We are living in one of the darkest times of life. It has seemed for quite sometime that humanity has lost it's way. Every time we turn on the news or check our newsfeed it's bad people and apocalyptic events. That is why it is now more important than ever to remember that good people exist, and humanity is pure at heart. History is flooded with greatness, we just have to dig a little deeper to find it these days.
Redditor u/An_Annoying_Otaku wanted to hear about happier times from humanity's past by asking..... Historians of Reddit, what is the most wholesome moment from history?Flowers for the Man
At Shanidar Cave, an archaeological site in northern Iraq, a Neanderthal male was buried encircled by flowers.
Over 50,000 years ago we were sentimental.
We also found the skull of one of the relatives to human (can't remember which) that had no teeth. The person the skull belonged to was roughly in its 40's and theres evidence (don't know what) it had no teeth for most of its life. That means that someone had help it eat for decades, probably out of nothing but kindness and love. Turns out kindness is an ancient thing.
Friends
Nobuo Fujita was a Japanese pilot in World War Two. He was the only Axis solider to drop a bomb on the continental United States. He visited the town of Brookings Oregon after the war with the intention of committing Seppuku to atone for his violence. Instead the town befriended him and he even sponsored three students from the town to study abroad in Japan. He donated his families sword to the town and even help to raise funds to build a library in the town. He was made an honorary member of Brookings before his death.
To the Water....
During the 9/11 attacks the tunnels and bridges were shut down leaving boats to be the only way on or off the island for the first time in over 100 years. Many of the ferry boats were trying to evacuate lower Manhattan and at one point the coast guard realized that the evacuation needed to get better organized and so they put out the call for any boats that want to help with the evacuation to report to governors island, the response was hundreds of boats, ranging from tug boats, party boats, yachts, speed boats, etc., lining the horizon and showing up to help.
It became the largest Sea Evacuation in history, the only one to come close was the evacuation of Dunkirk during WW2. At Dunkirk 339,000 British and French soldiers were evacuated over the course of a week and on 9/11 over 500,000 civilians were evacuated by boat in just under 9 hours. https://youtu.be/18lsxFcDrjo
just a little...
I don't know if 'wholesome' is really the right word, but when I think of the number of normal people across Europe (including Germans) who risked everything to help Jews/POWs/etc., flee the Nazis, it restores my faith in humanity a bit. They saw the face of evil and acted with courage and empathy.
YES QUEENS!
Mine is the Siege of Weinsberg where the attacking king made a deal for the surrender of the castle stating that the women may leave free and can take with them anything they can carry on their backs.
The women then walked out of the castle with their husbands on their back.
The 3
The 3 men that dived into the highly radioactive pool beneath reactor no. 4 of Chernobyl power plant all survived.
They were tasked to open a valve in the dark basement so that the radioactive waste water can be drained before the melting reactor core can chew through the concrete above the basement.
If these men failed their mission, the molten core would come into contact with the water and instantly cause a steam explosion, contaminating all of Europe.
In short, the 3 men charged in knowing that they most likely wouldn't survive in order to save the rest of Europe.
Together!
The Battle of Castle Itter, when a bunch of German soldiers fought alongside US Soldiers to defend a bunch of French prisoners from the SS. If that wasn't enough, this was like two days before the surrender of Germany, so the war in Europe was about to end.
Pardon the Intrusion....
When Switzerland accidentally invaded Liechtenstein in 2007 and apologized profusely to the Liechtenstein government. They apparently didn't know about it until that moment.
Damnit, thanks for making me cry, Canada!
When US airspace was grounded on 9/11, 2001, planes coming from across the Atlantic that couldn't turn around were re-routed to airports all across Canada. Air Traffic controllers went into hulk mode in the tiny town of Gander, Newfoundland to suddenly take in 38 wide body planes at its airport carrying 6-7 thousand passengers from over 100 countries, and the people of that town and surrounding fishing villages were like "no big deal we got you" (as Canada does) and set to task.
The town's bus drivers were currently on strike but they put down their signs and started carting passengers to community centers, schools, and churches where residents were working non-stop setting up shelters and making meals, many also hosting strangers in their homes. The bakeries fired up the ovens, the hospital beefed up it's staff, hell people even took care of 17 dogs and cats and 2 GREAT APES that were on the planes.
