Seeing and Believing
I had a really, really bad day today depression-wise.
It got me thinking about how I’ve heard people refer to mental illnesses like depression as being ‘self-indulgent’ illnesses. As though people actively go out and court being sad to get attention.
I honestly don’t know how to respond to that. I’m so hurt that people would think that way. Because it isn’t an ‘obvious’ malady that is physical and can be seen and treated traditionally, suddenly it is a non-existent self-indulgent illness?
Depression is achingly real, and can (and often does) affect people physically. It hampers the ability to form relationships, forge a career and be an active participant in society. If statistics show that one in five people in Australia will suffer depression or a mental illness, it obviously has a potentially crippling affect on society as a whole.
So why is it not taken seriously? It’s like the last bastion of social discrimination.
Anyway, all I know is that I would definitely not want anyone to feel how I felt today. And to assume that I revel in it for some form of attention seeking really, really hurts.
Some people might not understand but always remember that plenty of other people do understand. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone. You’re spreading the word!