Depression sufferers are not alone

Understanding people who are depressed was the topic of a column from two weeks ago. Emails came from readers who live with severe depression.

One gentleman says a question he lives with every day is “Why would anyone care about me?” And on the bad days, he even expects that from his wife and children. While he has never seriously contemplated suicide, he is fully aware how it could have an appeal to those with the diagnosis.

One reader wrote, “I assure you there are many other readers like me who saw that article and will not write back, but like me, shed quiet, private tears, because the ‘depression’ tells us we are alone, unwanted and mentally ill, therefore we are not worthy to be cared for, or care about!”

Another wrote thanks for “lifting the lid publicly on the profound condition I believe I share with many others.” By writing about it, it benefits those who live with the intense pain of depression by ‘letting us know we are not alone.’

Personally, I’ve often wondered why we consider a brain disorder as something other than a physical illness when the brain is a part of our body just as the liver, the heart, the colon. The diagnosis of a mental illness carries a stigma different from being told you have ulcers or high blood pressure.

The phrase itself — mental illness — sets people apart and makes it more difficult to get needed help because they are embarrassed for anyone to know. Many family members, too, keep it a secret, as though it is something of which to be ashamed.

It is the silence that surrounds any kind of brain disorder that often delays seeking early treatment for the patient. It also makes it more difficult for family members and friends to seek needed support for themselves.

Let’s keep talking about it.