People Recount The Most Profound Thing Their Therapist Ever Said
Reddit user lilmizzvalz asked: 'What is a profound statement your therapist has told you?'
Whether it's in a traditional therapy session or not, we all need advice from time to time.
But sometimes during therapy, some truly profound statements may be made that the client will never forget.
Redditor lilmizzvalz asked:
"What is a profound statement your therapist has told you?"
Searching for Reason
"'You're trying to rationalize something said by an irrational person. You won't make sense from nonsense.'"
- A_Random_Lady
Intentions vs. Actions
"We judge ourselves by our intentions, but we judge others by their actions."
- codewarrior128
Unfair Compromise
"If someone can't or won't meet you halfway, that doesn't mean you go further. One-hundred percent of the time, that will lead to resentment."
- rainynotes
Negative Self-Talk
"Not profound necessarily, but she noticed I was very hard on myself and asked me if I would talk to others the way I talk to myself."
- suspicious_lobster6
"I was out with my little one, and I did something silly, so instinctively, I called myself an id**t."
"My daughter said, ‘Daddy, you’re very mean to yourself,' and now I think about that a lot."
- craptainbland
Simply Surviving
"She pointed out that a lot of the things I do or don’t do that I hate about myself are coping and survival mechanisms."
"They were important to surviving a s**tty upbringing, and now that I’m safe, they aren’t needed. Unlearning these traits/habits are hard. It’s not my fault, and I need to allow myself to recognize that."
- kmk89
"My therapist hit me with something when we were in that same vein. He said, 'You’re basing your way of living off the part of your life where you had no agency. You have that agency now.'"
- zharkus
An Overprotective Friend
"'Your anxiety is not evil or an enemy. It’s like an overprotective friend trying to keep you safe because it saw you hurt once. Don’t fight it; just prove it wrong.'"
- Laura5013
Be Proactive, Not Reactive
"'You don’t have to wait for something terrible to happen before you change your behavior.'"
- Olda**rollerskater
Constantly Growing and Changing
"'People are not finished products.'"
"It's really helped soften my outlook and attitude toward others and myself."
- yekirati
Level of Danger
"'Is this harming you or is this just uncomfortable?'"
"Not every difficult situation is harming us; sometimes it’s just a stretch, and those are uncomfortable. If it’s uncomfortable, it’s likely teaching you something and would be worth working through."
"I’m high-strung with anxiety, so this helped me calm down and look at difficult situations more objectively."
- CuriousTsukihime
Incompatibility Is Okay
"I never ever realized this before and it’s gonna make me seem like an id**t, but it was profound to me to hear, 'You aren’t compatible with everyone.'"
"I used to think that I could make a relationship work with anyone as long as the effort was there, but she opened my eyes to realizing that what makes someone special is when you both are compatible with each other because that’s actually a very rare thing to find."
- neoIithic
Breaking Generational Cycles
"Your ability to cut people off and self-isolate is a trauma response to never having anyone to depend on when you were young."
"I now understand why my parents were the way they were, and I no longer ascribe to them blame for my current mental state, and I am in the process of taking personal responsibility for my actions and not passing on generational trauma."
- Odd-Grapefruit4215
A Reality Check
"When I came back from Iraq, I was not in a good place. I was dealing with some serious PTSD, and started to withdraw from the world."
"Finally, I saw the VA was offering free mental health therapy for returning vets, so I gave them a call."
"The therapist came out to my place and we talked for a bit, and then he said something that made me think for the first time there was light at the end of the tunnel: 'You know, you're not half as crazy as you think you are.'"
"That one sentence helped me find my way back. I'll never forget that."
- Hewholooksskyward
Nice, But Optional
"Forgiveness of another person is not a necessity to move on, despite what people say."
"But you DO need to forgive YOURSELF for not being able to forgive the person who wronged you, otherwise, you’ll hold onto anger forever."
"Once you let go of THEM, forgiveness aside, your life is that much better."
- OkeyDokeyArtichokey1
Because 'Family'
"They pointed out to me, 'Many intrafamily problems boil down to bad manners.'"
