Confidence Boost

Depression is like walking along the coast with a cliff on one side.

You're skirting the edge, on a slope leaning towards the drop. The natural tendency is for you to meander towards the precipice, and you need to fight the temptation to let it, even though it's damn hard work, and people don't understand what you're going through.

Sometimes you have a shit day. Something happens, like you get a text from the girl who said she doesn't want to be with you anymore, and you start to slide to the edge. You fear going over less, and you don't care: it can even appear appealing. Or even you just start to let the normal frustrations of the day get to you, and it seems like a good way to escape, just to go with the flow, and say "Sod this: what is the point?".

To keep going, you need a foothold to push you away from the fall. Something to cling to, that helps you pull yourself away from the brink. If you're lucky to be close enough to your family, it may be spending time with your brother or sister, or chatting to your parents on the phone, where they show you how much you mean to them just by them enjoying your presence. A friend making time for you. Something, anything to make your existence feel like it has a point. Like the world would be a worse place if you didn't exist.

Maybe, if you're very lucky, you'll have someone who you look up to and admire pay you a compliment. This could be a boss or supervisor, may be the person who you respect most, who's opinion you value most outside of your family. They may try and rebuild your shattered self-esteem and ego, with compliments that sound sincere, and are more unexpected, unnecessary and vehement than required simply for politeness. They can lift you up and make you feel much more intelligent and inspired than you thought. They can drag you away from falling within moments.

If you're lucky enough to have people drag you away from the edge, remember how lucky you are. Value these people. Show them how important they are to you. Collectively, they are literally life savers.

And with that, I bid you all love and goodnight. If you're one of the people who lift me up, then you have all my love already.

AcidCat