|
Dev
\ (•◡•) /
|
|

12-23-2007, 05:38 PM
I'm going to slap a warning on here, just in case this is sensitive stuff to some people. It might be, it might not be. I have no idea.
Heads up, I'll probably drift off track a little in this ... >> I'm bad for that.
One thing that really bugs me, is the fact that most everyone that I've met, thinks that if someone is depressed, they are, by default, suicidal. Not everyone who suffers from depression is suicidal.
I'll be honest, I've been/am depressed a lot, but I'm not suicidal. I"m not stupid enough to go out there and just up and jump off a building just 'cause things aren't going my way today. Yet, if I mention, or even just hint to depression, people will start going on "Oh my god! You need help! Don't go kill yourself today, who knows what you'll miss tomorrow!" and all of that lovely stuff that just grates on my nerves.
Also, why is it that when someone is caught Cutting, that they are automatically labeled as Attention whores? Seriously, that's just wrong. While yes, a lot ARE just crying for attention, there are some out there who aren't. I'm not saying they are depressed, cause I know for a fact that not everyone who cuts is crying out for attention, or depressed, cause I'm one of them (Ironically enough, when I'm depressed, I don't cut, don't want to. Yet when I'm not depressed I want to.. Weird.)
Either way, I know a couple other girls who cut, but it's not for attention, and it's not because they are depressed. It's because they have a fascination with blood, or they are masochist, or a variety of other things.
Why is it that people see one thing, and automatically label the person "Such-and-such" and type of person or whatever? It's just something that really annoys me.
But, before I turn this into a real bitch fest (Trust me, if I'm not careful I can) I'll stop there.
But I want to ask you, what are your opinions on Cutting, Depression and Suicide? I've pretty much given my opinions, so what are yours?
|
|
|
|
|
Mikku
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-23-2007, 06:06 PM
i hate it, depression isn't real, you can't make a mood a disorder...
about cutting, i hate it more, i personally would never EVER do such a thing...cuz if i did that, the moment i go to where ever you go when you die; my grandma, my uncles, and all the other people i know that have died would torture me for eternity...i know they would...
|
|
|
|
|
Aeschylus
Sarcasm Machine
|
|

12-23-2007, 06:12 PM
I know what you mean. I have a friend who cuts because she is curious about it. Even though I don't support or like this, I know she is not 'emo' or an 'attention whore'. In actuality, she is the happiest person I know.
EDIT:
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Mikku
i hate it, depression isn't real, you can't make a mood a disorder...
|
Could I please have a source for this?
|
|
|
|
|
Emrysa
ʘ‿ʘ
|
|

