Hardcore Self Help: F**k Depression

by Robert Duff

The last flavor of depression is the physically wrecked version. This is the type where you seem to internalize all of your depression. You know Kirby? The pink marshmallow videogame character? Imagine him sucking up a bomb and swallowing it. That bomb is your depression. Sometimes, it can feel like all your sadness expresses itself through your physical body. Common complaints are constantly feeling weak, sick, and tired. Exhaustion probably plays a big role in your life. You might turn down many opportunities that could be helpful simply because the mere thought of doing anything makes every muscle in your body cry. Perhaps you are legitimately sick more often than other people, but it’s more than that. Things just seem to hit you harder than they should. This type is really hard. Maybe you have even gone to doctors and specialists to try to figure out what’s wrong and no matter what tests they give, they can’t find anything in particular that should be making you feel this way. (Now, I should clarify that this sort of depression is not the same thing as having a chronic fatigue disorder or autoimmune problems. Those can cause a lot of strange and confusing physical issues. The defining factor that would help you know that this is depression would be that it ebbs and flows depending on your emotional state. If you were feeling great physically when you were happy and things seemed pretty good in your life and once things took a turn, your body started breaking down, you ...