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A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

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Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#61

Post by S4M »

meh_master wrote: post #11
tst wrote: post #5

I'm also recovering from a depression which lasted for quite a while. It absolutely sucks because you think you're worthless, nobody loves you, you can't get anything right and the best would be if you just wouldn't exist anymore. And on top of that you isolate yourself. I know how hard it was to ask for help therefore I want to show you some things which helped me: - Realize that your depression is lying to you. It…

I've been depressed for over ten years, I'm currently thirty years old. I left my job in January due to depression, though I didn't tell anyone. I haven't worked a day since then and am just living off savings as they dwindle. I haven't spoken to any of my former co-workers who were my only contacts in the Bay Area since I moved from the East Coast to work at a startup. I've spent all day every day numbing myself wit…

Hey meh_master,

First, congratulations for exposing yourself here. I know it's not easy. As someone else said, I wanted to email you but you don't have a contact in your profile. Feel free to write to me if you want to speak to someone - I'm in Europe though, so I probably won't reply to you as timely as you might expect.

I would second the advice of the other commenters who told you to do a bit of physical activity. And, if you are still in good term with your mom (as your comment suggest), maybe you could move in with her temporarily? You'll save some money on the rent and will have someone to talk to.

Good luck!

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#62

Post by gregpilling »

gadders wrote: post #41

I admire what Moz has done and it was an interesting read. My comment is more of a meta one about HN. Are we really that interested in these stories of depression? We seem to get at least one a week. I realise it's an issue that may affect people here, but I'm not sure if we need the volume we are seeing now.

I would bet that many people on HN have some sorts of manic depressive tendencies. I fit that myself.

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#63

Post by gadders »

AznHisoka wrote: post #51
gadders wrote: post #41

I admire what Moz has done and it was an interesting read. My comment is more of a meta one about HN. Are we really that interested in these stories of depression? We seem to get at least one a week. I realise it's an issue that may affect people here, but I'm not sure if we need the volume we are seeing now.

I sure as heck want to see more of these as opposed to "We got acquired and will be living the good life!" or "Heck yeah, we growth hacked to 10,000,000 customers using a vague strategy you probably can't apply to your startup"

Really? Maybe I'm more Pollyanna-ish than most, but I'd much rather read stories of success.

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#64

Post by cpncrunch »

meh_master wrote: post #11
tst wrote: post #5

I'm also recovering from a depression which lasted for quite a while. It absolutely sucks because you think you're worthless, nobody loves you, you can't get anything right and the best would be if you just wouldn't exist anymore. And on top of that you isolate yourself. I know how hard it was to ask for help therefore I want to show you some things which helped me: - Realize that your depression is lying to you. It…

I've been depressed for over ten years, I'm currently thirty years old. I left my job in January due to depression, though I didn't tell anyone. I haven't worked a day since then and am just living off savings as they dwindle. I haven't spoken to any of my former co-workers who were my only contacts in the Bay Area since I moved from the East Coast to work at a startup. I've spent all day every day numbing myself wit…

I've been through depression myself, and managed to fully recover and now living a very happy life. I've also seen many friends and family go through depression, some recovering.

I would suggest three things:

[1] Have more social contact, even if it is going out for a walk and saying 'hello' to people.

[2] Do some enjoyable physical and mental activities every day.

[3] Find a motivating goal and work towards that goal every day.

Feel free to email me at cpncrunchhn@gmail.com and I'll be happy to chat with you more.

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#65

Post by gadders »

lnanek2 wrote: post #53
gadders wrote: post #41

I admire what Moz has done and it was an interesting read. My comment is more of a meta one about HN. Are we really that interested in these stories of depression? We seem to get at least one a week. I realise it's an issue that may affect people here, but I'm not sure if we need the volume we are seeing now.

Well, the stories are submitted by users and voted up by users. Logically, if you think about it, depressed people probably spend more time on social news sites than people who are not, since people who are not are more likely to spend more time working. So depression stories probably have an audience more engaged with the site. The staff do tend to ban or cripple votes of things like NSA stories and whatnot when the…

Yeah, but I do sometimes wonder if it's self-reinforcing.

- Story on Topic X gets votes - People look for other stories on X - New story on X gets upvoted because the other one was - More stories on X appear

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#66

Post by gadders »

DanBC wrote: post #54
gadders wrote: post #41

I admire what Moz has done and it was an interesting read. My comment is more of a meta one about HN. Are we really that interested in these stories of depression? We seem to get at least one a week. I realise it's an issue that may affect people here, but I'm not sure if we need the volume we are seeing now.

We see so many because of the prevalence of mental ill health in society. These stories are obviously applicable to start ups - what would you do if a co-founder or key employee asked to reduce hours while they were getting medical treatment for mental ill health? What would you do if they were detained against their will under mental health laws? The other reason they get such prominence is that treatment for mental…

I would say that the stories here are over-represented compared to my friends/family/acquaintances.

Also for "what would you do if a co-founder or key employee asked to reduce hours while they were getting medical treatment for mental ill health?" You could subsitute cancer/paternity leave/military service in that sentence and it would be just as relevant to a start-up. The issue is the reduction in hours, not the cause.

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#68

Post by gadders »

gregpilling wrote: post #62
gadders wrote: post #41

I admire what Moz has done and it was an interesting read. My comment is more of a meta one about HN. Are we really that interested in these stories of depression? We seem to get at least one a week. I realise it's an issue that may affect people here, but I'm not sure if we need the volume we are seeing now.

I would bet that many people on HN have some sorts of manic depressive tendencies. I fit that myself.

A friend of the family had that. She is an entirely sensible, respectable mother and worker, but when she is in a manic phase... It must be hard to find yourself doing things so out of your usual character.

Re: A Long, Ugly Year of Depression That’s Finally Fading

#69

Post by ufo »

swombat wrote: post #6

Forgive my ignorance and bluntness, but reading the above, it sounds more like an anxiety disorder than like depression. Both are serious, but I'm not sure if it helps to confuse the two? I've not experienced either seriously, but I know people who have. Depression seems to be more about things not mattering anymore, everything being pointless, the world seeming drab and just not fun anymore, rather than feeling that…

Two things to keep in mind: 1) There is more than one kind of depression 2) Its actually common for Depression and Anxiety often go hand in hand.
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