Town pharmacists got to work helping people get essential medication.
The people of the town even took it upon themselves to treat the guests as tourists and took many of them sightseeing and fishing, etc, because CANADIANS. Many of them became great friends and still keep in touch.
Damnit, thanks for making me cry, Canada!
A Truce.
During the US Revolutionary war a British general lost his dog during a battle. It was captured by US forces who tried to give it to general George Washington, who had it groomed and returned to the British under a flag a truce.
During the first Christmas in WW1 many areas of the trenches declared a truce, against the wishes of generals on both sides. It wasn't uniform across the board, but in a lot of places enemies celebrated Christmas together, exchanged gifts, and completely ignored orders to resume fighting until after the holidays.
After 9/11....
The African tribe that donated 14 cows to the US as relief aid after 9/11
The tribe viewed cows as a precious commodity so to willingly donate them was a huge gesture of good will. Honestly, everything the global community did for the US after 9/11 shows that we can all put aside our differences and come together for the common good.
Its said that there is so much hate and violence and it takes a massive tragedy to make people stop and think about their fellow man, insert Hurricane Harvey relief effort here.
We Stand By You
In the days leading up to 9/11, the USS Winston Churchill and the German destroyer Lutjens were moored near to each other in Plymouth, UK. The two crews had got to know each other - visits, sports days, no doubt drinking up the road too...
In the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the Churchill was ordered to sea. The safest place for a warship is at sea, with room to maneuver and use its weapons.
After several days at sea, the Churchill received a request from the Lutjens, departing Plymouth. They wanted to pass by close on the port side to say good-bye.
As the German destroyer came close, it became apparent the German crew were manning the rails in dress blues. A traditional naval honor.
They'd prepared a sign. We Stand By You.
The crew of a German destroyer, named for the Admiral who went down with the Bismarck, rendering honors and support to the crew of an American destroyer named for Winston Churchill, in the English Channel.
Bubbles....
When the allies came to liberate Italy, the citizens busted out champagne since many of their relatives lived in allied countries.
Normandy
During the Invasion of Normandy 2 medics from the 101st Airborne set up a field hospital in a town where heavy fighting was going on, and with very limited supplies. They treated every American and Germany Soldier when one of them went out to get more wounded with a wheelbarrow. They found both sides stopped shooting and the medics forced every to leave their guns outside and one of them forced a German Officer ether a major or Colonel to leave his gun and his men's guns outside.
"Hallelujah"
Standing during the singing of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus (from "Messiah," composed in 1741):
An often repeated legend about Messiah tells the story of King George II who was so moved by the "Hallelujah" chorus during the London premiere of Messiah that he rose to his feet and then everyone in attendance followed suit as not to be sitting when the king stood.
That's how the regularly debated tradition of standing during the "Hallelujah" chorus came to be (also giving birth to countless passive-aggressive battles of concert decorum between the sitters and standers!).
However, according to various experts, there is no truth to this story. In fact there is no evidence King George II was even in attendance, and it is unlikely the newspaper writers that were in the audience would have overlooked mentioning a royal presence. The first reference to this story was a letter written 37 years after the fact.
Just where that leaves us in the annual stand-versus-sit showdown though is still very much up for debate.
Go to Bologna....
The war of the bucket. Milan and Bologna went to war, Milan's butt was handed to them, and in the treaty, Bologna took their sacred bucket and put it on display for all to see. Go to Bologna and it's still there.
Forever....
I know everybody has already mentioned this (and will mention this), but the Christmas Day ceasefire during WWI. Not only did they stop fighting altogether, but they got out into No Man's Land, played footy all day, and then had supper together, shared stories, broke bread, so on and so forth.
This moment in history is so bittersweet, however, because then on Boxing Day, they got back into their trenches and went back to killing these temporary friends they made because men of higher authority a world away told them to. Extremely wholesome, but extremely sad as well as WWI was a definitive turning point in modern history which began the doctrine of "forever war."
