Depression?

[rawr573]

How can you tell the difference between a person that has depression or a depressing person?

I'm always negative.
Headaches.
Very low self esteem.
Sad a lot, etc, etc.

[seattlemom2plus]

No certainly not suggesting you lie to yourself about what you are good at or like, more so uncovering or discovering things you truly do enjoy.

[rawr573]

lol, unfortunately I am the debbi downer. :( I'm afraid my friends are going to stop liking me as much because of my negativity. I'm trying to think positive, but it always ends up, why bother lying to much self that i'm good at things. It's depressing.

[seattlemom2plus]

If your best friend is "Debbie Downer" and you are around a lot of negative people then it is easy to understand that negativity rubs off on you and enables your own depression.  Start out small and start doing one good thing for yourself daily and see how that makes you feel.  If anything this will help you pinpoint what it is you like :)

[rawr573]

I'm not really sure..

[seattlemom2plus]

I know the place where you are because I have been there before.  Ironically though every time I have been "alone" and unmotivated it was because I was supposed to be.  I actually discovered my own identity this way and was actually able to use all my emotions in a creative way which later on became a career for me.  Had I not had that time and I kept running my life robotically so to speak I would have never stopped to discover what I was supposed to discover.  What gives you the most joy?  What do you do by yourself that makes you happy?

[rawr573]

I don't even know. I kind of don't like my life. There's no motivation. Nothing going on that I'm doing it for. I feel like it's just something I have to do, but no purpose. I have barely any friends to see since they're all in college, and no boyfriend because I don't want one.

[seattlemom2plus]

What actually makes you feel good about life or yourself?  I find that sometimes if I ask myself this question I pinpoint what I need to be doing more of.  If I like to write and it makes me feel good I do more of it.  It's the "little" things that bring us out of misery and help train ourselves to focus on the bigger picture.

[rawr573]

Different things do. And yes exactly it. >,<

[seattlemom2plus]

What makes you feel depressed?  Do you get overwhelmed with everything no matter what it is or specific issues in your life?

[sweetpea03]

Depression can be chronic or it can be temporary. It could be that you have been depressed before or are now. If you feel depressed, make sure to reach out for help. I would suggest you go for counseling to see if that helps you, but if it doesn't, it may be a chemical imbalance in your brain which would require a doctor's visit for evaluation and possible medication. Counseling can be very beneficial and please don't feel embarrassed to ask for help by going to counseling. There is no shame in it and most Americans have some problems with depression at some point in their life. Though some thing that may also help, is just forcing yourself to be positive and get involved in things. Join a club/group, join a sport, do volunteer work, exercise regularly, plan fun outings with friends(even if you don't feel like, it force yourself), and so on. All of those can help you feel connected to the world and help with depression feelings. Hope it all goes well. Take care.