Getting up early for classes and hitting the snooze on all 12 alarms and sleeping through a class? Putting off assignments because you can’t focus and feel like you will fail anyways? Having trouble sleeping late at night but not being able to wake up the next morning? These things seem frustrating and for some people it is the greatest feeling to just be able to fall asleep, wake up, and actually do an assignment.
I’m sure everyone has had a period of sadness throughout their life. Don’t confuse sadness with depression. It is extremely important to have a place or person to feel safe around. Even when everything seems hopeless, stepping back to observe your emotions may help you feel safe and calm again. Despite feeling alone, every university has a place for students to go to cope with their mental illnesses or sadness. Going there to discuss your least favorite topics may seem like the worst thing you could ever do, but it could honestly save your life.
Having a depressive episode is different for each person it may affect. These symptoms may be not wanting to leave a room, avoiding friends, not eating or eating too much, avoiding things that are a pleasure, and oversleeping. It is important to have at least one friend that is willing to check up on you if you don’t check in. I’m sure you have noticed that there is always one person that never shows up to class or is generally late? Maybe that person could use a friend to talk to about what is going on. In most cases, this may just be laziness or oversleeping, but there may be a person who is in need of a motivation in their life.
Depression is a real thing and NEEDS to be addressed. It is not something that is vocalized, but something that is hidden from the world. Take action when you see someone acting sad even it if it just a sad social media post. Sometimes people share these things publicly but others will hide behind the face of the computer. It is time to help those who feel hopeless! Stop making suicide a joke and focus on helping those who need the help.
