You are not alone

 

When facing a rough period of our life, we tend to believe that we are alone in this situation. This is highly connected with the previous article I have posted about being broken. “What is wrong with me?” When you ask yourself this question, you automatically isolate yourself from the rest of the people because you assume that there is a problem with you, and you only. However, you are not alone. And it is time for you to open your eyes, and see it. 

There are of course several levels, depending on how aware you are at the moment. Some of you might not be aware at all that they might be suffering from depression, anxiety, or any other mental illness. Some of you might know that they are suffering from something, but not what is the reason of the suffering. Or maybe some of you are - as I am - on the path of recovery. And every stage has its own way to isolate you from the rest of the world. 

The first real issue comes from our society, but this is (hopefully) slowly changing. Mental health is tabou. In our modern Western society, it is perfectly fine to be physically ill, to have a flu or whatever infection, but it is not ok to be mentally sick. If you say to 100 people that you suffer from depression, several reactions are possible. But I think that the two most common ones would be that either people are gonna get really awkward, or they are gonna explain you that this is probably bullshit, that you should get yourself together and move on. Great. There is also this very common reaction, coming from people who do not want to judge, but have no idea. That is by far my favourite. Dialogues like:

“I am depressed.”

“Oh no, come on don’t be sad”

Wow. Thanks for the insight. Another one? 

“I have anxiety.”

“Oh come on, don’t be stressed.”

Now, we need to be gentle with the people having this kind of reaction. They do not mean to upset you. They do not know what it is like. And that is a good thing. Good for them. 

But anyway, the point is: it is extremely difficult in our society to express mental health related issues. And consequently, it is extremely common to see people suffering from those issues on their own. Simply because society tells them that they have indeed a problem. That there is indeed something wrong with them. 

Bullshit. But thankfully, this is changing slowly, and our (crazy) society finally started to acknowledge the fact that people are mentally struggling. 

Now, on a higher level, the truth is that a lot of people are struggling. A lot. And you do not need to go in an institution to find them. Just talk. To your friends, to your family, to your colleagues. I know it is hard to open up on those topics. However, by doing so, you will realise that you are not alone. That every body around you is experiencing or has experienced some similar issues in the past. Not only this will help you (because we are weird animals, it is ok to suffer as long as others do as well), but it will help the person you are talking to as well. This person is probably just like you, suffering in silence. And just like that, you are offering them an escape door. 

"Yeah but what if they are not suffering, or if they feel awkward or something as you just said?"

Well, yeah, that is a risk indeed. However, two points are worth mentioning here. Firstly, I never said to open up to a perfect stranger. Talk a friend, a close one. Someone who - even if they don't understand - will express a deep compassion, support you. Then what is the risk? None. Even if they do not get what you feel, they will not judge you. If they do, they are toxic, and it is time to get rid of them, but that will be for a later article. Secondly, trust your guts. As we discussed already, we are all - as humans - connected at some higher energetic level. We grow together, we connect. But we do not look at those connections. If you pay attention to what your body is telling you, you will hear this inner voice telling you "Talk to this person, it is safe." And it will be.

So please, never forget: you are not alone. Never were, never will. 

If you do feel lonely, and you feel like you can't express yourself, do not hesitate to comment this article anonymously or send a DM on the Instagram page. 

Love on you guys. You are worth.