Do you remember that stage in life when puberty hit? You grew taller or wider, fuller or skinnier, and had to deal with raging hormones. It's easy to remember the physical properties to puberty, but what about the abstract? At the time, I remember needing to be sociable, popular and attractive and able to keep up with my reputation at school. I'd wake up ridiculously early to carefully select my outfit, brutally blow dry and straighten my hair, and do my makeup to cover up my acne. I was embarrassed by my mother when she picked me up from school or when she wouldn't allow me to have a sleepover (I still have never had a sleepover). I began to hate both my natural self and my "image."
There's no way to pinpoint when depression starts or when it ends. There's no way of being able to look at someone and tell that they suffer from it. Small self esteem issues gradually grow, tensions in the family heighten, grades start slipping, jobs become dreadful, friends no longer seem like friends and a person's fragile mentality gets shattered. These are things that are impossible to see on the surface. The cheery girl at school, the comical co-worker and the irritable old man next door could all be suffering from it.
I've noticed a reoccurring theme in the media: depression. They portray these beautiful women with perfect bodies and seemingly perfect lives but they become addicted to partying, alcohol, smoking, drugs, relationships, money, or possessions. These bad habits become their beautiful but tragic downfall. I've also seen the lonely, mysterious, and handsome young fellow that turns every woman's knees into jell-O. He's typically deemed a bad boy and every woman wants to be the one that turns him "good." These may have made good stories but there's something destructive about what these teenagers are getting from them.
In pop culture, depression has been seen as one of those things that brings attention. It's a way of describing how someone is or dresses or acts. It's been romanticized and portrayed falsely. Depression is not a temporary phase that teenagers can grow out of. It's not something that betters a person or helps them mature and become strong. It's not something that is charming or attractive. It is, however, a seriously dangerous condition. Depression is insomnia, addiction, anxiety, mood swings, poor diet, hopelessness and loneliness. It's crying at three in the morning, panic attacks when stepping out of your comfort zone, and feeling like a bother to everyone or like no one cares. It's a scary phenomenon that has caused more harm than good with its glamorization.