- OpalWildwood
"I realized that my family is very good at maintaining appropriate social boundaries with other people but within the family interactions, they totally disappear. And we're supposed to put up with it, because FAMILY."
"Like, why do you treat your family s**ttier than strangers? How do we deserve less respect?"
- StickFigureSoul
Perpetual Worry
"Worrying about something makes you experience it twice!"
- jslay588
"My dad actually said this quote to me and it really resonated with me: 'Worrying does not relieve us of tomorrow's troubles; it only robs us of today’s joy.'"
- Life-Gazelle3499
"I like to tell myself, 'It looks like you’re writing a fanfiction again,' whenever I start imagining how something that could go bad might go and it starts to feel too real."
"It makes sense because what is fanfiction? It’s a made-up story that isn’t 'canon,' written by a fan imagining what they THINK will happen. That’s basically what every bad 'what if' you imagine in your head is."
"Or you can say that that scenario you just imagined is something YOU made up, which makes it fiction. It’s no more real than (name of the last fictional movie or show you watched). That helps me a lot, too."
- StreetIndependence62
It makes perfect sense that this is the advice that Redditors have held onto over the years.
All we can say, really, is we wish we could have all heard these and internalized them when we were young.
People With Mental Disorders Confess What They Hate Being Told The Most
People need to stop throwing out unwanted advice.
And when it is requested, think before you speak.
People with mental disorders don't need everyone telling them they have a fix like "exercise" or "herbal supplements."
Redditor Gold-Ad-2827 asked:
"People with mental disorders: What do you hate being told the most?"
I hated being told to just smile. You smile and go away.
Duh
seth meyers GIF by Late Night with Seth MeyersGiphy"It's all in your head. Where else would it?! My colon?"
glorified_throwaway
Don't Minimize
"Everybody goes through that."
rukasu83
"This saying makes my blood boil. Or the 'I was that age once too ya know' yeah no sh*t you were that age once. And just because you were that age once doesn’t mean we have the same experience."
MasterOfRNoSleep
"They try to minimize it."
Previous_Ad7725
Stellar Advice
"You're worried? Just stop."
"You're sad? Just don't be."
"You're compulsively binge eating? Eat less."
"Thanks for that stellar advice."
CrayolaSocks
"Or even better, 'Just do it!' As if ADHD paralysis can be stopped with a can-do attitude."
HumanityIsACesspool
"physical health"
"I get so frustrated when people treat the idea of 'holistic medicine' as some kind of woo. How does it escape so many people that the body works holistically? Even a lot of doctors seem to ignore this. It's very frustrating when you have 2 or 3 or 4 illnesses that are all affecting each other, and your 'physical health' is held distinct from your mental health, and nothing anyone is doing to treat you works because no one's looking at the whole system."
"I just got a lecture from a psychiatrist I am seeing about nutrition, and he apologized to me for doing so but I told him, 'No, I appreciate it. Do it for all your patients.' because it told me he's trying to look at the whole picture and actually fix what's wrong. It gave me faith in him."
TheLastKirin
Relax
Calm Down Golden Girls GIF by TV LandGiphy"You need to calm down."
sorceress__stoned
"Never is the history of calm down has calm down ever caused anyone to calm down."
LBIdockrat
Calm down. I hate that one. You calm down.
Tips
Season 23 Reaction GIF by Law & OrderGiphy"When they try to give me tips on what to do, like bruh as if I didn't already try that."
Mediocre_Ad8282
The Standard
"You don't look sad. No crap... that's so I can avoid having this conversation. Also depression isn't 'being sad' like people think."
allgamerprogram
"God, I hate this. It's because saying 'I'm depressed' has been standard for people expressing that they're slightly unhappy about something dumb like not getting enough croutons on their salad or some crap. Now that's just what everyone assumes you mean when you say you have depression."
NilPill
Be Faster
"'Stop being lazy.'"
