One of the most common things I heard from patients and see on social media is the phrase, “I am depressed” or “I have always been a depressed person!” It’s like suffering from depression becomes a part of peoples’ identities and they use that as a trait to describe their personality. Here is something to think about, we are trying to abolish the stigma of mental health, but it is somewhat difficult if people start using depression as a crutch or making it a part of who they are. Mental health takes work and awareness. I have seen very many different types of depression. I have been depressed. I too, even suffer from suicidal ideations from time to time, and I have since I was 8 years old. What I don’t hear or see is people who are diagnosed with cancer saying, “I AM cancer.” You typically hear, “I have cancer” or “I was diagnosed with cancer.” Why am I writing about this? Because our brains listen and believe the things we say! Read this article by Psychologist Dr. Mahoney (2018): http://drdianemahoney.com/your-brain-believes-everything-that-you-say/
So, how can we fix this or help ourselves? The brilliant Psychologist Susan David (who I have mentioned quite a few times) talks about this in her TED talk and book (please see my resources section for the talk and book). One of the things we need to understand as humans is, we are NOT perfect, and life isn’t always going to be sunshine and unicorns. Sometimes we have days, weeks or even months when life sucks and you might feel hopeless. I try (when I say I try, I am my own worst enemy and fail a lot) to see my depression and anxiety as making me stronger or even going back to reactive gratitude. When you go through a difficult period and finally come out of it, life seems so much brighter and more fulfilling. Like my one of my favorite cheesy quotes, “Not all storms come to disrupt your life, some come to clear your path” (Author Unknown). So, when you’re going through a shitty time, try to think about it as character building or life preparing you to handle more because you’re a badass!
The Monsters Within 