This is for the best.

thefrogman:

[rebloggable by request]

Please don’t diagnose me. Don’t diagnose anyone. I’ve already been diagnosed by people who have medical degrees and are willing to disclose their names.

I never said I got better. I have dealt with the emotional aspects that caused my depression, but the bad chemistry lingers. If I’m lucky, I am able to manage my symptoms. It would be more accurate to say that I can go from bad to less bad.

I have been living with this for many years. I have had the therapy. I take the pills. And I’m gonna give you a slight eye roll on the holistic remedies and positive thinking. “Hey man, cheer up! Think positive! And take this holistic llama semen that my aunt said helped her!”

Clinical depression comes in many varieties and has a broad spectrum of severity. Feeling like dying, hating life, and cutting wrists are not required to havepersistent lowmoods and improper serotoninlevels.And you don’t actually know if I have had any of those thoughts.

This isn’t a damned contest. Just because some people might have a more severe case of depression does not invalidate everyone else’s diagnosis. I suppose you think you are an ally for the depressed people out there. But it kinda scares me that you might tell someone that they aren’t properly depressed and they should quit being so dramatic. I’m not sure you realize how potentially dangerous that is. It’s very hard for many people to seek help. If you tell someone they don’t need help when they actually do… it could have serious consequences.

Your food for thought sort of makes my stomach turn.

Thefrogman is right, but let me just add two things.

“Positive thinking” has been shown not to work in behavioral science experiments. For most depressed people, it only increases feelings of guilt and inadequacy which are like cheesecake for depression. So right away, I’m pretty sure you don’t know what you’re talking about.

And clinical depression DOES get better sometimes, spontaneously even, because sometimes it’s a chemical imbalance, and lots of things can change your chemical balance: going on the pill (me), going off the pill (me), exercise (me), diet change (me), weather (me), change in size of your arachnoid (my mom), aging (my mom), blah blah blah. Science barely understands what causes depression, much less how to “cure” it. It’s always a better idea to believe what people say about their depression than to be dismissive. If you don’t understand, say you don’t understand, and then genuinely try to understand. Otherwise, pretty much, fuck off.