12-23-2007, 06:44 PM
I get aggravated with depression.
My mother suffers from depression and sometimes I get angry with her because I feel like she doesn't care about anyone but herself. It's not good enough that we have a home and she's got two kids who love her and worry about her and a steady job that pays well. I know she can't help it, but I detest it. She's always listens to music about hating herself, life, and people. She sleeps like twelve hours a day and she never wants to do anything. I was diagnosed with depression myself when I was a teenager but I don't take meds and I meditate and listen to music when I feel upset, I think it's easier than making everyone around me totally miserable. I also think it's a bunch of bull that the answer now is to diagnose everyone with mental illness and stuff them full of meds. Some people really need it but some people are just going through normal situations in life that are stressful.
I have kind of a torn stance on cutting.
Some people can use minor pain to dislocate themselves from the pain they're going through and some people, as you said, just seem to enjoy it. There are several tribal practices that include body mutilation so it's not necessarily something new. I'm kind of neutral in those regards.
Some people just do it to manipulate others around them into guilt or to get attention. That's when I think people are just jerks. Unless they're really suicidal, in which case they probably just need some help and medication.
(And maybe a little more sunlight.)
|
|
|
|
|
Ise
(。⌒∇⌒)&...
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:08 PM
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Mikku
i hate it, depression isn't real, you can't make a mood a disorder...
about cutting, i hate it more, i personally would never EVER do such a thing...cuz if i did that, the moment i go to where ever you go when you die; my grandma, my uncles, and all the other people i know that have died would torture me for eternity...i know they would...
|
Try telling those of us who suffer from it for months on end it's just "a mood." It's pretty insulting, especially when it's so hard to try and feel like a normal relatively happy human being.
There is a mood of depression and then there is a state of it that you just can't get out of no matter what you do, be it trying to get a good endorphin rush from working out and kicking out some stress, be it spending time with your loved ones or doing other activities you normally love. They just don't cut it (pardon the pun given the nature of this thread) when the chemicals get a bit out of whack in the head.
A clinically diagnosed depression is rough to handle. Motivation to do anything is extremely hard to come by even when you're pushing yourself so hard to find it. You just want to sleep all the time because it feels like you won't get anything done otherwise. It just saps your energy. It really does affect not only the one who has it, but those in that person's life who care about them. It's hard to see as much as it is to handle, and I've been around various forms all my life.
Sometimes it's more severe than others. I was diagnosed with a moderate level of it when I was in my teens, but the only real reason I was put on a low dose of medication was because it aggravated my IBS (irritable bowel syndrome - being depressed and upset messes with levels of seratonin, 95% of which is in the digestive system). Otherwise it was up to me to figure things out and talk to people to handle it. Honestly, that's generally the best method to cope. If you need the meds, then you need them - that does not mean you need them forever or til the end of your life. It's not a permanent thing once a person learns their ways of coping and problem solving so things don't reach that stage.
In ways, I definitely agree with Jaina - it's wholly aggravating in a situation like that. That's a case where it's just seeming to be let go. A person has to be willing to learn how to handle it for anything to get any better. In that case, I think the people who care suffer even more having to be around that person.
And no, anti-depressants aren't always the solution. Sometimes a little bit of counseling for a little while and the support of a person's friends and family through it is enough. Sometimes it's not. It depends on the person and the severity or even if it's just a hard period in life that will pass. In that case, a lot of support is probably best, y'know?
|
|
|
|
|
Takabean
ʘ‿ʘ
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:12 PM
I am kind of neutral to the pro and con of cutting. I do not think it is the right way to handle your depression, but some people like it. And its not hurting anyone else is it? It is making them happy. And in America we have the Pursuit of Happiness, so really no harm is being one. But once again I do not think that cutting is the way to handle things. And I would never do it. But when I see someone and they tell me they cut I dont go crazy and say things like "Oh my god are you serious!" and think they are weird or whatever.
|
|
|
|
|
Facade
Ticking Time Bomb of Titillation
☆
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:25 PM
Actually, depression is all about suicidal thoughts; just because you choose to ignore them doesn't mean that they're not there, Dev. =P
Depression is an increasingly saddening state, which makes you feel worse and worse about either yourself, or the situation you're in.
Just because you're not willing to jump off of the nearest bridge doesn't mean that ending your state of sadness doesn't cross your mind; that's an actual portion of depression.
Being able to withstand depression, and ignore all thoughts of this 'ending' of the depression is still a major achievement, however. But it's not a complete 'I never think of suicide' ticket out.
So yeah, in a way, you can't be bugged by people linking depression with suicide; because, ultimately, one leads to the other - unless your depression is well-managed, and your thoughts well-tended to.
Just try to remain even the slightest optimistic...
(That's what I believe, anyway... >>; I'm sure it sounded more professional than I meant to come off... But I've always imagined depression pertained to suicide - and just ignoring some idea doesn't make it not an idea. Stem cell research is still an option for the future, although certain political officials choose to ignore and shun it.)
|
|
|
|
|
Kitty Paine
Gamer Kitty
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:35 PM
Some people who posted here displease me. Depression is a imbalance is bodily chemicals, often caused by a traumatic experience. I know from experience myself. Not everyone who suffers from depression feels suicidal. I myself, do feel like I would like to die, but I do not take steps towards that path. Instead, I'm going to see doctors (Psychologists and such) to help me recover and overcome my depression. Everyone experiences their depression differently, so don't go and say 'Your depressed, so you must be suicidal', cause it isn't true. Depression can effect lots of things in a persons life. I for one am failing high school because I feel too overwhelmed and upset. Others may be able to cope with it better then me. Depending on how traumatic the event was, the depression can be more or less severe, it also depends on the person and their own personality.
|
|
|
|
|
Ise
(。⌒∇⌒)&...
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:43 PM
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Facade
Actually, depression is all about suicidal thoughts; just because you choose to ignore them doesn't mean that they're not there, Dev. =P
Depression is an increasingly saddening state, which makes you feel worse and worse about either yourself, or the situation you're in.
Just because you're not willing to jump off of the nearest bridge doesn't mean that ending your state of sadness doesn't cross your mind; that's an actual portion of depression.
Being able to withstand depression, and ignore all thoughts of this 'ending' of the depression is still a major achievement, however. But it's not a complete 'I never think of suicide' ticket out.
So yeah, in a way, you can't be bugged by people linking depression with suicide; because, ultimately, one leads to the other - unless your depression is well-managed, and your thoughts well-tended to.
Just try to remain even the slightest optimistic...
(That's what I believe, anyway... >>; I'm sure it sounded more professional than I meant to come off... But I've always imagined depression pertained to suicide - and just ignoring some idea doesn't make it not an idea. Stem cell research is still an option for the future, although certain political officials choose to ignore and shun it.)
|
^^; I'm inclined to disagree. I've been diagnosed with it as have some other family members and I can honestly say suicide has not once ever crossed my mind even when I am in bad straights. That's a major thing people notice in diagnosing it, but there are plenty of other kind of mundane things that pile up. There are always other ways to want to end the depression, it's why people try the things they usually love doing.
Depression does not lead to suicide in most instances. There is a major difference between imagining it would and experiencing it, so it's pointless to say things like those so surely.
|
|
|
|
|
Kitty Paine
Gamer Kitty
|
|

