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I am typically very open about my depression in my life as well as on Facebook and to a lesser extent on C-D. I know some folks on FB find this hard to handle, but talking about my depression takes away some of it's power over me. I find it hard to care too much when folks have an issue with my openess.
I see it some here, too, where folks say they don't talk about it or mention it on social media because they are worried about what people will think. So they hide their feelings or true emotion.
Quote:
What’s real is the fact that 9 percent of men experience depression on a daily basis. That’s more than 6 million men. Even if we understand what depression feels like, we rarely admit that’s the culprit. We lie and say we’re tired or just cranky. More than 3 million men struggle with anxiety daily.
Male suicide is rising at such an alarming rate that it’s been classified as a “silent epidemic.” It’s the seventh leading cause of death for males. That’s a staggering statistic. Drill down into the numbers and suicide is the second most common cause of death for every age group for men 10 through 39.
Our mental problems are literally killing us. And that has to stop.
This is a great article and I wish I could just copy and paste the whole thing here. But please read it if yu're so inclined. Please don't bottle your feelings up anymore. Sure, some people will not know what to say and some will be outright hostile to your openness. But eff them. They don't have your best interests at heart. Remove the stigma of it in your own life.
Admitting to have mental health problems is one thing, but repeatedly bringing it up in conversation on social media is another.
If "talking" helps - write a diary. Folks on social media might get tired of reading about other people's medical problems, especially if that's the primary topic of conversations.
Most people don't really care about other people problems. It's sad, but true. They have their own problems to worry about.
If you "talk" because you need advice, your mental health professionals are the most appropriate people to ask.
Admitting to have mental health problems is one thing, but repeatedly bringing it up in conversation on social media is another.
If "talking" helps - write a diary. Folks on social media might get tired of reading about other people's medical problems, especially if that's the primary topic of conversations.
Most people don't really care about other people problems. It's sad, but true. They have their own problems to worry about.
If you "talk" because you need advice, your mental health professionals are the most appropriate people to ask.
A and B
A: The late Roger Moore, Sir if you prefer, said in the opening lines of his James Bond Diary (for LaLD), as I recall, "Why do I write a diary? Maybe I don't want people to catch me talking to myself.".
B: Me, I keep them, since 1999, now into volume 77 or so. In them, besides the affairs of the day, is a lot of torment, deals with the devil, and now, soon to be, of what's life without social media (FB is getting way too political and it's not even an election year) and if I just accept a basic concept, will being involved in a dark side cease to have reason?
So what does a diary do? Well, for me (but I hope you can find some use in this), three things. First, it's a sounding board, an aspect of myself to get it all out to someone, to see things in a different way (I write in abstract lest the book falls into unenlightened hands), an aspect that can question and answer me safely since I don't have to worry about saying too much.
Secondly, it's a historical reference so later I can look back, see how tormented I was, wonder how I allowed that to happen, and then, swear never to be that way again.
Finally, in a lesson I learned in theatre, one side is what I write, the other side are pictures that relate to my thoughts. Sometimes it's for a direct relation, sometimes to get into an imaginary world, sometimes to see the humor of a situation such as when I commented about some hard chewing beef and I pasted this on the other page: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/0jKNWXRFFEk/hqdefault.jpg
Being picture oriented, in searching for the "right" one, my mind can soar, searching for all I know, all I have seen and experienced, .......... and then seeing if the Net can provide it.
The thing is, that since it is aligned with my thoughts, I can enter that world if only for microseconds (but with the mind, a microsecond can be a very long time). It is a form of escapism.
One final thing about diaries is the buying of them. Between the volumes and one's writing instrument, it can become quite a hobby, like wine buying. Every so often, I go out to this or that store and come home with bunches, covers that inspired me, covers I look forward to fill.
Good luck!
Last edited by TamaraSavannah; 07-19-2019 at 03:55 AM..
Admitting to have mental health problems is one thing, but repeatedly bringing it up in conversation on social media is another.
If "talking" helps - write a diary. Folks on social media might get tired of reading about other people's medical problems, especially if that's the primary topic of conversations.
Most people don't really care about other people problems. It's sad, but true. They have their own problems to worry about.
If you "talk" because you need advice, your mental health professionals are the most appropriate people to ask.
Thanks elina, very good advise and response. This is true with any illness, mental or otherwise.
I don't find that most people really care very much. And just look at some of the responses on this thread, which seem to amount to: shut up and go hire a professional.
I don't think most people really want to deal with men being vulnerable about their feelings.
I think if I weren't a straight, white, middle aged man, I would probably see more shows of concern from the people around me who could do practical things to make my life easier (particularly at work). If I were, say, a young transgender person of color I suspect things would be different. That may sound over the top, but those are the priorities I see in the institution where I work.
I would say: proceed with caution, when it comes to expressing your feelings or anything that could be considered mental health related.
Last edited by ApartmentNomad; 07-26-2019 at 11:32 AM..
I don't find that most people really care very much. And just look at some of the responses on this thread, which seem to amount to: shut up and go hire a professional.
I don't think most people really want to deal with men being vulnerable about their feelings.
I think if I weren't a straight, white, middle aged man, I would probably see more shows of concern from the people around me who could do practical things to make my life easier (particularly at work). If I were, say, a young transgender person of color I suspect things would be different. That may sound over the top, but those are the priorities I see in the institution where I work.
I would say: proceed with caution, when it comes to expressing your feelings or anything that could be considered mental health related.
I strongly agree with the latter part of this post. In that regard, I think retirees actually have it easier because they don't have to "hide" these issues because they are not in the workforce and don't have to fear being fired. While we are all aware that laws exist to protect such things, you need to basically pretend they don't exist.
Employers are VERY judgmental about health issues in general, particularly mental health. Government employers have more protections in place, but it is still not something I would go around wearing on my sleeve.
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