Let me preface this by issuing an apology for the sharp twinge of hypocrisy in my title: unfortunately, the most efficient outlet to combat what I'm addressing is the battlefield I'm asking be avoided. But, everyone, this has got to stop.

I am not targeting individual articles or posts. And I'm sure many other people with mental or emotional conditions will disagree with most or all of this. It's gotten extraordinarily annoying to see social media posts and pop-culture publications talking about "the real issues for people with [insert disorder]" and so forth.

It may not be intended as a form of sympathetic popularity contesting, but I can't be the only person with depression for whom it comes off that way. And it's a particularly insidious process to claim that the goal or purpose of a publication is to "spread awareness" or "help the public in understanding" mental conditions, knowing the real draw of these articles.

First, many millions of people who feel that their conditions are underrepresented, and want to feel vindicated, and second, millions more people who don't understand or experience mental illness, and who take the testimony in these posts for gospel.

If someone is testifying about their own experience to broaden the public's understanding, I applaud them. But for those with or without some condition, taking on the astrologer's role of peddling vague explanations for behavior and seeking praise

I've published work about my own experience with depression before. It took a lot less courage than it took work. I cared deeply, of course, that my descriptions of the experiences be accurate, honest, and tangible. And I noticed, in the responses to that work, a great deal more heartfelt, detailed replies and thanks than for any other work I've done.

This, of course, is a product of a recent, massive cultural shift towards sympathizing with - rather than ignoring (or outright mocking) - mental disorders. That shift has actually morphed through social media into a certain degree of romanticizing the disorders. Popular figures in music, film, sports, other entertainment have proclaimed proudly their battles with depression, anxiety, and other conditions - and they've since become more and more common.

It seems to me that the sheer openness of our society towards mental illness has birthed a great deal more of it - some genuinely recognizing it when they might have sought not to before, and some contriving it because its presence garners attention. Publications on the subject seem to behave in the same way.

I apologize if I seem overly or unfairly critical, but I've learned that all I can do in public to combat my own conditions is demand honesty and a curb on charlatan popularity in the matters most dear to me. Again, I don't mean to chastise other authors who use their publications to address their emotional challenges in a tangible way. But if the purpose of an article on depression, anxiety, or other mental illnesses is to direct your work at the widest audience possible, don't write it.