This blog is something I've wanted to do for a long time, and I think now is a great time to start. But before I started this, I approached a few people in my life to tell them about it. I was surprised at some of the reactions I got. While a lot of people were very supportive, others had a different reaction. They warned me that if I was open about my condition, people would use it against me, and that it wasn't something I should tell other people. "Why would you ever tell them?" one person asked me.
I have depression. I have social and generalized anxiety. These are not things I should be ashamed of. The fear of judgement and persecution has plagued me since before I even knew exactly why I struggled the way I did. The pain and pressure of having to hide such a huge part of who I was, and being too afraid to ask for help was, in many ways, as bad if not worse than the effects of my conditions. So now, with a firm handle on these conditions and a a history of dealing with them, I'm ready to stand and up and show the world that a diagnosis of depression is not a handicap. It is not the end of a happy life, but also that it is not something to take lightly.
This blog is a compilation of several things. Part of it is my story; the things I struggled with, what I learned and the experiences I had. Part of it is to shed some light on the unique experiences of mental and emotional health issues in teens and young adults. My hope is that this blog, in all of its parts, can held eliminate the stigmas and stereotypes associated with conditions such as depression, anxiety, suicide, self harm and the other mental health conditions so that we can one day live in a world where no one has to fear the thought of reaching out for help.
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