LadyBirdLadyBirdLady
“'Lazy' is when you don’t want to do anything at all. 'Executive disfunction' is when you can do everything at all, but that one easy quick thing that you do want to do just makes you and your brain freeze completely days ahead. I’m tired of people not understand that even when I explain and look at me like I’m bullshitting instead."
_Varien_
Ways to Cope
"Maybe you should try praying harder. I did, He prescribed medication."
Ms_Schuesher
"Praying is a way to cope for a lot of people, I think. That's totally fine, but insisting on praying in lieu of getting real help or actually addressing the issue is when it is not only unhelpful, but dangerously detrimental."
TheFrustrated
"Religious people will bypass everyone’s cultures, identity, views, and feelings just to be right and make a point. it’s disgusting. I read somewhere that real so called Christianity is all wrong. The real faith is from the Aramaic history and all the meanings were misinterpreted and the stories and all were made up by Catholics wanting to control their people. Yuck."
RisingPhoenix5271
'contamination'
Disgusted Season 6 GIF by Brooklyn Nine-NineGiphy"As someone with OCD with a lot of attention to 'contamination', having someone try to explain contradictions in why I'm doing something that is technically unclean when I wouldn't do something that is technically clean due to OCD. There are a few doorknobs that I will not touch no matter how much you clean them in front of me and I know it makes no sense, if it made sense I wouldn't have OCD i'd just be cleanly."
Zoooples
Stop trying to be an armchair therapist. Be empathetic to people first.
People Break Down The Best Advice They've Ever Received From Their Therapist
There’s no question that therapy is one of the most helpful treatment methods with regard to emotional hardship, trauma, or mental health. A licensed therapist is full of good advice.
They can show you some smaller forms of therapy you can implement, defense mechanisms you can use, or even tell you what you need to hear.
A therapist once asked my friend, "Is there data to support that fear?" It is now the question of the day every day at work. Therapists can be brilliant!
Redditors have seen this firsthand, and they are ready to share what they learned.
Redditor SugarMumma asked:
"What was the best advice you got from your therapist?"
Setting Boundaries
"Setting boundaries will upset the person who crosses/needs them set the most."
– wrongreasons2242
"Bingo. Resistance to boundaries or annoyance them is a solid red flag."
– SiliconPenguin
You Are Only Responsible For Yourself
"You are not responsible for what other people do."
– Doodle-Cactus
"Similarly, you are not responsible for how someone is going to feel."
"Meaning, “if I tell my girlfriend that it bothers me that she leaves the dishes unwashed, she’ll be mad at me. And I don’t want her to be mad, so I’ll just not say anything”
"You’re not responsible for her reaction to your honest good faith communication. You need to communicate it anyway and let her feel how she’s going to feel. Don’t “decide” for her."
– sevencoves
"If I'm not the problem, there is no solution."
"That one saved my life."
– marvelousteat
Love Heals
"She got me to realize how many defense mechanisms I had constructed to defend the little kid inside of me who wanted love and acceptance. Whether that be judging myself and trying to get ahead of other peoples’ criticism, or lashing out defensively at perceived slights."
"She was a good therapist, so she got me to come to those conclusions myself."
– mjknlr
Writing Also Heals
"The greatest thing a therapist ever told me to do was to keep a journal. I thought he was crazy at first but it’s incredibly therapeutic to write your day and thoughts down."
"I also like to go back and read previous entities and see how far I’ve come from certain situations and such."
– Starlight_City45
"I've been journaling for a year, yeah it's not easy on some days but let me tell you... It helps! Really helps to unclutter the clutter in my head. I have a journal app with prompts. Makes me think about my feelings which really helps and takes me through steps to feel better if at all I'm feeling negative feelings."
– noir-Blossom
Examine Your Role
"Just because your feelings are hurt doesn’t mean you’re right. I didn’t listen in the moment, but I think about that almost a decade later."
– mbane_800
"Yep. Stop and consider how you have contributed in this"
– pineapplewin
Making It Work
"Anxiety will never go away, but you can learn to manage it."
