In an interesting article for The Guardian, SE Smith challenges the idea that being depressed means being sad and wearing black all the time. The author explores the conflicting pressures to be overtly depressed for the sake of being taken seriously and being overtly cheery to alleviate the concerns of others. If you’ve been struggling with depression and haven’t recognized your experience in media coverage of depression, perhaps this account will resonate with you. Here’s an excerpt from the article. And if you’re in the greater Cleveland area, remember that we’re here– and that we may be able to help patients receive discounts on medications we prescribe through the pharmacy.
One of the most popular, enduring, and irritating myths about depression is that it means depressed people are sad all the time – and that by extension, people who are happy can’t be experiencing depression, even if they say they are. It is a skewed and horrible version of depression, and it’s one that further stigmatises the condition and isolates people with depression and related mental health conditions. This is because, put bluntly, depression doesn’t make you sad all the time – though the level of sadness a patient experiences can of course vary depending on the individual and the severity of depression.
When I’m having a depressive episode, I’m not walking around in tattered black clothes, weeping and wailing. I go out with friends. I crack jokes (especially sardonic ones). I keep working, and have friendly chats with the people I work with. I often manage to feed and clothe myself, I read books. Above all, I experience moments of happiness: a flash of delight as I’m walking on the beach with a friend and the sun is perfect and the breeze is just right; a surge somewhere deep inside when I’m surrounded by beautiful trees and it’s raining and I feel my heart swelling to encompass the whole world; a warm, friendly, affectionate sensation at the touch of a friend, a hug at the end of an evening or a hand placed over mine as we lean forward to see something better.