Showing posts with label suicide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suicide. Show all posts

March 18, 2024

Emotional Fracture

They put a cast on a broken ankle; they give medication to the patient recovering from surgery; they prescribe pain pills for someone with chronic migraines. And yet, the stigma remains with emotional health because you can't see it on an MRI. 

 Key facts from the World Health Organization;
  • Globally, it is estimated that 5% of adults suffer from depression. 
  • Depression is a leading cause of disability worldwide. 
  • More women are affected by depression than men. 
  • Depression can lead to suicide. 
  • There is effective treatment for mild, moderate, and severe depression. 
Check the Math 

Depression isn't a one stop emotional shop; it is a range. I deal with emotional setbacks often. I work; I have friends; I'm in a wonderful relationship; I function and carry on. I guess that's mild but it doesn't make the struggle any less for me. A past bad work experience; that presentation eleven years ago; that test I messed up at college. 

The amount of time I spend beating myself up over things no one even noticed, is exhausting. Some say it's not logical, but it's no less real to me. We need to stop messing around. My emotional hurdles are just as critical as your broken leg. This isn't a 5% thing; this isn't a "them" issue; this affects all of us. Something to ponder if this effects all of us.

Let's share some help for each other. __________________________________________________________________

June 5, 2022

Something We All Share

They put a cast on a broken ankle; they give medication to the patient recovering from surgery; they prescribe pain pills for someone with chronic migraines. And yet, the stigma remains with emotional health because you can't see it on an MRI.

Key facts from the World Health Organization.
  • Globally, it is estimated that 5% of adults suffer from depression.
  • Depression is a leading cause of disability worldwide.
  • More women are affected by depression than men. 
  • Depression can lead to suicide. 
  • There is effective treatment for mild, moderate, and severe depression. 
I am certainly not a doctor or a science expert but I don't agree with some of these points. I believe almost every human on earth deals with at least one episode in their life. And if it's happening to you, it certainly isn't mild nor insignificant. No one is immune.  

Check the Math

Depression isn't a one stop emotional shop; it is a range. I deal with emotional setbacks often. I work; I have friends; I'm in a wonderful relationship; I function and carry on. I guess that's mild but it doesn't make the struggle any less for me.

A past bad work experience; that presentation eleven years ago; that test I messed up at college. The amount of time I spend beating myself up over things no one even noticed, is exhausting. Some say it's not logical, but it's no less real to me.

Reveal in Plain Sight

Naomi Judd publicly talked about her depression for years. She appeared on camera in various stages of emotional and physical distress. She did it to help others and yet her depression told her the big lie and her life was cut short on the day before she was to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

We need to stop messing around. My emotional hurdles are just as critical as your broken leg. Enough tiptoeing around this health crisis that will take more lives than cancer. And death isn't the only result; most are struggling just to get through the day. This isn't a 5% thing; this isn't some "them" issue; this affects all of us. 

If it's something we share then let's share some help for each other. 
  __________________________________________________________________

September 16, 2008

David Foster Wallace

I don't usually spend blog time on obituaries but this death gave me pause.

Someone I am just getting to know is David Foster Wallace and sadly because someone mentioned him on Saturday, the day he died. I had heard of him over the years but didn’t pay much attention. Many called Wallace one of the greatest writers and essayists in American history. But he wasn’t flashy, he didn’t write books that turned into Hollywood blockbusters, and he shunned the spotlight.

When I heard of his passing I went online to search for more information about him. After reading some, I watched an interview he did with Charlie Rose in 1997. He seemed the reluctant type, shy, and borderline apologetic.

Wallace once said we often lump writers into the same box – as if to say anyone who works with words is of the same mind and theory. Good point. But writers are often complicated and many are quite fragile.

The late Red Smith once summed it up succinctly; “There’s nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” Writing is difficult. Publishing your work is even tougher. The microscope is your enemy and the readers can crucify you in a blink. Everyone is in fact a critic.

David suffered from depression for over twenty years and finally took his own life on Saturday. Wallace was only 46 and just getting started.

km

 
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