The things they say....
"You're not depressed, you're just tired..."
"You just need a rest....you just need some me time..."
"You're not trying hard enough, you just need to shake it off...just pull yourself together"
"But you don't LOOK depressed...."
"Depressed people don't put a full face of make up on to go outside..."
"Depressed people don't wash every day, brush their teeth morning and night, and look after themselves..."
"Depressed people don't carry on going to social events and seeing their friends..."
"Depressed people don't carry on functioning every day, looking after their children, seeming like everything is ok..."
"Depressed people don't manage to take their kids to the park, dress them and clean them and feed them well every day..."
"Depressed people don't function like normal people, you can tell they're depressed because they're not managing...."
Here's what I know....
Non-depressed people don't wake up feeling down for no reason, feeling like there's a cloud hanging over them every single time they open their eyes on a new day...
Non-depressed people don't burst into tears at any given moment when nothing at all has happened to trigger it...
Non-depressed people don't have to psych themselves up to going outside for fear of judgement and ridicule...
Non-depressed people don't have 3 or 4 panic attacks every week that see them screaming at the top of their lungs and pulling out their own hair...
Non-depressed people don't try to jump out of windows....
Don't tell me that I'm not depressed because I don't fit your ideal of what a depressed person looks like.
You may not see the signs, but that doesn't mean they're not there.
You only know the version of me that I let you see. You don't see it all.