How To Express Your Depression In Words

This the story of a man that is an army vet. Darrio had battled with depression since he can remember and had to learn how to deal with it. Darrio writes his story in hopes to teach others how to express their depression in words as he did. 

I have Seasonal Affective Disorder which is a type of depression caused by the change in seasons or when there is a lot of rain or snow (more info on SAD here.). For since I can remember I have dealt with depression. I couldn’t feel happiness the way others could and I didn’t enjoy many things growing up. 

Over time I have noticed the change in weather can trigger my depression as well as the environment I am in. If I am in a spot in my life that I do not want to be the depression will be more constant.

Lifestyle changes that helped me express my depression

I feel as if I am finally making positive changes to my life that are helping combat my depression. I have been working out, stretching, meditating, and eating healthy foods and I feel as if they all help me fight my depression.

Getting a full night’s sleep is very essential as well. There actually is a lot of science involved in depression. Certain foods can fight depression. Certain foods can help you feel worse. Processed and frozen foods have contributed to me feeling worse at times while eating fresh fruit has helped me a lot. Working out or doing anything active has been proven to help as well. 

Talking your depression through and expressing it healthily

I try to talk about my depression with my mother because we are very close. She is the first one who explained to me what depression is because she struggles with depression as well. I feel very comfortable talking about it with close friends and whenever I see other people struggling with it. Depression is more common than people think. I have helped many friends, family members, and coworkers deal with depression. The more you talk about it the easier it becomes to deal with. 

I always try to offer any advice I can when I see someone in need. I also feel that if we talk about it more we will be able to help more people and discover more ways to combat depression. Everyone needs close family members and close friends to help with depression. Nobody can do it all on their own. There are plenty of affordable options for therapy in person as well as virtually.

Supporting our friends by letting them express themselves

It’s super helpful to better your mindset first to be able to start discussing depression. Like Darrio did, making better lifestyle choices can better your mind and lead you to speak to people that are close to you. Your mother or close friends are great people to speak to get your thoughts out. I’d also say writing about depression is super helpful because it places your thoughts on paper or on a screen in front of you instead of staying stuck in your head.

Depression takes the lives of many people every day. I can imagine that some of those people had no one to talk to or felt like they couldn’t. If a loved one of mine needed to express their thoughts to me and vent I’d never say no to them. But I’ve broadened that thought and would like to say if anyone needed to vent consuming thoughts and express their depression I’d gladly do it. I’d listen if it meant it would keep another life comrade on this earth.

For more stories like this one please check out:

My Relationship Went Long-Distance Because of COVID

Why Moving Back Home Doesn’t Mean You Failed

Being a Teenager with Anxiety and Stress

Darrio Guzman

I’m a 26-year-old army veteran. I’m going to college for computer science. I enjoy playing with my dog, playing video games, and watching sports.