12-23-2007, 07:47 PM
Funny thing, I do cut myself. But not on purpose, I'm just really clumsy. I cut my hand on the corner of a folding table with sharp edges, yesterday when I went to stand up. Totally by accident, it was in the way. Not caused by my depression, I have a scar now by the way.
|
|
|
|
|
Letisha
(-.-)zzZ
|
|

12-23-2007, 08:06 PM
I just don't think cutting is a sane thing to do, at least if you're not depressed. But depressed people can do all sorts of stuff, and practically blame it on the depression.
|
|
|
|
|
Kitty Paine
Gamer Kitty
|
|

12-23-2007, 08:08 PM
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Letisha
I just don't think cutting is a sane thing to do, at least if you're not depressed. But depressed people can do all sorts of stuff, and practically blame it on the depression.
|
*shakes head* How would you know? Do you have any experience?
|
|
|
|
|
Noyin
*^_^*
|
|

12-23-2007, 10:17 PM
Heh saying there is not such thing as depression makes me really confused. I dont really know how I would explain to my mom that what she had and made it hard to her even getting of her bad was not real. And as far as i know from when she was in care for it...its not all about thinking about suicide...its more like the constant thought of tiredness, not being able to get stuff done during the day properly...felling traped maybe or just getting smeshed about the situation you are in....but that is how I understand it. I could be wrong.
I cant say anything about cutting since I have no direct or indirect experience of that.
|
|
|
|
|
Mikku
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-23-2007, 10:24 PM
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by â—• w â—•
Could I please have a source for this?
|
i 'supposedly' have depression, I'm just a moody kid...i can't help that I'm not always happy...
|
|
|
|
|
Chexala
cat whisperer
☆☆☆ Penpal
|
|

12-24-2007, 04:00 AM
Dev, I'm sorry to say that the misunderstandings concerning depression and cutting are matters of ignorance. Most people have not studied psychology, and probably half the people who have taken general psychology classes didn't listen anyway. It is unfortunate.
To address some of the comments made so far:
* Depression is in fact very real, and more than just a mood. The common use of the word depression has led to it becoming diluted and misunderstood—there is a difference between having an unhappy day and suffering a Major Depressive Episode. When a psychologist is making a diagnosis, they look for things like lack of energy, disinterest, irregular sleep or appetite habits, and other symptoms which have persisted for a given amount of time. People having a bad day are not depressed. People who can't function for months because of their unhappiness are depressed.
* Depression does not begin and end with suicidal thoughts. Suicidal ideation is certainly a highly indicative symptom of depression, but it is not required to be diagnosed with Major Depression. There is a whole list of symptoms, and you only need to be experiencing a minimum number of them, not specific ones. Again, depression is not all about suicidal thoughts.
* It is not necessarily given that depression is the result of a brain chemical imbalance. That view is only one of many in the field of psychology. The science of brain chemistry, as advanced as it is, is still highly inexact. Anti-depressant drugs are mostly found by accident, and not always understood. Besides, if depression were just a matter of brain chemistry, how would it be possible for people to become cured without corrective drugs? Therapy does work too. I'm not saying that brain chemistry is irrelevant, but I am saying that it is not everything.
* Depression can be caused by a traumatic event, but again, this is not the only cause, nor is it a prerequisite.
I'm sorry if I come off as a ranting, pompous arse, but I just took a general psychology class this semester, and while I am certainly no expert, many misconceptions were cleared up for me. Also, depression is common in my family, so I have much personal experience with it.
|
|
|
|
|
Kitty Paine
Gamer Kitty
|
|

