3 Things I Learned By Living With Depression

It was as if the depression shrank me so much that I eventually found myself in a dark, cold shell. From there, I heard the murmur of the world from the depths of my loneliness. I even heard the whispers of those who judged me for my “weakness.” Those who said ” up with the mood, life goes fast “. But  I had to live with  depression for five years. Which was long enough for me to learn everything from the one that could be learned at all, from it. Here is my personal story of treating depression.

Often,  those who overcome a mental or other serious illness are called heroes. Others pay tribute to their courage in coping with such a difficult time. But those who have been through these things know that there are times when it is impossible to do otherwise. There is simply no choice but to be strong. To do everything not to fall victim to everyone’s worst enemy: to surrender.

But reports from the  World Health Organization (WHO) repeatedly warn us  that the number of depressive disorders is rising every year. But these reports typically do not tell us how many people actually come out of the black hole of depression.

This is mainly due to something that was emphasized at a WHO congress in 2017:   Seven out of ten people do not get the treatment they really need.  Therefore, the shadow of depression comes and goes, and when it appears, people tend to resort to the simplest solution:  drugs. The best approach would be more holistic and thereby involve a lot of different factors.

However, as  depression is often not treated properly, it becomes an unwelcome guest. A guest who suffocates our lives and messes up our minds. It closes the windows and draws the curtains in front of our hopes to achieve what it enjoys so much: making us prisoners in our own home. It is not easy to bring order into such chaos. Nor is it easy to leave it or diminish the power of depression and its poison.

But  even the most severe depression can be overcome with the proper treatment. And once we have overcome it, it typically leaves us with valuable lessons for our lives.

1. To remove the taboo of depression

Depression remains a taboo.  It makes no difference that we live in the age of technology, that we have access to so much information. None of this matters as depression is something people typically do not talk about. It is not an easy or pleasant conversation. A taboo can be, for example, when a mother gets a postpartum depression and cannot handle it and she feels completely unable to care for her  newborn baby.

How can people around her understand her ailments? When the most “natural” thing in the world is that one should feel happier than ever?  And if we did a round of questioning what the public thinks about depression, then it is likely that they would mention weakness and abandonment.

These totally judgmental and unjust views  often lead to people being imprisoned in their own silence. They fear the judgment and glances of others without understanding. This is how isolation is born, as people with depression feel misunderstood outside of the bubble they have created to protect themselves.

2. Depression never comes alone

Depression often has some of its unwelcome friends with it: anxiety, panic disorder or stress. Many people describe it as almost being inside a plane that is about to crash.

The heart accelerates, the constant fear turns them into someone who cannot control their own life. They change into a person who barely sleeps or who sleeps way too much. Or who on the contrary have an insatiable hunger.

Every person will experience specific symptoms  as they go through living with depression. Little by little, they will be shaped into a dark kaleidoscope of endless nuances and bitter afflictions. And almost from one day to the next, the person will start taking antidepressant medication to treat the anxiety, beta blockers to numb the beating heart, medication to soothe the nausea and sleeping pills at night.

Treatment when experiencing depression

Depression cannot be cured in a month or two. Sometimes we need years. Each person is healed in their own way to be able to come back from their shell and at their own time. It’s like finding home again after getting lost in a desert. Fumbled blindly around without a map, without a compass, without strength .. And without the hope of ever being able to escape.

• We learn from living with depression, but we also need to forget. Sometimes we have to leave things behind, change habits, consider certain goals in life. And most importantly, forget the old idea, “that I can do anything.”
• Overcoming this disease helps us develop a much more empathetic inner voice. The voice that has now learned to say, ” Stop, spend time with yourself .” ” Do not think those thoughts .” “ There is no need to demand so much of yourself ”…

To conclude,  this compassion also allows us to come into better contact with our inner being. That we better understand our needs  and limitations. And that, of course, we always have the tools to keep “the black dog of depression away,” as Winston Churchill once said.

Everyone should do what works best for them  when trying to live with depression.  Writing, playing sports, going for a walk, reading. Maybe talk to a friend. These strategies create daily, emotionally positive and healing lifestyles that keep us up. They save us and bring us closer to the type of person we really want to be. The person who can smile again.