What a Semicolon meant for me today
It was a typical day. I turned off the alarm a few minutes before it went off. In a corner of my eye I saw my dog stirring. It was a beautiful morning and I slowly got up.
Then it hit me. That debilitating feeling, of being unable to move a muscle, I am weighed down by a force. Normally my dog would never jump on the bed because he knows he is not allowed to. Yet at that instance he jumped on me and began licking my hand as if saying " I am here hooman, you are not alone." Sigmund Freud said that dogs have an uncanny knack of being very sensitive to people's feeling and that they would recognize and will try to do their part to calm a patient down. Sigmund Freud would often has his dog So-Fi sitting by his desk while he is working.
In a way my dog was able to muffle the voice screaming in my head. A bit he was able to drive away the darkness and I was able to proceed to prepare for the day.
I got to work and even manage to check on everyone. Made a few jokes, even talk a bit on plans for next week and then sat down. I was able to do my work by rote. Everything was automatic and I could practically be asleep and would finish my task.
During a meeting I found myself doodling on a piece of paper. I was half trying to hide what I was doing when by chance I saw a mole in my arm. The speaker was droning on and I found myself adding a small squiggly line beneath it. There it was a semicolon and I knew things were going to get better. I could hear and understand people again, color came back and I could smell and taste the coffee before me.
A semicolon is a punctuation mark used to be able to signify a pause between two main clauses. Amy Bleulel of Project Semicolon gave a better meaning to a semicolon.
Photo credit to Grammarly
It is estimated by WHO that one out of four adults suffer from a form of mental syndromes ranging from very mild ones to very serious ones that debilitate them from having any semblance of life.
I have been diagnosed as having depression. I had serious doubts as well when I first heard about it. I have a great and funny family, a love one who has stood by me for quite sometime, a career that I love and although I am not rich I am comfortable enough to be able to live a full life. There was nothing supposed to be wrong but there was. I would have episodes like this that I couldn't stand up. That food has no taste, colors would be blurred and nothing make sense.
A few days ago mental health became a hot topic because of a noon time celebrity host decided to tell a million people who could be influenced that mental health, in particular depression, was all made up and not real. It was done solely to elicit pity and a worthless life. I kid you not and when he said it all blood just rushed in my head and made me really angry.
He has, after a day, apologize but it sparked a Twitter and Facebook storm beforehand. In a way he was able to generate attention and purpose to a lot of people and understand what mental health is.
I look at the symbol in my arm and breathe. I close my eyes and calmly reassure myself. Each one of us responds differently to stimulus and treatment. What could work for me might not be applicable to you. Each one of us grew up diffeerntly and with different ideologies, method, upbringing and personality. Each treatment would need to fit the individual.
I remember being across several people and just talking out. I remember being given drugs for it, I remember being asked to do a project or take up a hobby.
Providing purpose and a goal makes you look straight ahead and leave the thought behind. As you take each small step forward you try to get better. Not you but I try to get better.
That symbol in my arm is statement that my story will not end today. Not today...
If you are suffering from mental symptoms it is important to not feel alone or worthless. Help is always there. For more information and tips in fighting down your inner demons please go to https://projectsemicolon.com/
This is a beautiful sharing, mate.
It helps others when they hear the stories of other survivors.
Bless your heart.
No worries happy to share mate!
I too, used semi-colon like what you've described above. On the other hand, depression is not just a "made-up" illness. I suffered depression for years. I have written an article about this I think a month ago. Anyway, depression is not a "cry for help" or a "cry for attention". To me, it is a cry of pain, a pain that people cannot cope with, they may not understand it and it is an extremely personal and private emotion that sometimes friends or family never even find out about until years later and it is too late to help that person.
A lot of people have it undiagnosed and untreated because of the stigma associated to mental health.
Worse is when people are made fun of and told that it is all made up.
They often told that they can just stop feeling depressed and just man up.
Everything is gonna be alright brother.
Thank you I know it will be
very creative way of writing article ah,you just a good article out of that semi colon thing. Keep it @maverickinvictus
Thank you. I have been involved in this movement and in raising awareness to mental health
Very informative article, keep on writing :)
Thank you and that is one of my goals to raise awareness of something that afflicts one of four people.
I have heard about this semicolon. Yes depression is no joke and who in their right mind would want to make it up? Some people are tactless. I sometimes go into depression and my dogs help me get better by just being there.
Yes and it is hard. No one really wants to be depressed.
My dog helps me a lot in coping with it.
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Resteemed and upvoted because I can relate to the topic and you're a good writer. People that are mentally ill should be understood and listened because we can always feel the demon behind us. Depression is very tough to control like your head is exploding. I thought I am alone suffering depression. My one friend last night was discouraged to talk to me when he knew I have a bipolar disorder. So now I am trying my best to treat myself by writing pieces in steemit and always be busy. When I sleep I just play feminist music to alleviate the down feeling I feel about myself.
Knowing your symptoms is the first part of getting better.
I use writing as well as medium for recover. It helps that we have a kind community here.
I have heard about the brother of this famous artist who committed suicide because of depression too. I feel sorry for those people. I, myself is experiencing it sometimes, but I tried to talk to some of my friends if my loved-ones were busy.
Everyone goes through it and if you ever need to talk to someone I am here.