Also, Castle Itter. Tl;dr, in the closing days of the war in Europe, a Yugoslavian prisoner broke out of a German prison camp, sought out the Allies, and along with a defected German bird, the American army, anti-Nazi German indentured soldiers, and a whole bunch of other POWs, they stormed Castle Itter, killed a grip of Nazis, and fought as a single unit under one idealogy - to stop the Third Reich.
Not traditionally wholesome, but beautiful nonetheless that when there were no more punishments for breaking rank, men of countless creeds fought together to take down the German machine. A lot of Americans died, as well as the Yugoslavian, and the German bird. I think it is tragically beautiful that all of these different kinds of men from different cultures and identities fought together - and died together - all in the name of liberation in Europe. Makes you think of the LoTR meme.
The Canine Love Story
Obligatory not a Historian....
For me it would be the earliest example of the canine-human relationship. A dog was found buried next to two humans around 15000 years ago and there's the cave with footprints of a child and a dog walking side by side and clearly entering and exiting the cave together.
The domestication of dogs goes way back further than we could imagine, they have always been by our side!
+ 1
That time Liechtenstein sent out an army of 80 people and suffered negative casualties because they came back with a friend for a total of 81 people.
No, they did not come back with a friend, rather an Austrian Liason officer who accompanied them back to Liechtenstein, as they had been sent out to watch the Italian border with the Austrian Empire, as Italy was allied to Prussia who Austria was losing a war with, and Liechtenstein as an Austrian ally sent these men to make sure there was no surprise Italian assault.
The Austrian officer went back to the empire once the 80 men of Liechtenstein were back in their borders.
Known as the Merry Monarch....
I like the one from Charles II of England. Known as the Merry Monarch, he loved women and had many mistresses. His favorite was a woman called Nell Gwyn; an actress and seller of confectionary oranges, at a local theatre. He even had a tunnel built from under the theatre to an inn across the road for half time entertainment.
On his death bed he asked his brother to take care of all his mistresses and said of Nell "Let not poor Nelly starve."
She was given a huge pension. He just really cared about the wellbeing of all his mistresses and illegitimate offspring, and especially of Nell who wasn't even of noble birth, which was kind of unusual for the day, and for a king. I just like it because he truly took care of the women in his life, even when it would have been more usual and perfectly acceptable for him not to give a crap about them at all.
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And there are just as many grievances for which we are not at all sorry.
Curious to hear about people's track record of their questionable behavior, Redditor NanoPKx asked:
"What is something bad you have done with no regrets?"
Is it petty theft or flat out stealing? You decide.
The Parting Gift
"'Forgetting' to bring back a company ipad after they forgot about me having it. Actually they never asked for it back so I still have it and use it."
– Koetjeka
Furry Companion
"I stole a barn kitten while delivering packages for FedEx. He kept climbing my legs and getting into the van, sitting under the wheel when I tried to back out (it was a steep driveway, no way to swing the van around). I called the number on the package, looked the name up on facebook, called the local non-emergency to get contact info, all failed."
"So I took him. Now, if you're not from a rural environment, you might not understand that barn cats like that are 'no-man's-cats.' For all the owners know, he got sick or got got by a coyote. And he would have died, because when we got him to the vet he had a nasty upper resp infection and some other nasties."
"Now, one deformed nasal passage and the cutest snore later, we have a bonkers little orange cat with the heaviest penchant for snuggling I've ever seen (his name is Monty btw)."
"Edit: I forgot to pay my Cat Tax: https://imgur.com/a/HIXS4us"
"Edit Part 2: Monty loves the attention. Thank you for loving him as much as we do :3"
"MmmmMMMMRrrrrrrrrrrAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAW" -Montgomerey Valentine, 2022
– SonOfSkinDealer
The Dirty Treat
"A housemate of mine kept eating mine and my girlfriends food and even though I asked him to stop the only thing he would ever say is 'I thought it was mine' then keep eating it."
"Well I bought my girlfriend some ice cream she really enjoys and she put the half she didn’t finish back in the freezer. Well when she want to get the rest it was gone and it made me madder than I think it probably should have."
"The very next time I saw him and somehow keeping a straight apologetic face I told him how he accidentally ate our sex ice cream and that bits of it had been on our parts etc. I told him I felt guilty not to tell him and that I had to apologise for him to eat such a thing."
