[Easysail]

Don’t you hate it when you’re suffering from depression and people start to give you unsolicited advice like: “you should listen to music!” , “you should go to the gym!” or “you should go out more! You’ll feel much better.” Someone even told me that I should start praying to god and that I have depression because I’m not close enough to god! They have no idea that depression controls the depressed person not the other way around and that it happens due to a chemical imbalance in the brain not because a person is not religious. They’re also not aware of the fact that a depressed person can’t even get out of bed on most days let alone do any activity and that he loses any motivation or interest in everything. People need to be educated more about depression and how sensitive of a subject it is.

[Fuzzybear]

[Humpty Dumpty]

Well said. I really hate it when people tell me to pray to God. I have! He's done with me. I also hate when people think that a depressed person should always be a Gloomy Gus and never laugh and if you're laughing or showing signs of happiness you're obviously faking it.

[marvin_pa]

I agree that there should be a far greater general awareness, but other than demonstrating how it can affect people & that it's rather more more commonplace than many think - its something that can be very difficult to comprehend, unless you've had close experience of it. Most advice is generally well meant, but delivered without that context of experience.

Education about depression is a good idea... But I think people should generally just mind their own business and consider their own issues before judging everyone else. I share very little with others because I just don’t want to hear their opinions anymore.

[Candy1955]

I have no more than 4 people I discuss my depression with, and with no one really candidly except for here on PC. Those who have never suffered with it have no idea, and too often treat it like they do physical ailments, as if there is a fault or it's a character issue.