A
character in one of my favorite TV shows {alas, it has since been canceled!} defined
depression as knowing you should feel differently from that persistent state of
melancholy, but for whatever reason, can’t seem to. I can definitely relate. I’ve
been on a gloomy bender for a few months now. External circumstances and
reduced serotonin levels brought on by medication to manage two atopic ailments
have not helped my mood much. I also want to apologize for being those bloggers
who go awol when I vowed never to hop onto that
bandwagon, but I do have a valid reason. In my hurry a day after my last post, my
contact lens scraped the cone off my already diseased right cornea. For those
embattled with Keratoconus, feel free to sympathize. The pain and infection
that followed… Well, my eyesight depleted drastically and the left eye was of
no help now that it is recovering from a prior surgery. Multiple trips to the
ophthalmologist continue to mark my calendar and I’m glacially regaining some vision.
It’s
safe to say that this divagation didn’t do much to fill my days with cheer. Depression,
when not addressed, simmers and transforms into a way of life. It’s
hopelessness. It’s a constant sense of inadequacy. It’s an impediment to
productivity, creativity and purpose.
It’s a burden.
Regardless
of race, gender, monetary worth or habitat, everyone feels this way sometimes.
You didn’t get the exam results you studied so hard for, the one you love left
you for another, you’ve received a life-altering medical diagnosis, your income
consistently fails to erase your mounting bills, you lost a child, parent,
sibling or close relative, you’re battling loneliness no matter how many people
you surround yourself with,…the circumstances that precipitate melancholy are
countless. Some use food as a pick-me-up, others turn to drugs and alcohol, anything
to stave off the choking despair. Medication helps to erase the low, as does a
great support system and professional help, but situations differ from one
person to the next.
The
most common solution to suspend depression’s carousel is suicide. There’ve been
a spate of high profile suicides recently, with reasons ranging from drug
addiction to online bullying. Whenever the allure to take a similar leap
dredges up, I recall something someone once said to me. It takes courage to live. It’s a choice, to be happy or unhappy, to
follow your dreams, to accomplish all you were meant to in this life… This
sound advice is not often easy to lug around, but I will myself, and if I can
do it, so can you. My approach may be pedestrian, to put it mildly, but it’s working. I
identify something, anything to make my day count. Be it looking forward to
vanilla ice-cream for dessert, or taking a walk on a rainy afternoon to calling
a loved one just to say hi, I strive to make each day count for something!
Before you know it, the hours have sidled past, then the week and if you
maintain this momentum, years will ensue until your predestined time to leave
this earth dawns.
Another
positive approach is focusing on others and getting out of your head once in a
while. Not everyone wears depression on their sleeve. That’s one of the reasons
suicide jolts a majority of those the victim leaves behind. There were no
visible signs. Take heart, oh you who are entrenched in despondency. No matter
how gut-wrenchingly desperate your situation seems, in the seven billion plus people
occupying the earth today, someone out there has it worse. It will
get better. If I believe this, please do, too.
What to do when suicide appeals
with each minute
Some blunt perspectives…
When
your principles seem to be demanding suicide, clearly it’s time to check your
premises.
Suicide
creates a monstrous emotional upsurge of shame and guilt. Everyone participates
in feeling responsible and even shamed at knowing the suicidal candidate. If
these feelings are not healed, the vampire of suicidal death can strike again
and again.
Nowadays,
suicide is just a way of disappearing. It is carried out timidly, quietly, and
falls flat. It is no longer an action, only a submission.
The
reality of suicide is far different from the fantasy. Most suicidal thinkers
romanticize their death by suicide, failing to realize that any suicide gesture
or attempt can result in permanent brain, kidney or liver damage, loss of
limbs, blindness, or even death.
Suicide
sometimes proceeds from cowardice, but not always; for cowardice sometimes
prevents it; since as many live because they are afraid to die; as die because
they are afraid to live.
Suicide
is man’s way of telling God, “You can’t fire me – I quit!”
Be
yourself. If you water yourself down to please people or to fit in or to not
offend anyone, you lose the power, the passion, the freedom and the joy of
being uniquely you. It’s much easier to love yourself when you are being
yourself.
Invisible
wounds take longer to heal.
No
one should feel so low, to the point where they feel they need to use suicide
as a way out.
Constant
pressure and anxiety leads to fear and depression. Have faith in God. He will
come to your rescue.
Disclaimer:
The
quotes above are borrowed from
and
Remember:
This, too, shall pass! Hang in there!
Sites
with more information
Great
Bite?
Ham
and Cheese Sandwich. It’s easy to prepare and
filling on the days when you can’t face your kitchen.