"I will never forget the face he made when I told him. A face of pure self disgust and shock to which all he had to say was 'I wish you never told me that' and proceeded to move out around a month later."
"Although he didn’t actually eat sex ice cream, like why the f'k would you put it back after use anyway? Sometimes I wonder if I went to far but in that moment I just did not care at all. He still doesn’t know it isn’t true and I’ll probably never see him again."
"F'k you Vitas buy your own food."
– SpicyDolphin74
Vengeance is sweet.
Payback Time
"A drunk driver hit my parked car, left a huge dent in the front driver’s side door, and then drove away. I happened to be looking out the window at the time and saw the whole thing, including his plate number. Cops got there not long after and took my statement. After a couple days and a couple phone calls, I found out nothing was going to come of it because he was the son of the sheriff the next county over."
"Fast forward a couple months, I see his car parked behind a local bar within walking distance of my apartment. I got out my hunting knife and sliced all four of his tires, and made a couple trips around it destroying the paint job. Yellow Pontiac Sunfire, and I still remember the goddamn plate number even after almost 20 years."
– IgnoreMe304
For The People
"I was a GM for a retailer that was going out of business. During the liquidation I let my employees that worked until the end store product they wanted to buy in a closet I claimed I didn't have a key to. Oh the final days I sold them all the items they requested for 95% off. 70" tvs, ipads, gaming laptops whatever they requested."
– Midnights606
Surreptitious Swap
"Years ago I worked for a wealthy dude who was married to someone semi-famous. He would waltz in every morning and talk about the fantastic dinner he had the night before, how he hung out with some other famous person or whatever else."
"He paid me peanuts. I had a hard time making ends meet."
"I was the office assistant and IT guy. So it comes time to get a new computer for one of the designers. I spec something out, and show it to him. It was a ripper of a machine for the time (early 2000s). But it wasn’t expensive enough for bossman."
"So I added a really high end graphics card. Boss was happy then. The card added nothing for the designer: they only did illustrator and photoshop."
"So I came in that weekend and swapped the graphics card for my aging one from home."
"No one ever knew. Or cared. And I got a new graphics card."
– Dudeinairport
When times are tough, people had to do what it took to survive.
T.P. Crisis
"In college I was so poor I would steal toilet paper from the supply closet in our major building."
– Business_Loquat5658
Hungry College Buddy
"I stood watch for a college friend who was going hungry because he’d been disowned and his roommates had made living with him intolerable after he came out."
"I was loosely affiliated with an off campus program with local churches that gave free student dinners on Thursdays. We would go to church to eat, then bring dishes into the kitchen."
"Anyway, he would go in there and steal stuff like peanut butter, literal bread (not an allegory), granola bars etc. while I watched out for the pastor."
"Eventually we both got caught, the pastor for the college students got a bit mad because he was responsible for us while we were there to eat. And I think it was offensive on some level to steal from church. But then he saw what my friend was taking, and asked him if he had enough to eat. My friend shamefacedly said no, not usually."
“'Okay, fine. Put the food back, and come with me.' Took my friend grocery shopping instead, got him connected with the food pantry and community garden at church instead."
– SchnarchendeSchwein
Based on these examples, people didn't twice about their actions in the heat of the moment.
Within reason, we all gotta somehow get by.
But do you think their actions deserve punishment?
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When a person sees someone they care about going through a struggle or crisis, their instinct is to uplift them with positive advice.
But sometimes, the wisdom imparted by friends isn't always helpful or relevant to the situation.
Curious to hear from strangers online who could do without specific knowledge, Redditor Saibotnl1 asked:
"What life advice can just f'k off?"

These Redditors have a problem with how certain people have on outlook on life.
Time To Rest
"Sleep when you’re dead."
"Cool, but you’re going to be dead a lot sooner."
– Tag2graff
Irrelevant Sadness
"People have it so much worse than you so don’t be sad!"
– notrachelmar
"To that I like to say, 'people have it so much better than you so don't be happy!'"
– ___jupiter____
Your Life Path
"Almost anything relating to what age you must be in order to buy a house, have children, marry, have a profession, or do anything else. Seriously, everyone's life is different from everyone else's. Make your life the way you want it to be. If you so desire. Up to you."
