Andrew Tate’s insensitive depression claim is mental health ignorance at its best. His recent comments on Twitter about depression not being real should add to the list of things you don’t say to someone dealing with depression.
Depression doesn’t come with a magic switch to turn it on or off. It isn’t something suffers use for attention or put on an act. It is not something that goes away easily on its own. It doesn’t discriminate against age, race, gender or color. It is not something to play around with, especially since people have lost their lives because of it.
I know this because I battle with depression and it’s not something I would wish on anyone.
Depression isn’t “boring,” but it is a real mental health illness underestimated. Coping with it makes you view people, actions, relationships, and things around you differently. Some people dread starting the day and don’t have the will to get out of bed. Some people feel unworthiness toward happiness. There are people so deep into their emotional darkness sunshine isn’t enough to brighten their day or their mood.
For depressed individuals, just doing daily activities is a struggle. Who said anything about wanting someone to feel bad for them? Some don’t have a support system to help them cope. Others are trying to find purpose and meaning in their lives or resorting to self-harm or suicide when the pain is too much to bear.
How is it “easy” to project such feelings? It’s not. Countless people are putting on a happy face every day in front of others knowing they feel the exact opposite. They don’t want to be perceived as being weak. They don’t want others to know they are hurting. It is not a pathetic excuse to overcome it, but for many, it’s hiding from emotional pain they don’t know how to deal with.
Some think it is easy to bounce back from depression like it’s no big deal and it’s all in your head. Try telling that to someone whose depression came from an incurable medical diagnosis, the death of a loved one, or even someone who just lost everything they worked so hard for to a hurricane. Try telling that to someone who was at the height of their career and suddenly fell rock bottom.
It is unfortunate that people such as Tate lack a true understanding of depression as a mental illness and think those coping with it are “crybabies.” It is saddening to see such people have no regard or empathy for others living with this illness. It affects people differently and what works for one person may not work for someone else.
Those in Tate’s corner are entitled to their own opinion. Boasting about getting over 1,000 messages from people seeing things his way must make him feel special; do you want a cookie?
People saying such insensitive comments often don’t care how it makes them look or if they offend others. I’m not looking for attention but looking to set the record straight. It’s not right to judge others when you haven’t been in their shoes or when you don’t bother to try and understand why they feel the way they do. It would be wonderful for everyone to be happy, to feel loved, wanted, and appreciated.
It’s one of those situations where if you don’t have something encouraging to say or you’re not offering any support whatsoever, to keep your mouth shut. Just because someone claims to be depressed doesn’t mean they aren’t trying to make things better. True champs don’t waste their time or energy being insensitive to others. Either you get it, or you don’t. Clearly, you don’t have a clue.