
Betty White could have done it.
According to Norse mythology ONLY Thor could lift it because ONLY he was strong enough—and he needed a magical belt and magic gauntlets on top of his already-god-level-super strength.
Marvel went a different route and decided that an ability to lift Thor's hammer would be based on worth instead.
Reddit user gageames17 asked:
"If Thor’s hammer (mjolnir) was a real weapon, who do you think would be worthy enough to wield the hammer?"
The problem is that "worthy" is such a vague and nebulous term, ya know?
It really depends on how you look at it—and we're going to be doing a lot of looking at some "interesting" candidates.
Buckle up, buttercup, because we're going in.
Starting With The Obvious
"Thor."
- saello
"I'm always disappointed when anyone else wields it. I feel like it weakens the value of Thor; it feels like a cheap comic book move."
"In my mind I like to think Thor is the only one worthy and it gives him that special allure."
- TheRavenSayeth
"You only have to be 'worthy' or pure of heart or whatever if you're going by the Marvel comics interpretation of Thor. Worthiness and being pure of heart have nothing to do with wielding the hammer in Norse mythology."
"Thor was able to wield the hammer because he had an incredible amount of strength and a magic belt that made him even stronger."
- Jaycoht
Some Rando
"It would be some random dude. To be known requires you have to do some sh*tty things every now and then."
- Esoteriss
"Agreed."
"In Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the only qualified person to rule the universe is the person who doesn’t want to, and ends up being a dude in a shack. Probably the same thing here."
- Bobski72
Betty - Obviously
"Betty White would have been able to."
- [Reddit]
"Truly this is the answer I came for."
- dracona
"Me too."
- the_storm_eye
"You have to be willing to kill in order to lift it. I'm just sayin, we all saw that Snickers commercial right?"
- [Reddit]
Steve
"Steve Irwin, no question."
- ThereCastle
"Yes. Correct."
"Protector of innocent animals but also, unlike most of the other good hearted but non-badass candidates presented, arguably had the biggest balls in human history."
- devilthedankdawg
"Steve Irwin was scary strong and athletic."
"I remember a clip where he just…. runs up a tree. The show doesn’t make a big deal of it, but Steve just runs up this tree and is suddenly up there like it’s no big deal!"
"Most people can’t do that."
- Deradius
"I advocate not for Steve Irwin himself, but for this one Cassowary Steve was running from in a clip I saw."
"Any animal that Steve won't f*ck with is an instant god lmao."
- Draclin
Papa
"My papa for sure ❤️"
"Just for some context as to how amazing and pure my Papa is, when he was 17 he got hit by a semi and broke every bone in his body. Like totally shattered his cranium to his pinky toe."
"He died multiple times, and somehow they brought him back. And despite that he went on to graduate high school at the age of 21, after re-learning everything. And I don’t just mean school stuff, I mean how to walk, how to talk, how to feed himself, how to go to the bathroom, everything."
"He met my grandma, and they have been married for over 50 years."
"Even though he has had multiple strokes, he’s supposed to be in a wheelchair that he absolutely refuses to use, refuses to use a walker, has to wear a leg brace, despite all of that he still sings at his church, mows the church yard for free, helps everybody he possibly can, and is just the most giving, humble, kind man in the world."
"While I am not a Christian, his faith to me is totally beautiful and inspiring. He never has a bad thing to say about anybody. And I’m pretty sure he would be worthy of Thor's hammer, 100%."
- potatoesgonna-potate
The Other Rogers
"Mr. Rogers and Betty White... oh sh*t."
"Guys I just realized Loki is killing off the worthy."
- Magnus_40
"Funnily enough, Mr. Rogers lifted mjolnir in a comic once. I choose to believe it's canon."
- kotran1989
"Well, that’s wholesome."
- Roguewind
"I was sifting through the thread looking for this comic."
- rusnug
The Villain Variant
"At least in the comics, Mjolnir’s definition of 'worthy' varies a good bit."
"As long as you’ve got decently good intentions and a fighting spirit, you are worthy for the most part. So there’s the obvious ones like Cap and Thor, but also some villains."
"One of the more well known examples is Dr. Doom, whose entire personality hinges on him wanting the best for the world and thinking the only way is through a maniacal dictatorship."
- lunaticboot
"Spider-Man can't wield it, and we see Spider-Man repeatedly seen as Marvels' most moral compass. Supposedly the reason is because Spidey won't kill."
"Cap and Thor have fought through wars, willing to kill to defend their ideals. Dr.Doom as well."
- tigerslices
"' 'The heart unwilling to swing the sword when needed will never have the strength to raise it in the first place' -Mjolnir"
- blexmer1
"That’s why they were surprised that Thanos could wield it, too."
"He believes he’s doing it for the survival of all species in the universe, i.e. a just cause."
- TheUncleverestDev
A Unifying Force
"Dolly Parton"
"She fought and continues to fight for equality in country music for women. She uses her money to support good causes."
