You know deep down that you're struggling.
You've been having symptoms of depression, but they're not
stopping you from living your life.
Sure, some tasks are more difficult.
Getting out of bed in the morning is hard.
Falling asleep at night is harder.
You've been self isolating. But you're not depressed because
you're still functional, right? The depression isn't showing up
in the way that you would expect it to, so you don't need to help
your mental health, do you? Unfortunately, mental illness is
not that simple. Sometimes it hides behind a
facade of normalcy. It lurks beneath the surface,
plaguing you just enough to cause inner turmoil, but not
enough to make you really pay attention.
High functioning depression is a real problem and can be just as
detrimental as any other mental illness.
So join me today and let's talk about high functioning
depression, what it is, how it can impact us and what we can do
to help ourselves deal with it. My name is Ethan Jewell and
welcome back to Feel Your Feelings.
It would be a lot easier if mental illness was really cut
and dry. You could identify exactly how
you feel, how you display how you feel and be able to move on
from there. But unfortunately it isn't
always so easy. Psychologist Don Potter states
depression isn't always something you can see in others
or pinpoint easily in yourself. For some people, depression
lives under the surface. It can be extremely challenging
to go about your day-to-day, but to the rest of the world, you
seem to be doing reasonably well.
This is referred to as high functioning depression and will
be the topic for today's episode.
For some, depression can be fully debilitating, making them
unable to get out of bed, unable to go to work, unable to
maintain connections and see friends.
This is understood and seen as an acceptable form of mental
illness. After all, it's relatively
visible to other people, so that completely validates it.
What happens when other people can't see the symptoms?
What happens when the symptoms of depression linger under the
surface, but don't fully stop you from engaging with your life
as you normally do? This is where the problem with
high functioning depression lies.
These symptoms still exist under the surface.
These could include feeling sad or hopeless, becoming
disinterested in passions, trouble sleeping, difficulty
concentrating, negative thoughts about yourself or others.
The truth is, high functioning depression can often feel the
same as major depressive disorder, although somebody
might not appear that way. Someone struggling with high
functioning depression, maybe barely hanging on by a thread.
The difference is almost like an external versus internal injury.
If you break a leg or an arm, everyone will be able to see and
know. But if you have some kind of
illness or disease inside without many external symptoms,
nobody will know and accommodate and sympathize and be there for
you, even though you are struggling as well.
This difference in handling symptoms can vary from person to
person. Some people might be able to
mask the symptoms and be high functioning, potentially
convincing themselves that nothing is wrong.
After all, other people seemingly have it worse and are
struggling more. So why would I need to address
my depression? That's the mindset I lived with
for many years. I've struggled a lot with
depression and at times was incredibly high functioning.
I went on multiple national tours for my music while feeling
very depressed. I would work a 16 hour tour days
while dealing with intense heavy depression symptoms.
I felt worn down to the bone. This is a silent killer.
On the surface. You may convince yourself that
you don't need to address this kind of depression.
If you're getting things done. Who cares if you feel a little
bad? But that couldn't be further
from the truth. Untreated depression and the
chronic stress, fatigue, and sadness caused by it can
literally destroy you from the inside out.
Some studies have found that untreated depression can lead to
aches and pains, chronic fatigue, changes in appetite,
and digestive issues. By ignoring these symptoms, you
can literally experience more pain and fatigue in your body.
This is not just a mental issue. It's not something you can just
ignore. It goes deeper than that.
This can affect every aspect of your life.
This can affect your ability to get out of the bed in the
morning without aches and pains. Not only that, but no matter how
high functioning you may think you are, this kind of depression
will silently affect your relationships and achievements.
Because you are burdened by the underlying exhaustion and
struggle that comes with high functioning depression, you
often won't feel the energy or have the time to pour into other
people or activities. Your hobbies will become less of
a priority. Seeing friends or family may
become less of a priority all because you are struggling and
not addressing it. I don't want to sound dramatic,
but this is a real issue. A very real issue.
I want you to take this as a wake up call.
If you've been struggling with symptoms of depression but have
been convincing yourself it isn't that bad because you can
still function, please do something about it.
Acknowledge that your depression and your struggle is just as
real as anybody else's, regardless of how functioning
you are. This process of recovery and
changing your mindset looks different for everyone, but I
recommend first educating yourself about this illness.
Look up high functioning depression and what you can do
if it's available for you. Look into options for therapy.
Practice self empathy and self-care.
Allow yourself to feel bad and don't feel like you have to keep
pushing through it. Build a support system and
express how you feel to loved ones.
This is a very real issue. It's something that I personally
wrote off for years and years. After all, if I could still
function so well with this depression that was plaguing me,
why would I seek help? There are other people out there
struggling more. Somebody else's struggle does
not affect you just because somebody else may be struggling
more with depression. Just because somebody else may
be having a harder time in life, doesn't invalidate your own
fight. So please take high functioning
depression seriously. If you or somebody you know
seems to be struggling with this, able to function well
while suffering internally, please address it.
Take it seriously. Do research on what you can do,
tell friends and family, but take it seriously.
You do not have to struggle silently and alone.
You do not have to be convinced that you're doing fine just
because you can complete your tasks.
It is OK to lean and to help. It is OK to have a hard day.
It is. OK, that's gonna wrap it up for
today's episode. Thank you so much for being
here. If you need more help feeling
your feelings, I recommend checking my music out on all
platforms under the name of Ethan Jewel.
I've got a new song called Do You Wanna Fall In Love coming
out August 16th and I think you might really enjoy it.
Also, shoot me a message on my Instagram at Jewel Boy under
score and let me know what you thought about today's episode.
So thank you so much for being here.
Thank you for understanding that high functioning depression is
still depression. And as always, thank you for
feeling your feelings. I'll see you next time.