– Frn071
On The Contrary
“Cheaters never prosper”
"Yes, they f'king do."
– waqasnaseem07
People can get out of any situation they find displeasing.
But others feel people should just "stick it out."
Ignoring Bullies
"Just ignore bullys or get someone else to handle it for you. I have never seen this work, only makes it worse. The only effective way I've seen to deal with them is by not making yourself an easy target and make them scared to f'k with you again. If going psycho on their a** is the only thing they'll respond to that's their fault. Also want to add in schools they will punish you for self defense but that punishment is only sitting around a few hours in detention or sitting around at home with a suspension. The punishment is temporary boredom, it's absolutely nothing compared to being bullied and when it's over the important message will still stand that you will not tolerate being a victim."
– User Delted
Remain to be Miserable
"Stick it out"
"Whether that's sh**ty jobs, shi**y relationships, shi**y living situations..."
"By all means don't just give up on things when you face challenges, but if something feels wrong or is wrecking your peace then take some control and change it if you can!"
– petitezoey
"Easy for you to say," might be an auto-response to these suggestions for many people.
Invitation For Recklesslessness
"Live like everyday was your last"
Yall know what people do when they learn they have a single day left to live?"
– LimeGrass619
A Possible Consequence
"I did that as a teenager and ended up homeless and addicted to heroin. Didn’t pan out for me too well."
"19 years sober though today."
– Open-Section-7263
A Practical Approach
"If I knew with certainty that I had one day left, I'd double-check all my financials, my will, and my insurance policies, make sure my wife had all of my passwords and knew where all the money was, spend the rest of the day with her and the kids, then call the medical examiner and ask to lie down on the gurney so that when I die they won't strain their back moving my remains out of my house."
– Asteriad
Nose Stuck In A Book
"Work while they sleep. Study while they party"
"That's not a recipe for success, that's a recipe for a lot of white hairs, burnout syndrome and a stroke before your 40s..."
– Khomuna
Doesn't Apply To Everyone
"Do what you love and money will follow"
"I love walking my dogs and grilling food for my friends but That sh*t doesn't pay the bills as well as my engineering degree!"
– Elons_android
While people's intentions are good, they're better off keeping their two cents in their own pockets.
Not everyone likes to hear platitudes.
Sometimes, people just want to know they're not alone with their problems over listening to unlikely solutions that are nothing more than superficial pick-me-ups.
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Kids start going to school from the age of five, and for the most part, they spend more time at school than at home. Because of that, teachers can become very important figures in the lives of their students.
Some students don't have the best home lives. Some keep it to themselves, but others confide in their teachers.
Curious about various situations, Redditor Delicious_Mastodon83 asked:
"teachers of reddit what is the saddest thing you found out about a student?"
In Need of Parents
"Not a teacher but was a school-based therapist. Had a student (7 -8 y/o) I didn’t know knock on my office door and ask if I’d adopt her and “if you have room, my brother too, but if not, that’s ok, we can be split up. We’re split up now. And I don’t take up space. I just need a sleeping bag”. Broke my heart."
– secretkpr
Heartbreaking, But Industrious
"My mom taught at a school in a bad neighborhood in Chicago in the mid 90’s. There was a second grader that would save his milk and ketchup packers from lunch for his mom so she had something to eat when she got home from work."
– PowerstrokeMe
Big-Hearted Mom
"Not a teacher but a parent with a 9 year old son. Every day I pack extra in my sons lunch because he tells me he has a friend that never has anything to eat. It's winter and my son came home and told me his friend was turning up with shorts and shirt and holes in his shoes. So I sent in a jumper and long pants for him to wear and some slightly used but good condition shoes. I have been up to the school recently and the teacher pulled me aside and thanked me profusely for helping this child. Apparently teachers are not allowed to aid kids they teach here in Australia and they have already reported the issue 3 times to child welfare without results so I was the only one helping this child. The teacher told me before I started sending in more food and clothes, this child would steal others food from their lunches and look through the bins because he was so hungry. They doubt he gets fed at home. So now I make sure to always send an extra lunch and some school clothes/supplies when I can. I can only hope child welfare eventually does something but it breaks my heart."
