The Two Faces of Depression

by Gavin Henning

I’m sitting on my therapist’s sofa, physically and emotionally distressed. “I need to try something different,” I told her. In the year we had been working together, she had never seen me this upset. But this time felt different. This time was different. My wife and I had another fight about my drinking and my detachment. I thought it was the breaking point in my life. And our marriage.

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I’m Not Ready…Yet: Why I Won’t Publicly Own My Depression

The author of this post chose to remain anonymous.

I’m not ready….yet

A year ago at this time I was doing what I had been for years – ending another semester, looking forward to the summer, and thanking God that I had made it through another school year alive. You see, for most of my life I had been managing…strike that…masking…depression and anxiety. No medication, no therapy since college, just maintaining on the belief that I had nothing to be depressed about so feeling depressed was wrong. Continue reading

A Letter to My Son

by Kristen Abell

Dear Aedan,Kristen holding a sign: I am stomping out stigma because I want my son to live in a world free of that judgment

It’s been just over a year since your father and I tried to explain my depression to you. I still remember you stepping tentatively into our bedroom after Daddy talked to you and saying, “Mommy, I’m sorry you’re sick.” You hugged me as I did my best to hold back my tears…again. You told me it was okay if I cried, you understood if I needed to do that.

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Recognizing Myself

by Jessi Robinson

In 1994, I was a high school freshman. My arms and wrists were covered in scratches and small cuts. I was convinced the world would be better off without me. I just wanted to go away, be alone, and not bother or be bothered by other people.

And then one day I was called out of class to be confronted by the adjustment counselor and my parents, who whisked me off to my mom’s therapist to get some meds and therapy. My friends had noticed my behavior, arms, and the things I was saying. I was lucky. Continue reading

Challenges and Support: Relationships and Mental Illness

by Dan McDowell

It was about four and a half years ago when I realized I couldn’t be enough of a resource for my partner. More often than not, the night ended with her crying in my arms, asking when it would be okay. I knew it was something that could and would happen, but I wasn’t sure how or when. One of these evenings, I was finally able to say aloud to her that I couldn’t help her on my own and my suggestion that she talk to someone finally hit home for her. Continue reading

A Journey from Self-Preservation to Advocacy

by Katy Hamm

I suffer from anxiety and depression.

Statistically that is not an uncommon thing, but there is still a great deal of stigma that presents with identifying with any mental health issue.

My troubles began my freshman year of college, when I  found I had a great deal of social anxiety, which brought out my depression. A depression that multiplied after my best friend Emily was killed by a drunk driver that following summer. Continue reading

Grad School Selfie

by Monica Fochtman

Monica's drawing of her anxiety in grad school

I drew this picture of myself in spring 2007 when I was a full-time doctoral student. It was part of an assignment for our qualitative research methods class. I remember being excited to draw this picture because I thought that my fellow graduate students’ self-portraits would look similar, and I looked forward to kvetching about grad school life when we shared them in our small groups. At the time, my other roles included: mother, wife, part-time graduate assistant, and daughter and sister to a far-away family that was in crisis. These roles were obviously weighing heavily on me and my psyche. Clearly the person in this photo was not well. I was not well. Continue reading