This is Your Brain on Depression: Creating Your Path To Getting Better

by Faith G. Harper

Depression is a biochemical learned helplessness response to stress. Depression is the body’s way of saying nothing I do is going to help anyway, it all sucks ass no matter what.

In this way, depression is a lot like anxiety. Anxiety is a biochemical over-response to stress hormones.

Depression is the complete shutdown of all the things that make being human a joyful experience. Depression is the body saying if nothing I do makes any difference, there is no point in enjoying ANYTHING

If you struggle with depression, you have all kinds of feels. Guilt, shame, anger, irritability, hopelessness, overwhelming grief. But you rarely have experiences of pleasure, gratitude, connectedness, and joy. And if you do reach out for them, you feel them snatched away more often than not. Depression is the thief of all the wonderful things that make human-ing worth it.

Anxiety disorders are not considered mood disorders (they are classified as their own category) but they pair so frequently with mood disorders we should just call them the Heathers and be done with it.