal illness taboo. As someone who suffers from depression & anxiety, there as been many things that i've heard from certain people. Either people aren't understanding of how you feel or they are just downright nasty. Depression is something that most of the world suffers with, either in silence or with support of therapists. It's a battle and for some it's a battle that can't be won, it's a battle that's emotionally exhausting. People need to be more understanding of metal health because it is as important as our physical health.
1. There’s nothing to be upset about. There’s actually a lot in the world to be upset about; people with depression just spend more time aware of it.
2. Everything will be OK. This fact hasn’t escaped our awareness, but things still feel pretty shitty right now.
3. Life isn’t fair. This is, once again, downplaying this person’s feelings. No, life may not be fair, but that won’t make them feel any better about their situation.
4. You just have to deal with it. Someone who struggles with depression IS dealing with it…every single day…as best they can. Saying this undermines them and could make them feel as if they aren’t good enough.
5. Life goes on. Yeah, life does go on, but for someone dealing with depression, it can feel as if they are stuck with no way out. They probably have trouble imagining getting through a day, let alone the entire week.
6. Don’t cry. With the exception of actors playing a role, most people, depressed or otherwise, don’t intentionally cry. If you see someone cry, you’re probably seeing tears they tried to fight back. Don’t make them feel worse for letting them escape.
7. Have you tried getting eating better/sleeping less/exercising more/getting more light? If depression could be cured that easily, nobody would suffer from it. Most people with depression have already tried everything in the book and more.
8. You have a mental illness? Then you must be crazy! Again, this is extremely ignorant. Mental illnesses are just like physical illnesses - you treat them and get better. Having depression does not make someone crazy.
9. Just think positive. This is one that really annoys me, like we all try and think positively but it's such a chore sometimes. Even the most positive people in the world can fall victim to depression. This point goes back to that whole “depression is an illness” thing. Anyone can fall victim - positive people included.
10. "Happiness is a choice." Have you ever noticed that clinically depressed people — regardless of their lifestyle, their income, their gender, their location, their political or religious views — deal with the same feelings? I'm tired, my life has no meaning, I feel doomed, hopeless, worthless, and I'm not sure how much longer I can do this. You bore yourself with your own repetitive thoughts. It's not like you're enjoying or wallowing in your negative feelings. Nobody's choosing to feel this way.
Although your heart might be in the right place, just think is it really going to help. Instead of being judgemental, be understanding, try to understand. Be a friend. We don't need pity, we need someone to support us during those bad mental health days, to comfort us without treating us like an invalid because We Are Not An Invalid.
Thanks for reading this post, i wasn't 100% sure whether to post it after it's been sitting in my drafts for awhile but what the hell
