This is kinda a mediocre article but I loved one part of it "When you're depressed, it's a struggle to just get out of bed," she explains over email. "It makes other things that other, healthy people do, so overwhelming. It's like trying to run a marathon when you've been in a coma for years." The amount of times that I've heard people (including myself) say "oh depressed people just need to get out more", "they just need to get a job or a hobby", "they just need to think of the positives, it could be worse", "they just need meds" etc I'm the first to admit that I probably wear my positive pants too often, it drives those closest to me insane because I constantly sound like I'm trivializing their issues when I'm really just trying to offer perspective. My point is, until you've lived with depression/anxiety or attempted to support someone with either or both of these issues you can't say they should "just" do anything. It is a daily struggle. It isn't something that people can just snap out of, it's not a conscious decision to just be miserable. People who have a negative thought pattern occurring don't have the ability to switch that part of their brain off, it's a cycle. They're aware of the impact they're having on people but constantly feel like a burden, they withdraw because they don't want to upset others by expressing how they feel every day because they know it'll ruin the mood. Depression and anxiety are fucked up. They take all the quality from a person's life and then start to try and steal the happiness from loved ones' lives. These are parasitic illnesses and the more you think about the real problems, the more the parasite seems to feed off you. I wouldn't wish the struggles of dealing with depression or anxiety on anyone, whether you're a patient, a carer, a friend, a family member, anyone. There is no discrimination in mental illness, it can choose anyone at anytime. If you know and love someone suffering with mental illness, if you have the strength, try and support them emotionally because the one thing that can help people pull through is a support network. I believe that to be true with a lot of issues, with good support systems in place humans can overcome a lot of issues in life. Don't be afraid to be persistent and don't take it personally if you're pushed away, it's usually not personal. I think I'll leave my rant at that. Please know that if you or someone you care about is suffering mental illness, you're not alone and it won't last forever. Peace. Xo