What’s so FUNNY About Depression?

What’s so FUNNY About Depression?

The truth is NOTHING is funny about depression. What is funny however, is the way some people act when they find out you have depression. One example which nearly knocked me off my socks with disbelief was “What do you have to be depressed about?”
Duh, live in my head for a month or so and maybe you’ll figure it out! This is a person who doesn’t even know enough to keep their mouth shut, let alone knowing anything at all about depression.

The next example is the person who says, “Kill myself? That would be the LAST thing I would ever do!! Well, yeah. It would be the last thing you’d ever do because you would be DEAD. I wish people would just listen to themselves sometime.

Then you have the people who say “Quit being so negative!” Again, if I could, I would. Why not just say or do something positive with me? When I do ask for your help; in what seems like a very small and insignificant matter to you may be the one thing I need to make it through the day; try making some room for me in your life. Keep your word to me and help me believe in people again. Don’t let me down.

If you don’t understand depression, there is so much on the internet it’s incredible. I printed out the symptoms of a manic episode so my husband would understand my behavior. It also helped me understand my behavior.

Now, another truth is that “coming out” with the fact you have depression or bi-polar syndrome is, for many, embarrassing. It was for me. I still live in fear that even by writing this article I will be branded and many of my friends or newly formed acquaintances will not want to be around me any more. I just hope they’re not around me any less.

When a depressed person is thankfully “up” it seems like a miracle. The sky is blue, the grass is green and life is good. We want to do all those things we have been putting off and will, no doubt, overdo it all. The next day the pain from too much physical exercise for one day (like rearranging the furniture in every room of the house), and the guilt for overspending, over talking, talking loudly, and anything else that one can feel guilty about, starts us on another downward slope. Sometimes we’re lucky and the good time can last a week or so, but this too shall pass.

Now the next issue to contend with is the medication. If you want to know how a guinea pig feels, just ask a depressed or bipolar patient who is starting on a new medication. You have to understand that in the beginning it is a trial and error period to see what works for you and what doesn’t. And, have you ever read those side effects? They include depression, stroke, suicidal tendencies, heart attack, and of course don’t forget that you can’t even take cough syrup because of drug interactions. It makes me wonder, what is worse, the illness or the cure?

The vital truth for me is that after finding what worked best for me, I can now live my life in peace, understanding, and patience. I now can enjoy my life, however meager it may be, and joy in my children’s accomplishments. If my only purpose in this world was to bring my children into this world to do their great things, that is enough. I no longer feel like I have wasted my life or that I’m not worth anything to anybody. I now know that it is not true. Make a promise to someone you love, that you will do your best to take care of yourself if you suffer from depression or bipolar; it may save your life. I know I did, and believe me, it saved mine.