Depression
Transformed by Despair
Everyone, even the likes of Tony Robbins and Eckhart Tolle, has a bad day. And if you’re one of the few who swears you’ve never experienced dark times, I question if you are human. Some can use spiritual or Zen rhetoric to pontificate that there is no such thing as “bad,” that it’s simply perception. But if you were to strip out the spiritual jargon, a bad day is a bad day.
This is especially if it’s not only bad but you’ve reached your lowest point. You’ve hit rock bottom. Taken from 16th-century Spanish poet, Saint John of the Cross and his famous Noche obscura del alma. Translated into English it means The Dark Night of the Soul. Tolle and others have used the poem’s title to describe a moment in their lives when the feeling of utter despair became all-consuming. Read the rest of this entry »
Depression is NOT Lack of Gratitude
In my experience, anytime people hear of someone who throws the word “depressed” around with the next breath you are automatically bombarded with the word “gratitude.” And the more you’ve seemingly accomplished in life, it seems, the more you’re a total moron for living with a serious and underestimated illness such as clinical depression. Read the rest of this entry »
Lack of Community + Selfishly Independent = Depression
Until 12,000 years ago, approximately 90 percent of human history functioned off of food foraging. Our communities were simple with simple tasks and roles. It seemed the simpler our society, the easier it was to live comfortably in supportive communities where people truly helped each other. Perhaps in communities, relationships are naturally cultivated and nurtured. The more advanced our civilization has evolved, the more competitive and autonomous we’ve all become.
We triple lock our doors, scoff as we wiz by the neighbor with the morning coffee in hand and hope that no one else interrupts our perfectly sculpted routine. Today, especially if you live in big cities, it almost seems impossible to say you live in a real community. Back in the day, we used to be able to knock on our neighbor’s doors to borrow a cup of sugar. We used to wave to familiar friends as we jogged down the street. While some people can genuinely say that they’ve managed to find the best and most friendly community to live in, I’m going to say most people have naturally become more shut off. It’s like the more you crave community, the more it shows that you are weak, needy, and even insecure?! Read the rest of this entry »
The Daunting Statistics on Depression & Suicide: More Awareness = Less Stigma
According to recent depression statistics, amongst Americans one out of ten claim to be suffering from depression. Nationally, out of all those who suffer only 20 percent actually get treated. In other words, 80 percent of clinically depressed individuals aren’t being treated at all. And the number of depressed individuals increases by 20 percent annually.
Why are so many individuals not receiving treatment for clinical depression? Perhaps the stigma, fear of what family, loved ones, and friends might think or say? Perhaps clinically depressed or the 80 percent that have symptoms of clinical depression are too proud or even embarrassed. Most people do not say that they really enjoy being around someone who is feeling down, especially if the “low days” tend to be often. When depression takes a hold of people susceptible to the illness, it can be situational where the depression is more or less seasonal. Read the rest of this entry »
R.I.P. Robin Williams: The Road to Mental Health Awareness is Not Without its Potholes
R.I.P. Robin Williams
DEPRESSION: A Serious Illness
In memory of the very tragic, shocking and sudden suicide of Robin Williams, I am re-posting the following article because I find it fitting for the moment. This was written in April and in my article Are Your Feelings Running Your Life, I provided a list of comedians that I learned had suffered or suffer from depression, bipolar disorder, or some form of mental illness. And yes, Robin Williams was apart of this list. Read the rest of this entry »
Writing With Hope 