– spetzie55
Amazing Big Sister
"It was right after winter break and before class started I was just talking with some students and asked if they got anything fun for the holidays. One girl said on no, I don’t ever get presents, my mom is a drug addict. But I went out and got some stuff for my little sister so that she can have a real Christmas."
"She just said it so matter-of-fact. She was so used to being the parent to her little sister that she didn’t even care about her own childhood. It totally broke my heart."
– tonydanzascaulk
The Importance Of Human Affection
"Second hand story from my mom, elementary teacher for 30ish years. She had a hug or a handshake out the door policy, just some small contact and a proper goodbye, and had this young boy who always picked the hug. She wondered why he always went for it, most kids would go back and forth depending on their mood that day, so she asked him why he was always so excited for the end of day hug? His answer, "It's the only one I ever get.""
– needsawholecroissant
Coming Out The Other Side
"Two teenage boys (16/14) with learning disabilities were on my caseload, they never missed school but often ditched class. They were homeless mid-year after they went home from school to find the locks changed, their Mom had abandoned them for a new boyfriend. She didn't leave an address for them to find her."
"*Edit: both eventually dropped out, however a couple of years later the younger brother came back to visit. He and his brother were both working construction, and his brother had gotten married, had a child, and was living with his wife’s family."
"The younger had roommates and was saving for a car. He told me it was a shame I didn’t have kids, because I would make a good Dad."
"People often persevere, even with the odds stacked against them."
– Kursch50
True Parentification
"Not me but my daughter is a teacher, she has lots of stories but one that stands out for me is one of her kindergarten kids saying she was tired and her asking why, the little girl explained that she had been up all night with her mums newborn baby. She did this every night, fed her bottles and everything."
– lb47513343
Luckily, He Was Resilient
"This year I had a 17 year old kid enroll at my school. He was sitting in my math class and I could tell he was struggling. After class I took some extra time to go over a concept with him. I asked him to read the question to me, and he sat there silently. He then looked at me and said “I’m not going to lie to you, I cannot read. I have no idea how to say these words""
"Turned out at age 17 he was illiterate and had been kept out of school by his very religious, controlling parents. Over the past few months he has worked very hard! Now he can finally read at an 8th grade level and he is STILL improving!!"
– User Deleted
A Heroic Teacher
"I worked in an inner city charter school. One of my students (`M10) had a sib (M8) in a lower grade. The mom was there every day in the beginning of the year encouraging them, helping them and generally being very supportive... until a CPS agent spoke to me asking about her behavior. After CPS left things went downhill. The boys showed up late to class even though they lived a half block away from school. When in school both boys were tired from sleeping in the car while their mom "went fishing". She also had two very young girls which she dragged around making the boys take care of them. One day the boys didn't show up and their teacher walked over to the house to find the mom had loaded up the fridge, paid the rent for the month and abandoned them. The teacher (a candidate for sainthood btw) took them in, adopted them and grew them up to be great men."
– mopedarmy
This is really heartbreaking stuff! Luckily, teachers aren't just another adult in your life; they can be your saving grace as well.
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TRIGGER WARNING: This article contains sensitive content about depression and mental health.
As the stigma around mental health lessens (however slowly), people are more forthcoming about the problems they are facing. One of the most common mental health issues is depression.
Depression can affect many different types of people. Factors such as gender, race, nationality, and even age have no bearing on whether someone suffers from depression or not.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), globally, "...an estimated 3.8% of the population affected, including 5.0% among adults and 5.7% among adults older than 60 years..."
Depression displays in certain patterns, such as mood changes, physical difficulties, and social isolation. However, depression manifests differently in different people and feels different to different people.
Reddit users divulged what depression felt like to them when Redditor iodineseaspray asked:
"What does depression feel like to you?"
Some of this is sure to sound familiar.
The Worst Kind Of Boredom
"Like being more bored than you could imagine but also not wanting to do anything at all, even breathe. So you want to do something, but you can't imagine anything that you would like to do so you're just sort of stuck."
– BuddhistSlater
"So you then spend literally hours staring at a blank wall hating yourself, your life, and everything around you. Well, as much hate as you can summon in the absolutely mentally numb state you find yourself sat in day after day."
