I saw this article this morning by Sammy Rhodes "6 Ways To Love A Depressed Person" and thought it was fantastic. If you live with, or are a friend of, someone who struggles with depression, this is a must read. I won't share the entire article, but these are just the six headings and a sentence from each point. I strongly recommend reading the entire (short) article. Here are the main points:
1. Keep the pin in the shame grenade - Depressed people feel tremendous amounts of shame...
2. Don't be simplistic - It's not always as simple as "Take medicine," or "Go see a counselor," or "Repent."
3. Take the physical as seriously as the spiritual - ...Because sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is take a nap (or a walk, or a meal).
4. Embrace awkward silence - If they're really depressed, the last thing they want to do is talk about why they're really depressed.
5. Help them take themselves less seriously -Humor is actually a vital part of dealing with depression, because if you listen closely enough to laughter you can hear the echoes of hope.
6. Give them grace by giving them space - Depressed people need the space to be alone, yet the security to know that you're not going anywhere.
Good, good stuff.
2 comments:
Great article!
The last time I talked to my ex-girlfriend her depression/anxiety came up. Hers is something she'll have to deal with for the foreseeable future. She added to her personal rules: "don't go cold turkey" for people in her situation. She wanted her depression to be situational, and thought she was past it, so she dropped her meds and set herself back to a point she couldn't get herself out of. She said the Doctor should be helping with any "weaning experiments" and that the significant other's approval should not only be mandatory, but they should also have full veto capability to shut it down and go back to full meds at any time.
She's a smart girl, I told her she should write a book on this topic.
Yep, that's good advice. Many times the person with depression is aware, but often they're not. And she's right about trying to go cold turkey. Not a good idea.
Thanks!
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