So this is the second part to my last post.
The antithesis, you could call it.
I am aware that I said some heavy things, and I’m sorry if
it was slightly too much. This is
something that has been stirring in my heart for some time now and I was tired
of waiting to share it.
But with that being typed, here is the deal:
It has been reported that one out of every ten adults in
America struggles with depression. One out of every eight teenagers struggle
with it as well. Depression is the cause for over 30,000 reported suicides in
the U.S. each year. (For every two homicides committed in the United States,
there are three suicides.) Depression is now the third highest cause of death
in the United States.
Now, can we PLEASE stop acting like this is not a HUGE
issue? Let’s not sweep it under the rug anymore, okay?
I know that statistics can be desensitizing and
dehumanizing, but I am tired of it being such a touchy subject.
Depression should not be such a taboo thing and it breaks my
heart that it is treated as such.
We are leading people to believe, through our actions,
weather it is unconsciously or not, that they are alone in their problems.
And that is not true. And it is not okay with me!
So…let’s talk about it!
I am an artist, and this is what I do. I confront the
issue’s people shy away from.
And to some extent, I understand why people are scared to
talk about it. People tend to feel uncomfortable towards things that they don’t
understand and that is okay, but ignoring it, choosing to believe that it does
not exist, that it does not happen, that people are not actually suffering, is
not. I’m sorry to anyone who has bought into, believed, or accepted this lie
because, unfortunately, depression is something that is a very real, very
powerful thing, for many people.
But I’m not here to tell why humanity sucks, and how it’s
all just getting worse….That’s what we have the news for.
I am here to explain what it’s like for someone on the
receiving end of the deal. Maybe it will help you better to understand the
perspective from someone who deals with this. Maybe by the end of this we can
all understand each other a little more.
To the people who don’t struggle with depression, this is
for you:
No, it’s not a pity party. No, it’s not just a “bad day”.
No, I’m not just asking for attention. Yes, it will get better, but it is very
difficult to believe that. Please, be patience. Please, be kind. We are fragile
people. We are easily broken. We can go from being okay to being an emotional
volcanic mass in 0.3 milliseconds. This may not be normal to you, but it is
just a fact of life for us. We have become used to it. Please bear with us.
Sometimes we will seem distant and detached and it is because we probably are.
But it is times like this when we need you the most. When we run away from what
we need, sometimes you have to give us a push in the right direction. Sometimes
we may seem childish or immature to you, and that’s okay. But you have to remember,
in many ways, we are just hurting children trapped in adult body’s.
And please, show us love; true, tangible love, love that is
unconditional and irrevocable. We might
not want to accept it, we may fight against it, but I promise, it means the
world. The act of true love put into motion is the greatest gift you could ever
bestow upon someone. But no matter how
much love is given, no matter how big the act of love is, we cannot accept it
when we cannot accept love from ourselves first. That is the sad truth. I know
this may sound bleak, but I find that it is the persistent and faithful
relationship between truth and love, that can melt even the hardest of
hearts.
You must not be afraid to call us out. Yes, we might get mad
at you. Yes, it might hurt our feelings, but if nobody else says it, how do you
expect us to know, expect us to change, to heal? Sometimes you will feel like you have to walk
on eggs shells with us. Don’t. We know when you are doing it, and it’s
annoying.Please,
don’t judge us too harshly. We didn’t choose this and we are doing the best we
can.
Sadness makes the brain a very
irrational place, and we tend to get lost. We need someone to bring us out of
our delusions, to snap us back into reality.
That’s the thing about sadness, it is the most addicting
thing on this earth. Depression alters the way you think, the way you see the
world, everything about who you are is changed in some way or another. It can
become a drug for us in many ways. As odd as it may sound to you, it serves as
our coping mechanism and protection from the things we fear. We are an addict
to our thoughts and emotions in many ways. We are held prisoner within the
framework of our own minds.
All we really want is someone to walk this journey with us.
We don’t want to be a burden. But sometimes, we need someone when its 4AM and
its weighing heavy on our hearts. We want lots of hugs. We don’t need you to
understand. We just need a hand to hold, a shoulder to cry on, and a neck to
hug.
Oh yes, and don’t be afraid of us. We are human too.
I only hope that now you can be a little bolder in dealing
with this situation. It’s not something that should ever be taken lightly.
Someone’s life could be at stake.
Always remember to walk with grace and peace in each step.
You never know whose eye of someone’s storm you might be.
;)
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