– merryman1
Lack Of Motivation and Energy
"Complete lack of motivation."
"Ignoring people that I love, and who are trying to help."
"Just sh*t"
– HatFromStraw
"I feel it extra at work. Letting things slide until you either get into trouble or trying last minute to prevent it."
"Funny those times when I'm working to save my butt, the depression goes away and i feel super focused and motivated."
"I try to carry that energy over but no, it's rinse and repeat."
– ExtraBitterSpecial
Powerful Insecurity
"Insecure about absolutely everything, no hope for the future, dissociation from society and not knowing how to “act” anymore, feeling like I’m not as good at the things I always thought I was good at or that the “talent is wasted on me”, only food cheers me up and sometimes even that doesn’t work"
– tenamonth
Loss Of Creativity
"This. It's like some numb fuzziness you feel in your brain. It's the worst thing ever for an artist who just wants to create but your brain comes up dry with a dense fog that wants to just lie down for a few hours"
– FinnProtoyeen
A Mental Inability To Breathe
"For me, it feels like I’m in a lake with a ball chain tied to my feet, desperately swimming up for air, the only problem is the chain isn’t long enough. I can only get an inch of my head out of the water to breath, and as soon as a high tide comes, the water just floods over me and I feel like I can’t breath again. I live like this, constantly feeling like I’m struggling to breathe, weighed down by my own mind. It’s a struggle and I can’t really describe it in any other way, I’m jealous of people who don’t worry about depression"
– DrowningInBrokeness
"Like suffocating under a heavy cloak"
– kmartfreak
"Like being crushed. Like if the air was crushing my muscles and bones and I can’t breathe because I’m being crushed…"
"Kinda like that."
– Afreshnewsketckbook
Listlessness
"Scrolling thru your steam library. Thinking you want to play something, either not settling on anything or not wanting to put the effort into the game. Going back to the scrolling."
– Aistadar
"It feels like you're forced to play a game of Monopoly (represents life) and your just rolling the dice to appease everyone but you genuinely don't care about where you go, where you land, what you pick up, what you pay, what you gain."
"You kind of just watch it happen without interest and while people are cheering or oh no-ing for you, you genuinely don't care. Everyone is a piece on this board that hardly matters and you feel like we're all just running in a circle over and over again and it's boring and disinteresting as hell."
"You lose all curiosity for everything and just let everything happen and pass by you. No motivation, hardly any love, hardly any care. Feels like the world is in black and white and your waiting for the game to end became it's so absolutely boring and disinteresting, but it never does."
"You come to resent the game and eventually hate it because it feels like you're being forced to play it and suffer it's consequences when you never asked to play it in the first place."
"That's what depression felt like for me. Since then I've been medicated and recieved therapy. I'm doing a lot better now and I don't feel this way anymore, thankfully."
- KnlghtLlghts
A Relation To Fantasy
"You know that scene in the Lord of the Rings where Bilbo is describing to Galndalf what having the Ring all those years felt like? "I feel thin. Like too much jam spread over too much bread." That's honestly the best way I've seen to describe it."
– Electrical_Age_336
"I always say the closest thing to compare it to is a dementor in harry potter. It sucks every ounce of happiness out of you until there is only darkness left."
"Side note: chocolate always helps"
– sunfacer
Fear Of Lack Of Justification
"Like someone close to you died yesterday. Expect no one has, and nothing has happened to justify how you feel."
– AlterEdward
A Physical Pain
"Physical pain in my heart, will start crying just by attending to the physical sensation in my body."
– sagieday
Help Yourself
"I've always described it as having a shadow fixed to your brain which fuels things like indecision and negativity. You can do things to temporarily help but you can't truly shift it. Previous normality is forgotten. But it's amazing how much you can mask it."
"I found I didn't realise how bad I was until I started to get better"
"For anyone suffering with depression. Please, please speak to someone. Best thing I ever did"
– DavosLostFingers
Depression isn't something you can just deal with or get over. Learning to cope is not easy. However, as Redditor DavosLostFingers pointed out, talking to someone can literally save your life.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with depression, contact the American Psychological Association by phone at 800.374.2721 or 202.336.5500.
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