Depression
“Depression is the most unpleasant thing I have ever experienced. . . . It is that absence of being able to envisage that you will ever be cheerful again. The absence of hope. That very deadened feeling, which is so very different from feeling sad. Sad hurts but it’s a healthy feeling. It is a necessary thing to feel. Depression is very different.”
While it’s true that we all feel sad or down from time to time, depression takes these feelings to a completely different level. It feels like you have fallen into a dark hole, and the longer you stay there, the harder it is to get out. Feelings of emptiness, worthlessness, and despair take over and spread into all different areas of life making it feel impossible to be happy again.
You may try to put on a happy face to keep from bringing those around you down, or feel like a burden to share these feelings. Depression is lonely, and feeling the need to keep it to yourself only increases this feeling. Even when the darkness feels permanent, help is a phone call away.
You don’t need to have a reason, an explanation, or even understand why you feel the way you do to seek help. Through support, exploration of emotions, and self-reflection, we can work together to help you find your way out of the darkness and back to enjoying your life.
**If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide or self harm and are in danger, please call 911 or call/text the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988
“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”