– Present-Tension9924
"I think the takeaway from this is to try not to get into a mindset of 'waiting until you're better' to move forward in life. It's more like hey, this is who I am, let's figure out how to make it work."
– baywchrome
Does The Data Back It Up?
"If you catch yourself making assumptions about a person's actions or intentions, ask yourself, "Where is the evidence for this?""
– philwatanabe
15 Minutes of Infamous Tasks
"Take at least 15min of your day every day to do something you don't want to do, but that needs to be done. Like cleaning your room, paying bills ect. It won't be as hard to begin with it if you tell yourself you can stop after 15 minutes. Often times you will do more than that just because you tricked yourself into starting. And at the end of the day, you won't feel like you wasted your time because you achieved something."
– firedexo
Don't Get Dragged Into Drama
"Not your circus, not your monkeys."
– chrisbe2e9
"F*ck this is such a good one to keep in mind though"
– Few-Background2498
Therapy is not a magic solution, but therapists are here to help, and sometimes, their advice may even save a life.
Parenting is an arduous, often thankless job.
If it's not something you ever really wanted, or even if it is, you have to be careful.
Toxic parents create toxic people.
And that is born from a lot of unresolved trauma.
Redditor GemJoltik34 wanted to spread the word on the ways we can recognize toxic parenting.
"What is a sign of toxic parenting?"
I know I wasn't built for parenting. That's ok. It's just not for me.
Know it All
Knowing Cedric The Entertainer GIF by CBSGiphy"Always believing they're right because they're the adult and therefore not letting the child have any say."
rhi_x
Not Bad
"If you feel like you can't be open and honest with them, even over things that are not bad."
keiome
"I can’t remember the last time I was deeply honest about my feelings or things I was struggling with. Somehow they always either 1. find a way to use it against me or 2. they find a way to blame it on things that are unrelated when in the end, it’s usually their crappy way of parenting."
"This is mainly about my mom. But in my dads case, he is emotionally cut off. He doesn’t express himself like ever. My mom is the complete opposite."
tequila-la
Standards
"Being unable to apologize, setting and enforcing standards they themselves don't follow."
19whale96
"When I tell my parents about something I feel like they should apologize my dad listens to me, if he disagrees with what I said he tells me why and if he thinks that my reasoning is correct he says 'you're right, I'm sorry,' my mom yells at me, cries, 'you're talking back, I would've never done that to my mother.' Guess who I have a better relationship with."
Confident-Thanks-143
Feelings
"When they constantly invalidate your feelings."
Hot_Comfortable_6373
"This one in a huge way… my feelings were never validated. Every time I cried it was 'stop the crocodile tears, you’re just looking for attention.' Every time I was mad 'you don’t have real reasons to be upset.' Hell, even when I was physically hurt it’d usually be something like 'rub some dirt on it.'"
Garden_Circus
Lessons
frank costanza seinfeld GIF by HULUGiphy"Never actually teaching your kids anything, just criticizing, 'I told you so' and 'because I said so.'"
eveningspliff
"This was my life just about every day until I moved out. My parents expected me to know things and got pissed when I did something wrong."
playingitloud
People should be required to take parenting classes. Seriously...
Mental Space
Doctor Help GIF by Apple TV+Giphy"Parents not understanding kids have bad days too. They may not have a bad day like an adult would, but to their little minds they can get just as overwhelmed as we can mentally."
minimomma1989
Learning Bad
"Not being allowed to make mistakes and constantly being shouted at for them."
sami2503
"My significant other has legit PTSD from not meeting his parents standards and being yelled at and screamed for it. Apparently if he didn't clean to their standards they would trash the room and make him start all over again instead of just getting the parts he missed."
YoHeadAsplode
I Feel It
"Treating kids like they aren't supposed to have emotions."
Bee0099
"Damn... felt this one. My mom was this way and reacted with anger anytime I tried to talk to her about my feelings, whether it be something she did to me that traumatized me or just something that upset me during the day."
