depression
It is not just a matter of feeling sad; discover an honest view of the mental, emotional and physical toll of clinical depression.
Sharon & Me
Churchill called his depression ‘the black dog.’ Susan Calman, a Scottish comedian who wrote a hilarious memoir about her depression, called hers ‘the crab of hate.’ Seeing as I’m not particularly a fan of dogs or crabs, I won’t liken my depression to a particular animal. Animals, to me, seem like an unobvious choice for personifying depression.
By Niamh Dunne8 years ago in Psyche
Bullying
"You are ugly." "You will never graduate." "You are fat." These are just some words that I have been told. I don't really talk about my bullied experience. Some of this my own mother doesn't know about. So first thing you should know is I was always an outcast. My first time getting bullied was in 7-8th grade. I got pushed into lockers. I got kicked in the shins at lunch. I got laughed at when I failed at something. I got hit on the school bus. I got my hair pulled. This lasted for about 1-2 months. Then I spoke up (from the goodness of a friend). I told the principle and he talked to them. It stopped after that.
By Ashcraz McKay8 years ago in Psyche
The Invisible Friend
Depression comes and goes, just as if it was daylight fading into a moon lit sky. The stars come out. It’s a magical and glorious thing to see. All of the stars shining so bright, the apparent constellations, and the magnificent shooting star you see every so often. It’s just beautiful. But, just as the daylight fades, so do any feelings. All besides one. The smile that once lit up a room just like the peak of sunshine through your curtains and blinds, and the eyes that twinkled more then any star in the sky, seems to just... fade. Your mood changes into a dark and everlasting emotion. As if it was a black hole, or the night sky, where the moon is blocked by heavy clouds, and not a single star to brighten the lonely sky. For awhile you feel a hole. There’s a void. Something missing, or not right. But it’s making you uneasy. You can’t figure it out, but then, it seems like you’ve been held down. By an unapparent force. You can’t see that force. But you know who it is. It seems to be your comforting best friend who brings you back to your true form in the midst of the night. Like a werewolf that has changed from human to wolf with a full moon, except your true form isn’t another figure. It’s an imaginary figure, a thought in your mind. But this thought that’s been in the back of your head since you could remember can no longer be held back. The same memory that put you in this same stress-ridden place you’ve been placed in for years. As you look into your ceiling begging anyone in their afterlife, or god, or someone of higher power to just let you give up. You hold on. The commitment you make to family and friends is a greater power then the voice inside your head saying you’re too weak to keep going. That voice sees right through your fake smile, and knows the twinkle in your eyes are there because you force that to be there. You want everyone to think you’re stronger than you are. You’re like Achilles, except your weakness isn’t in your heel. It’s the pit in your stomach, and the hole in your heart that had seemed to grow more and more. The hole in your heart and the pit in your stomach could be self-inflicted, the aftermath of what you think reality is. As you wait to fall into a deep sleep so you can’t feel a thing, you seem unable to. When you do, it seems as though you cried before, during, and when you woke up. But you didn’t. As the mood stays for days on end, you’re left in the dark, wondering how long it’ll take you to lift your spirits for the millionth time. But that soothing, familiar feeling seems to have made you warm inside. Eventually, you don’t feel anything. You can’t feel pain, disappointment, or even sadness anymore. Just the thought of being tired, and not being good enough are lingering. But it seems as though you’ve been told too many times that you’re not good enough, so that doesn’t phase you anymore. That feeling turns into a pit of nothingness going down a never ending black hole. It’s soothing to feel serenity and peace, even though it’s just the opposite of what everyone else sees for the days you’ve been suckered in for. It’s the words your invisible friend has been telling you. The twinkle in your eye, the bright smile you once truly thought would stay this time, seem to be forced. Everybody notices but nobody asks. And you’re OK with that. Eventually, your feelings will fade into a lesser pain. But it never goes away. Just like a cold breeze on a warm day, or a cold breeze on a cold day. Everything lingers. When you’re back to yourself, you can see how bright the stars shine at night. You see how the moon lights up the sky. You finally can see how the universe is one, and works together to make a better version of itself. And that’s why you’re here, still. The greater power and beauty of the night sky resembles you as a person. Working in wonderful ways, stars exploding making a magnificent view for you to see, just for you to realize one day, that you are supposed to be right where you are.