"For example, when the Gaitlinburg fires displaced a bunch of families about 5 years ago, she immediately pledged an extra $1000/month to each family for as long as they were out of their homes and delivered. And when people donated to her charity, she upped the donation."
"Elvis Presley wanted to record a version of “I Will Always Love You” back in the 70s (in fact, according to Priscilla, he sang it to her as he walked her to her car after signing the divorce papers), but Dolly said no because that would have require her to give up her songwriting rights."
"Because she retained those rights, she was the one who got an insane influx of cash after Whitney Houston’s version blew up in the 90s. What did she do? Invested in the real-estate development of an historically Black neighborhood in Nashville."
"She donates books to kids through her Imagination Library. Hell when Gal Gadot, was 'helping' by organizing a singalong of “Imagine,” Dolly was writing a check to Vanderbilt University Medical School to fund the research that eventually lead to the Moderna vaccine."
"Dolly is a fighter."
- mdsnbelle
"They need to work this cameo into next season’s Loki."
" *Hands Mjolnir to Thor (in front of the Hulk?) and asks 'Is this yours honey?' then casually walks off stage left.* "
- analyticalchem
"Dolly has been a shockingly common answer to this! But then again Dolly's an all around wonderful person and the last person to criticize her got cancelled by the right and left together so... a unifying force to be sure."
- GluttonAsteroth
"She carries a hand gun, and she knows how to use it. She's got a permit for conceal carry."
"She's one person who I'd trust would fight and kill for the right reasons."
- kjbrasda·
"A Happy Little Dent"
"Bob Ross."
" 'We’re going to put a happy little dent right here.' ”
- Eledridan
" 'And here’s our enemy now. Standing beside a happy little tree. Let’s take mjolnir and just beat the devil out of him!' "
- dreagan021
"Is Bob Ross really willing to kill? Because that is one of the requirements, also please don't call me a nerd."
- ThatOnePieceOfPizza
"Bob Ross had a 20 year career in the US Air Force and was a drill sergeant. He wasn’t all quiet voices and gentle smiles his entire life."
- Ryukotaicho
"Nope."
"Dude cheated on his wife and stole the idea of the show. Wasn't all rainbows and happy trees behind the scenes on the Ross show."
"He's not worthy to wield."
- zamfire
Absolute Unit
"When I was a kid, I had a buddy who's aunt was 6'5 and probably 250lb. Absolute unit of a woman."
"I watched her carry an old school refrigerator up the basement stairs without it touching a single step. Only person I can think of."
Silly
"Mjolnir wasn't supposed to be about worth, it was about strength. The only other person I can think of that would have the strength to lift Mjolnir would be someone with the physical prowess of say Superman or The Incredible Hulk— but they’re not real people, so this question is just silly."
- [Reddit]
Keanu
"I say Keanu Reeves"
- thesynthwar
"Keanu Reeves."
"I will not elaborate."
- TheShadomasta
"I'm going to say Keanu Reeves."
"I don't think he's a very good actor (sorry, but I don't), but he's hella rich and famous, and somehow I've never heard a single negative thing about him."
"He has every reason in the world to be a smug, entitled asshole - even angry with what life has dealt him - but instead seems to be a decent and kind person."
- McFeely_Smackup
By Voice Alone
"Morgan Freeman. His voice alone can move that hammer!"
- RadiantAcadia
Not Exactly Wielding
"Doesn't matter how heavy it is, my cat would still find some way to nudge it off the f*cking table."
- Cells_Interlinked_77
Harriet
"Harriet Tubman. Straight up 100%."
"And yes I wish she'd had it."
- Terpsichorean_Wombat
Chuck
"It’s not Chuck Norris that’s worthy enough to wield Mjolnir, it’s Mjolnir that’s worthy enough to be wielded by Chuck Norris."
- Knewwhatthiswas
"Ah Chuck Norris jokes, how I’ve missed them!"
- GeneralDouglas1998
"I’m not sure he’s actually worthy, but not even Mjolnir wants to piss off Chuck Norris so it would just let him pick it up."
- TheDangerHeisenberg
Stan
"Stan Lee"
- 0DeadlyApple0
"Old man Stan Lee, yes."
"Had to have his character development through his younger years to establish his worthiness."
- iPeterParker
Originally...
"Originally, Mjolnir was so heavy that only one person could life if unassisted: Thor's son Magni."
"Even Thor needed gloves and a belt to wield it."
"So no one. Not even Thor, really."
- Captain_Bunny-Rabbit
Worthy Warrior
"Lots of 'people I like and haven't done anything wrong in their life' answers."
"Worthy doesn't necessarily mean pure of heart, there is a warrior aspect to it too. I don't know how y'all are forgetting that the person who wields it must be a warrior."
"Odin wouldn't bless an actor with Mjolnir."
"Anyway, the real answer is Léo Major."
- SmokinDynamite
Moment of honesty, I had forgotten about the whole "willingness to kill" thing when I initially suggested Betty ... but you know what, I'm just going to let it stand.
I can see Betty as a killer for the right reasons... which is pretty much the whole point.
So who do you think could lift it? Sound off in the comments.
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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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