"Then had an ex who did the exact same thing (not relevant to parenting but yeah). So the treatment I received from my mom and ex made me put up a wall around my emotions. Completely ruined my recent marriage. Just hope my son always knows he can talk about his feelings around me."
leebron-jahamez69
Expectations
"The 'I guess I’m just a bad parent' line."
HoneyOaksTree
"Or 'Well, I wasn't perfect,' or 'I don't think I ever claimed to be perfect,' or 'I know I was not a perfect parent,' always with the implication that the only reason their offspring have a problem with them is due to their expectations of perfection, and therefore, the problem is with the child and their unrealistic expectations."
LeisurelyLoner
Just say it!
Sorry Pop Tv GIF by Schitt's CreekGiphy"Never apologizing. Own up to your mistakes!"
bellum1
"Seriously. Like my mom will give a somewhat apology, it'll be along the lines of 'I was in the right, but maybe I shouldn't have blown up and overreacted like I did.' Like sometimes she's right with that but other times she's just trying to only take partial blame."
berrys_a_ghost
Grownish
"Refusing to let them grow up. My Mom did this with me and I see it in kids I babysit. It’s one thing to enjoy the occasional sick cuddles. It’s another thing to keep them in diapers because you don’t want your baby to grow up."
Paciem
"My parent still asks 'Do you need to go potty?' In freaking public and I graduated high school and sometimes people I know are around and I'm even more afraid of leaving the house now."
Z3e24c123
"Trying to restrict my drivers license, not allowing me a job, and trying to limit my money intake so I won’t have enough money to move out. I always have the military as a back up option but man I don’t want to have to choose between living with my mother and potential death."
EmptySeesaw
Okay... So?
"Parents who press their personal beliefs and practices upon their children. Maybe your daughter doesn't want to wear dresses all the time. So what? Maybe your son doesn't want to be the doctor that you weren't able to be. Okay... So? For example, my parents are very religious and everything would be about religion and honoring God."
"Yet, the ironic thing is, that my parents are extremely abusive- physically, verbally, mentally, and emotionally. Don't force beliefs upon your children. Widen their perspective. Show them what's out there. And let them make their own decisions. Don't yell at them or hurt them if they're not doing it your way."
tessa_simone
Bad Instructors
"Telling your child to do something, then getting mad when they do it wrong. One time my mom made me fold her laundry, then got mad at me because one her shirts was inside out. I think about that every time I fold clothes now."
Nickynui
"How my dad 'taught' how to pile firewood. Told me to pile firewood, after me saying I'm done, looked at the pile, yelled at me, destroyed the pile, THEN showed me how to pile the firewood. Now when anyone asks me to do something I try to get as explicit instructions as possible."
Siukslinis_acc
Shut up Dad...
Oh No Facepalm GIF by AminéGiphy"Crap my dad has said to me growing up were definitely red flag toxicity. Crap like 'Your grandpa embarrassed me in public growing up, now it’s my turn!' and 'I think your friend is gay, he better not make you gay!'"
TrinixDMorrison
Comparisons...
"Comparing your kid to someone else’s or vice versa."
TheStrangestAverage
"My parents did that, but what made it worse is that I'm neurodivertent and I was being compared to the academically gifted kids. It's an unbelievably unfair comparison to make because I will never be like them, I know I'm smart in different ways but mom wanted a kid with straight A+'s; basically someone she didn't have to put too much effort into helping them learn.
"Like I get it mom, your upset cuz I'm much different than you expected; throwing it my face and making me feel bad I couldn't learn like the other kids is so shi**y."
pixie13903
Control
"Authoritarian need for control over their children. Belittling and nasty psychological warfare that gets personal for no reason. 'I'm your parent not your friend' mentality."
xXxmisschiefxXx
"Yeah my mom wanted me to drink some tea she thought would help with a cough when I didn't want to because it was nasty. Now at this time I was like 7-8 and she was heavy on that mentality of... I'm not your friend."
"She thought well we live in the middle of nowhere, why not take him out side with a hammer and threaten to break his fingers one by one that's not traumatizing at all then she just forced it down my throat. And told me it was for the best it was terrible like I don't even know what was going through her mind."
