Comments | belenen: depression is not a cramp, it's a broken bone: a 'mild' situation has intense effects when depressed

belenen

depression is not a cramp, it's a broken bone: a 'mild' situation has intense effects when depressed

Jul 29, 2015 23:59

icon: "hissing (a photo of a snow leopard hissing with mouth open, whiskers back and ears flattened)"I don't have chronic depression, but I have spent enough years of my life depressed to know about various effects. One of them is that seemingly 'little' things become huge and horrendous. Someone says something and (probably accidentally) implies ( Read more... )

pain, social justice / feminism, rants

Comments 9

stray_infinity July 31 2015, 05:15:07 UTC

I'm with you here. During my time of depression, I felt that everything bruised my emotions so easily to the point where I had to stay away from people who didn't push me to do things and didn't give me crap about not wanting to. Your metaphor describes that very well!

belenen August 19 2015, 08:39:41 UTC

*nods* I feel you!

gobbolina July 31 2015, 08:16:05 UTC

I've been suffering from depressions for almost 20 years and still going. You describe it very weel, and I really like your metaphor.
There's a video which describes depressions as a big black dog you carry along with you all the time. It was good, too, but I never really related to it. I love dogs, but I don't love depressions.

belenen August 19 2015, 08:41:14 UTC

*nods* I have seen that one, but it didn't resonate for me either. I just experience it as so inside me that I can't relate to it being external.

gobbolina August 19 2015, 09:27:54 UTC

I wouldn't say my mental disorder is a friend, but it isn't a foe either. It's what made me the person I am. It causes a lot of problems as well (I have problems interacting with "normal" people). But on the other hand I'd say I'm more empathetic. My therapies made me able to understand people much better. and I evolved much more than many people do in their life ( ... )

melodiousmelon July 31 2015, 16:10:39 UTC

I love this.

belenen August 19 2015, 08:41:47 UTC

thanks :)

song_of_copper July 31 2015, 16:42:29 UTC

Absolutely. Depression means that doing even pleasant things or 'routine things that everybody does every day' (getting out of bed, showering, making light conversation) requires as much effort as a non-depressed person might need in doing something definitely daunting or challenging (climbing a mountain, deep-cleaning the whole house, formal public speaking). It's like you're starting from further away, somehow.

Something else about 'little' things: experiencing a minor annoyance once is a 'little' thing, but having it happen over and over and over can turn it into a REALLY BIG thing that is tough to endure. This seems strangely difficult for some people to grasp. I've often found that a 'big' thing that happens just the once can be easier to deal with than a 'little' thing that just won't quit. 'Big' things are easier for others to empathise/sympathise with, and often have cultural procedures and traditions around them, but with 'little' things you are supposed to just suck it up already. >.<

belenen August 19 2015, 08:44:05 UTC

yesssss, exactly. effort is exponentially larger for everything.

And oh, I 100% agree about the 'little' billion things being worse than the 'big' single thing. Plus, if it's just one thing, it's way easier to wall it off and get some rest from thinking about it. That can be impossible with a bunch of little things.