Happy one-year anniversary to me of having depression! Yaaaaay. It started last summer, got worse Fall semester, then spiraled out of control Winter semester. And that's my story so far. Here are my favorite responses I've heard when I tell people (at church) about my situation:
1. Everyone has their ups and downs.
2. What made you so sad?
3. Pray and read your scriptures/conference talks and you will get through this!
4. This is very common.
My responses:
1. Yes, everyone has sad and happy times in their life. Did you honestly think I didn't know that? The thing is, not everyone has the same challenges. Not everyone has clinical depression. Just because it has emotional symptoms does not mean it's not a medical disease.
2. A chemical imbalance in my brain that not even science has figured out yet.
3. Praying/reading scriptures/any other gospel activity will help the same way they will help you during any struggle or problem: they provide perspective and comfort, for example. But they do not cure depression. They could also help someone with diabetes feel better, but it's not going to take away the diabetes! I think this is the misconception that makes me angriest: Depression is purely emotional, so it can be cured the way other negative emotions are cured. If you're sad or mad, reading the scriptures can make you feel better, so naturally reading them can get rid of your depression.
4. You're nothing special. Quit complaining. Lots of people get really sad (see #1).
In short, people who respond this way mean well (I think), but what they really are is dismissive. They're not trying to understand how I feel; they're just trying to patch it up and make it better. But you can't fix something if you don't know how it broke in the first place and in what way it's broken now.
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