Outside_Budget_9104
One Sided Looks
"Victim blaming, only seeing the wrong things and ignoring the accomplishments and good and such."
water_hat19
"This is true my mom yells at us when we can't read her mind and guess what she wants tells us she will always support us. Then I went to state for science Olympiad and took 4th in forestry and 6th in rocks and minerals 7th in ornithology and 14th in bridges. And all she did was complain about how I didn't call her during the award ceremony. When they asked us to mute our phones she also complained about giving me a ride."
Outside_Budget_9104
Choices
Giphy"Telling you to take responsibility without giving you freedom. Responsibility is only possible if you have the freedom to make the wrong choice but choose to make the right one."
TheMetaReport
Some parents cause far more damage than happiness. And we have proof... It's not a decision to be taken lightly.
Life can be a very dark place.
And the loneliness is often overwhelming.
It can be very difficult to reach out for help.
But it doesn't have to be that way.
If we pay attention to our own red flags we can make great progress sooner.
Redditor Specktakles88 wanted to share how we need to be aware of depression. They asked:
"What are some overlooked signs of depression?"
I suffer from depression on the daily. You're not alone.
The Pivot
"Being addicted to a distraction, because not being distracted is painful. Just leaving the room to go get water or do a chore is pain, because it takes you away from your distraction."
aintnufincleverhere
"That's me. It literally hurt to face my thoughts head on, so I always kept myself distracted in one way or another. I had to learn how to go to sleep while listening to stuff so that I didn't even have the time to think about things I didn't want to."
"Unfortunately that led to me awakening from my sleep in the middle of the night because I started facing these thoughts while dreaming and having a panic attack."
TheHooligan95
Gaps
"Forgetting a lot. Your mind just becomes pre-occupied with depressing thoughts, or might even be empty. You don't have space to remember the things people tell you anymore."
kyrahasreddit
"This, I'm missing big chunks of memories from my long depressive episodes. Some gaps are huge, I dated someone for 6 months in the midst of one and can't even remember his name. I was on the wrong medication too, it all felt like a dream. Very important to find the right medication and write important stuff down."
Lord_Metalark
Slow Rush
"Tiredness (often perceived as laziness) Struggling to make decisions Rushing into relationships Impulsive behaviour, spending eating etc."
Scale_Asleep
"That rushing into relationships one really hit home. To me, a relationship could be an escape from the pit I feel myself in every day. But I rush into them so quickly that I loose my footing and fall right back in."
THX450
Nothing
"Apathy. Numbness. Straight up not caring about sh*t. I've been told I come off as a very cold person when really I just feel numb and indifferent to everything/everyone sometimes. Or not caring about things that should be affecting me in some way."
Frozen_Regret
"The numbness. I never hear people talk about this. When I was at a very low with depression, I was totally numb. People say being depressed can make you cry a lot, but I couldn’t cry at all. I desperately wanted to feel something, anything."
Latter-Skill4798
MAD WORLD
"Anger and/or irritability."
Mmedical
"This was my #1 symptom. The littlest thing (usually work related) would make me SO angry/irritated. Too bad it was 2yrs later before I learned that it could be a sign. Once I found out though - straight to the DR where I was set up with meds and a therapist."
Pixie_bird
"This is huge, and a lot of the time people will simply write you off as, 'just another a** hole.' I'm not a *ick, it's a disability."
rickthecabbie
So many simple signs.
Engagment
"Not engaging in conversations. That's about it."
Originalborndead007
"This one hits. I’m constantly just not wanting to be involved in conversations even with my wife. She is my favorite in the world and I know it bothers her when I’m barely engaged."
throughNthrough
"I stopped engaging in conversation because all of a sudden everyone started ignoring me and constantly interrupting me. I can’t talk when no one listens."
Accomplished-Low-526
One Room
"Living in your bedroom."
oops_just_saying
"This is the one. Cannot believe this isn’t higher. To follow this with a sub-point: Living in your room and being really messy. Living in filth, dirt, old dishes, discarded food wrappers and dirty clothing is terrible for your state of mind."
