Depression, anxiety, adjustment disorder, whatever is written in my chart. Whatever is written in my chart does not define me. My anxiety and depression do not define me. But they aren’t something to be ashamed about either. Nothing about mental health is something you should be ashamed of.
It’s part of your story.
Whether you take a medication, or two, or three. Whether you go to therapy or see a psychiatrist. Whether you don’t see anyone and are still contemplating going to get help because let’s be honest, it is kind of a scary thing. No matter where you are in your “mental health journey” it is not something to be embarrassed by and it is not something you should be afraid to talk about.
It’s you.
It’s a struggle you have to deal with every day. It’s a part of you that makes your life more difficult sometimes. It’s a frustrating illness that keeps you from getting out of bed but makes it more difficult to call out sick from work. It’s a disease that is just as serious as any medical condition however because of these stigmas that are created, it isn’t always looked at as one.
And that’s why you should talk about it. Tell your friends and family when you are hurting. Tell your coworkers when it is getting in the way of your workday. Journal about it. Find an online support group. Do anything that makes you feel comfortable and feel less alone.
Asking for help doesn’t make you weak. It actually makes you incredibly strong. It means you have taken a huge step to confront these painful things and attempt to better your quality of life.
Because let’s face it, life is hard enough. In a perfect world without this anxiety or depression diagnosis on your chart, life is still difficult. Life still continues to throw us curveballs whether we like it or not. Life is still going to keep moving no matter what.
So don’t be ashamed of who you are. Don’t be ashamed of your struggles. They are part of you and part of your story. The diagnosis on your chart doesn’t have to define you.
And I promise, the more you start to talk about it, the more you will find out there are many more people in this situation than you ever could have thought. You are not alone. You are never alone as you might feel right now.
For more of my writing follow me on Facebook
Instagram: healing_throughgrief
Thank you so much for expressing your feelings and thoughts about depression and anxiety. I too suffer from them. You explained it so well as to how one feels with these diagnoses. I feel that people don’t understand it well and still feel the stigma with it. Your words were very comforting to me and I thank you.