12-24-2007, 02:50 PM
Anti-depressants? Pfft, they don't do shit for me, not the ones i'm taking anyway. And I didn't say it is always caused by a traumatic event, although in my case it is.
|
|
|
|
|
Fullmetal Phantom
Dead Account Holder
|
|

12-24-2007, 07:05 PM
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Mikku
i hate it, depression isn't real, you can't make a mood a disorder...
|
Actually, clinical depression IS real. Have you ever seen someone who is truly depressed, not just faking it, 100% of the time, for no reason at all, even when the situation should bring them happiness? Probably not...because it's very rare.
However...I have seen it. This rare problem is believed to be caused by a chemial imbalance in the brain. The theory is that in this condition, pleasure sensors in the brain are blocked, creating an inability to feel happiness.
As for cutting...*sighs deeply and prepares for flames* I used to do it. e_e Definitely not for the attention, in fact, I never told anyone until my dad saw me bleeding through my shirt. It was for multiple reasons. The biggest reason was that it was relaxing. I didn't know WHY at the time...but it really was. There was also the fact that usually when I needed that relaxation, I was angry at someone or other, sometimes myself, sometimes someone else...but RELIABLY, the sight of blood relieved that anger.
Then, the day after my mom found out (same way my dad did), an article came out in Time magazine on it. Weeeeird. e_e But it was in that article that I learned why many people find it relaxing - an injury releases endorphines in the brain in order to keep you from panicking and killing yourself if you get hurt. If you know you're in control, the end result is like being on drugs without the drugs. And it's addictive in the same way.
I threw out all the sharp objects in my room when I read that. I am...not fond of the idea of being addicted to anything.
But really, there are several "groups" of people who injure themselves in some way, each with different purposes. Some people do it because of the endorphine rush, others because they like the sight of blood. Some do it for attention and pity, others do it for the sake of body modification; like self-tattooing (I know someone who did a Triforce on her ankle). And then there are the masochists.
And of course, there are the people who are more than one of the above.
Now, I don't have a problem with anyone who does it. I'm not too fond of the idea of being very literally addicted to injuries, but...whatever floats your boat. Who am I to say what someone else can and can't do?
|
|
|
|
|
ewic santiago
(-.-)zzZ
|
|

12-25-2007, 05:02 AM
Cutting
My opinion: if you tell people you cut, if you show people your scars, you are an attention whore. I'm pretty sure people who cut are a little bit more secretive about it then that and I've pretty sure they're not proud of it too.
|
|
|
|
|
Shankster06
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-27-2007, 04:48 AM
ya i totally agree with you just because you are depressed doesn't mean you cut! its a good lesson
|
|
|
|
|
Psychophobical
Mels
|
|

12-27-2007, 05:14 AM
Guh, this is a hard one.
Let's start with depression. I think that depression is a state of mind, rather than an emotion. There isn't really a pill you can take to cure it either. Medication always make this worse, it's the person believing it will help them that actually helps them get out of depression.
Suicide... I think for some people it's the only way out. You don't run around stopping people who smoke cigarettes... That's practically suicide, so why bother with the others? You only show yourself the respect you feel you deserve.
Now, cutting is the challenge. I think that people who cut for attention are idiots. Those people should all die for stupidity. There are some few however (Myself having been one of them) that didn't do it for attention. It was a way to get rid of mental pain by zoning in on the physical. People who cut for a reason are either suicidal or careful. If that person doesn't ask for help, I think they are entitled to their own body and soul.
I don't believe anyone should control another person or tell them what is good for them. You learn on your own, you make your own choices, no one should have to make them for you.
|
|
|
|
|
IndiGlo
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-27-2007, 05:37 AM
I'm not too sure on this one...but I will give my own personal views...which means give me proof and I will cede to your point.
Depression is a mindset. I do not claim to know any one who is depressed or claim I am depressed myself. Yes sometimes I do get crushed by my feelings of the inevitability of it all...why bother, I'm going to die anyways, sort of feelings. Where I really wish that I did believe in an afterlife...so much easier to get through life if I believed that even after I died I could go on. Yet I deal, it is not all about me, being depressed is a drag on others, so I smile in the face of depression and laugh to make it disappear. For I live for others and myself...self harm and suicide is of the utmost disrespect to my person and to those whom love me. Yes we will all die some day, but why dwell on it when you could be making the most of the little time you do have.
|
|
|
|
|
EbilKitty
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-27-2007, 02:19 PM
A friend of mine suddenly started cutting herself. She was having some problems with her "boyfriend" (she thought they were in a relationship, he was just using her), so I guess she did it for attention. She would cut herself, take a picture of it with her cell phone and then send it to the guy... I'm not sure what good she thought that would do, but I guess it backfired because the guy got totally freaked out and left her for good.
|
|
|
|
|
Britti
\ (•◡•) /
|
|