By Maille Maloney8 years ago in Psyche
Depression
Nobody chooses to be sad or suffer from depression; many times it is situational depression caused by current, traumatic events or family dysfunction. Chronic depression comes and goes but can be just as dangerous, as it can lead to self-harm or suicide, a permanent solution to troubles and challenges. Some people suffer from genetic depression, inherited from parents.
By Martina R. Gallegos8 years ago in Psyche
One Year
One year. One year full of change, of healing, of regaining sense of who I am. I've made mistakes, and I've learned my lessons. I've mended broken friendships that are better now than they've ever been. I've put myself out there like I've never done before. Most importantly, I've become stronger and more independent than ever before in my entire life. I am no longer looking for gratification in others. I don't need financial stability from a man, I can do things on my own. I'm in control of my life and my aura, and it has taken me one year to figure it all out.
By Brittni Schultz8 years ago in Psyche
Hysterika on the Run
“All and all it’s just another brick in the wall” (Waters). For every burdensome thought or idea that weighs on one’s shoulders, the mind adds another brick to its wall of defenses. Mental illnesses manifest themselves in many ways. The mind tries to protect itself against undesirable thoughts. More often than not this onslaught of thoughts becomes too much for the mind and its walls come crumbling down. The narrator in “The Yellow Wallpaper” loses this decisive battle within her subconscious. When applying a psychoanalytic lens to “The Yellow Wallpaper,” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the narrator’s mental issues become evident, and her delusions can be explained by theories on psychological projection, postpartum depression, and early misconstrued beliefs pertaining to women’s mental illnesses and treatments.
By Almárëa Laurësil8 years ago in Psyche
Depression
Having a mental disorder can be really hard. It makes it harder to cure because so many people suffer from mental disorders such as depression but everyone copes with it differently. You often feel like you are the only one in the entire world feeling the way you are when in actual fact there are 350 million reported cases of depression.
By Emily Royal8 years ago in Psyche
The Man with 1000 Masks
What's the point? That is a question I find myself asking myself often. Why should I get out of bed when all I really want to do is drown in the covers of safety? Safety from the outside world the people in it, the people I'm supposed to care about. Safety from the constant fears of being labelled a failure for the entirety of my life, from never accomplishing anything. Safety from another day wasted sitting in my room doing nothing because I don't have the energy or motivation to go out and make something of myself. Awaiting the inevitable text or call to go out and see my friends or loved ones, knowing I'll have to go in my closet and grab a few masks so they never have to know and worry about what is really going on. Being too afraid of social rejection to tell anyone how serious this is in order to get proper help. Everyday pretending to smile and laugh, pretending to care about the new social trends that we're supposed to care about. Realizing how screwed I am when I don't even care who's supposed to be leading our nation. Because who can really lead us? No one has any answers here, we're all just guessing and doing our best to bullshit to the top of the food chain. You sprint through your lives like cheetah chasing a gazelle, while I relate more to the tortoise in a constant state of impending danger. If we must fear the indifference of good men above all else, then I am this worlds greatest threat with my indifference.
By Sloan Kettering8 years ago in Psyche
Depression
The thing I’ve learned since I was diagnosed is that everyone suffers from depression in very different ways and it affects everyone differently. Some people think of it as dark clouds and rain, but you know what? I love the rain. I could literally stand in the rain for hours and be perfectly content. Some people see it as a creature that sits on their back, dragging them down. In this piece, I’m going to tell you all how it affects me and some of the ways I try to overcome it.
By Den1c Macleod8 years ago in Psyche
