Are you by chance talking about the post I reblogged? Because that was not how I interpreted it at all. :/
That said, I absolutely agree that we need more words to describe all the various types of depression out there. This one little word has so many different meanings, it's no wonder there's so much confusion and misinformation surrounding it.
My family? Thinks depression means the blues, and don't understand why I can't just get over it. I mean, everybody gets the blues from time to time, right? No reason I should spend so much time wallowing in it. That's just plain self-indulgent, not to mention unseemly.
I've also had people tell me that I should channel my depression into my writing, and transform it into some kind of creative force that will give my work more depth and meaning. Um, sorry, but no. When I'm depressed, I can't create, which is why my current novel remains unfinished.
Are there people who can? Yes. I've met them. This doesn't change the fact that I'm not one of them. But because we only have this one word--depression--I have a hard time getting those folks to understand that my particular flavor of depression doesn't work like that, and that insisting otherwise is actively harmful to me because it makes me feel even more worthless.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2013-03-13 09:36 am (UTC)That said, I absolutely agree that we need more words to describe all the various types of depression out there. This one little word has so many different meanings, it's no wonder there's so much confusion and misinformation surrounding it.
My family? Thinks depression means the blues, and don't understand why I can't just get over it. I mean, everybody gets the blues from time to time, right? No reason I should spend so much time wallowing in it. That's just plain self-indulgent, not to mention unseemly.
I've also had people tell me that I should channel my depression into my writing, and transform it into some kind of creative force that will give my work more depth and meaning. Um, sorry, but no. When I'm depressed, I can't create, which is why my current novel remains unfinished.
Are there people who can? Yes. I've met them. This doesn't change the fact that I'm not one of them. But because we only have this one word--depression--I have a hard time getting those folks to understand that my particular flavor of depression doesn't work like that, and that insisting otherwise is actively harmful to me because it makes me feel even more worthless.