Voice of Love

In April, I wrote a blog post about dealing with depression. I had various people reach out to me telling me how they cope with their depression. Hearing their stories on how they have grown from it or are still dealing with it made me realize that by opening up myself, it made people open up to me.

I’ve seen a lot comments on social media about mental health after the recent passing of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain. The Internet has been in an uproar about suicide prevention and mental health since this occurred. My heart goes out to their families during this sad time. They were people who you would think had it all but fame can be fleeting and material possessions are just things. When you’re depressed and not happy, your stuck in your own head with nothing but bad thoughts and negative feelings. What they were going through was deeper than what we may know. It was a shock to their families because they probably didn’t really talk about what they were dealing with. I know it is hard for some people to be open or talk about what is bothering them, because I was the same way. I never wanted to tell my friends or my parents I was depressed. I just wanted to deal with what I was going through alone. By doing that I excluded myself a lot of the times from being around family or friends. My outlet was and still is my poetry. The more I wrote about how I was feeling; it helped me verbally explain my emotions better. My mom and friends making sure I was okay and not just saying I was “okay” was a big help.

Make sure you check up on people that you care about and love because you don’t know what they are secretly battling. A voice of reason from a person they love can truly help in major ways. I know it helped me. It shows someone cares and they are not alone. I knew I wasn’t alone but I didn’t want to be a burden or have my parents worrying. But I’ve learned I can’t handle everything on my own. Even people, who have everything together, sometimes crumble in silence. Reach out, be aware, and be the voice of love.