12-27-2007, 04:50 PM
If I may jump in here...
I suffer from depression. Although recently, I have been relatively unaffected, throughout high school I was. What really changed me around was leaving the country, and surprisingly, my mother's death... I'm not sure why, but I did...
I believe I actually sat down and cut maybe... Three times. Two of those times were suicide attempts (and I got it right--down the street instead of across) while the third was... Well, I cut many, many, many (I think I counted forty or more) very light cuts along the upper part of my arm, near my wrist yes but I knew what I was doing by then. While it was partially looking for that high one gets when they cut, I was also fascinated but how they looked. Through all three "sessions," I did keep them covered--the first two, I was ashamed for the most part and with the third, I didn't want my therapist assuming things. @[email protected] Or anyone else, considering a lot of my activity at school was reported to just about everyone.
(I was feared from 7th to 10th grade. People said I was insane... It was a very small school, so rumors got around quickly although not very accurately.)
I was in love with the way they looked though. I would admire them, then the scars later, at home by myself. I have always been morbid, and I just wanted to share another aspect on cutting with everyone, because sometimes, people are just a little tilted in the head, not weird but just different from the majority who find beautiful in the oddest of things.
|
|
|
|
|
icey_paradise
⊙ω⊙
|
|

12-28-2007, 01:36 AM
For a while, I was incredibly depressed, and resorted to cutting until my friend told the school social worker. Things were talked out, and I'm fine now. But, some do it for attention, others do it as a means for releaving stress or other emotional problems. Thats why I did it, I really had no one I could talk to, I was going through a phase where I didn't talk with anyone about my life.
So, being moody doesn't really have anything to do with it. Its just how your mind works, thats all^^
|
|
|
|
|
Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
|
|

12-30-2007, 09:49 AM
My cousin cut for a while, so my mother tells me - we ended up with the same Therapist (only she couldn't bring herself to talk to him, and swapped.) I don't know whether she's had suicidal thoughts, but I and perfectly 'functional' peers I know have, when they're in perfectly healthy frames of mind. My psychology teacher said she's mused about what would happen if she lept out in front of a train, but she wasn't about to go and do it. It was a fleeting curiosity. I'd say death, and suicidal thoughts can flitter around the healthiest of minds without doing any damage.
As for those continuing with this ignorance "depression isn't real", think about that if you turn out to be the 1/3 of us likely to suffer it in your life. (Figures come from my psychology class) To different degrees it's an incredibly common state - its symptoms are said to mimic grieving, which isn't something you can just get over, and nor is depression. In plenty of cases it does seem to come after a traumatic life event - the question of causation comes in to play when you consider whether the change in thoughts triggered the change in neurotransmitters, like serotonin, or whether a change in neurotransmitters alters thought patterns - though I don't think dysthymia at least need start with one...
Different drugs help different people depending on what is going on in the brain, which I'm presuming is increidbly difficult to tell without doing something invasive, which would rather be avoided... This would be why keeping a close dialogue with your Doctor is a good idea, so you can try different things to hopefully get on top of it and tide you over until it lifts of its own accord. Of course, this is all idealism - your Doctor could be a git, or you could live Stateside and have to pay a ton for your healthcare...
CBT has good results too, when applied properly, and met with a will to get better.
My own personal experience with depression did yield suicidal thoughts en masse - I just wanted it to stop - but I've never cut. Though I did scratch patches on my head, skin-picking, which is another form of less iconic self-harm... That has more to do with OCD-like tendencies, though.
|
|
|
|
| Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests) |
|
|
|