Depression is a disease that's not discussed very often, but about 350 million people suffer from it every day. This disorder claims the lives of many by making people go into a mental state filled with depressive thoughts and actions, and if it has gone on for too long, it also can lead to suicide.

Not all levels of depression lead to death, but it is a serious disorder that needs to be taken seriously. As a person that is still suffering from the disorder, I have noticed that it is okay to be depressed sometimes, but not all the time.

Through the hustle of daily life, it's tough to stay happy all the time. But it is also very easy to succumb to the sadness and depressive thoughts. We are told that if we just act happy that we will be happy, but saying and doing are two completely different actions. Those people who are unaware or unaffected by it do not understand that it is almost impossible to climb out of that dark state and put on a happy face.

I understand the difficulties of acting like you are on Cloud 9 while you feel like you are at rock bottom. For most people, depression is an everyday obstacle where if you act the slightest bit down around your friends, they take pity on you and try to make you feel better.

Your depression is something only you yourself can cope with, so you have to make yourself feel better. Sometimes, you feel better by riding the depressive slide down to the bottom until you pick yourself back up again. Surround yourself with great people who would love to just make you laugh, but not to make you feel worse for being down.

Reading a book always makes me forget about the world around me and imagine a different world with different problems that I don't have to face. Go driving around town with the windows down and just belt the lyrics to your favorite song. These are some of the ways that I deal with my depression, but there are many other ways of coping with it.

Like I said before, sometimes it is okay to be depressed, but other times, you have to just get out of that depressed state. I know we all have those days where we can’t pick ourselves up, and that is completely okay.

We also need to remember that depression does not control you, you control it. You have to put your mind to it and change the way you view your depression or you will always be sulking in a corner somewhere.

Your depressive thoughts and unhappiness does not define who you are as a person. You can still find your happiness even while dealing with this disorder, but you have to do something about it. Even though it isn’t always something we want to deal with daily, it is what makes us human.