Posted by Marie1 on June 5, 2001, at 18:06:59
In reply to Re: Is there a positive side?, posted by mila on June 5, 2001, at 16:55:06
This subject really got me thinking. My initial reaction was, how could anything positive have come out of the hell I suffered while seriously depressed? But then I realized two things that probably woulndn't have happened otherwise.
1. I started seeing a psychiatrist. Have had to stare right in the face of drug & alcohol dependencies I cultivated during my "self medicating" phase. This is a very hard thing to do and probably would not have been addressed by me if my shrink hadn't forced the issue.
2. I have always compensated for dysthymia. It was exhausting, but no one ever suspected I had any problems with mental health. However, the major depression I developed was so severe that I became a different person; apparently even my voice changed. My husband & I are fairly social people and have many friends who were shocked by the dramatic change in me (on the few times I "went public"). People who had previously shied away from mental illness were now confronted with someone whom they had always thought was "normal", but who was definitely not "normal" now. They had to think about that and most came to the understanding that depression is a biological illness and can happen to anyone, themselves included. My biological family had to finally understand that our brother's suicide wasn't some aberrant anomaly (they're pictured under the word "denial" in the dictionary ; >)) They have kids and need to accept that this is a disease that runs in our family. And finally, I think my 17 yr. old daughter became a more compassionate person from watching me suffer. Maybe my 10 yr. old too, but that's harder to gauge.
So yes, I'd have to say that, for me at least, there have been some positives to come out of this.Marie
poster:Marie1
thread:6300
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20010526/msgs/6307.html