User Deleted
Forced
"Overcompensation when it comes to jokes. Funny people who are depressed lose their sense of humor but try to force humor because it’s a part of their healthy personality. It often comes off as abrasive and forced which results in further isolation."
Chemical_Big_5118
"OMG, I swear I used to be lightning quick with my quips and I was a naturally a joker. Now I feel like my jokes never come to me and I no longer talk to anyone because I feel dried up and useless. When I finally do talk, I still try to crack a joke but its very flat and I give up."
OkiNoProblem
No Cares
"Disinterest in almost everything. Making excuses for not doing things you normally like to do. Even if money is no issue ie going out to eat or going to see a movie, having absolutely no interest in doing anything or going anywhere."
PatrickRsGhost
Flags and Signs
"I’m seeing a lot of signs that I wanted to say but one I haven’t seen yet is being very indecisive about things. One may become very indecisive about the simples of things like what they want to do or even eat. This happens for various of reasons but from personal experience, it’s because one simply lacks enough care or have desire for anything at their lows."
Late_Toast
Gutted
"Gastrointestinal issues."
Decitex
"YES! I've had gut issues for like 20 years, many doctors visits found nothing. Once I found a SSRI that worked for me it also completely eliminated all of my gut issues instantly, was not expecting that!"
xLuky
Lethargy
"Being really tired. Sleep problems can make mental health issues worse, but depression can also disrupt your sleep or make you more lethargic in general in a feedback loop."
PopeBasilisk
"People also mistake this for laziness. So 'laziness' can be a symptom. When the person desperately wants to do things they are just unable to."
8LeggedSquirrel
Take it all...
"Giving a lot away."
Nappbound
"It’s more serious than that, especially if they suddenly cheer up out of nowhere. A depressed person suddenly becoming happy, catching up with people they’d withdrawn from and giving stuff away is a huge warning sign for suicide."
Pseudonymico
"I was so ready to die when I was cleaning and cleaning out my room on a weekly basis, only now do I realize what I was doing."
honeyliyan23
Diagnosis
"Perceived laziness. For a long time my friends and family thought I was lazy and that I needed to get off my fat butt and do something. It spread to my friends and myself. Turns out after I moved away and talked to someone I was diagnosed with depression... and a sh**ty family."
"My family never asked why I spent so much time in bed, or why video games (the only place I felt successful) were the only thing I enjoyed. I got a lot of non professional help from new friends after I moved. I wouldn't suggest doing what I did but there are a lot of people that can't afford the expense of a mental health professional. Definitely see someone if you are capable!"
Demorant
Spotless
"Fighting just to keep your place clean."
jennafreemon
"Lost that fight. I'm not afraid to admit I need help (not just me, my partner too), but too afraid of the judgement. You know 'How can people let it get so bad?' Because mental illness is f**king awful."
Outsider-20
Like Me
"A lot if my friends (including myself) that have depression share this one sign: being a people pleaser. We are so scared that we are going to bother someone with our depression that we will do whatever they want. Or, we have suicidal thoughts and we want the people we love to think of us as these caring individuals before we leave."
Bookworm-731
Alone
"Isolation. People suddenly removing themselves from your life or online."
Wizard_Elon_3003
"I have done this in the last... I don't know how many months. Not deliberately, but I realised a little while ago. Either no one else has realised, or no one cares enough to reach out and check if I'm ok."
Outsider-20
"I'm doing this right now to a community I really like/enjoy/click with. At some point they'll forget all about me. It's like watching a train wreck in slow motion, but it's happening to someone else."
walkingmonster
Do you see me?!
"Being clingy towards people who show you the slightest bit of attention."
RadiantHC
"This one... for example Is like after high school you learn that when that popular kid finally talks to you, adds you on social media and even invites you to a party really doesn’t matter? When you have depression you hold on to that popular kid. Your desperately want that one particular person to give you attention and it turns out that person is just using you, or is toxic as hell."
dac009
If any of this resonates with you please reach out for help.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988.
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/