An Interview showing how Anxiety & Depression Effects Others
This interview is with a person close to a sufferer of depression and helps to highlight how depression effects others and how they can deal with the situation.
Does the depression rub off on you and if so how?
When you are close to anyone you take influence from them. Being close to someone suffering with depression means that the influence you take from them can be negative. When a particular situation is discussed it is quite often the safe or careful option that is taken.
In this way depression does rub off on me - I will find my approach to situations changes to become more defensive. When you are so close to somebody you can really relate to how they feel - when you do so you understand the source of fear for that person and can sometimes take on that fear yourself.
Being mindful of this (i.e. knowing that it can happen and recognising when it does) helps to prevent it.
In essence, I don't believe that "depression" rubs off on me - only some of the feelings and symptoms of it.
Do you find you get short of patience because of my depression?
I am sure there have been times when I have become short of patience and it is because of your depression.
I do believe that no matter the situation, getting short of patience is my problem and not a problem caused by depression. There are many reasons that I could get short of patience, depression being only one.
As in any situation, becoming short of patience indicates a frustration which is essentially down to not dealing with it properly.
Does it take it's toll on you?
Depression can take its toll on people just as with any area of life. Some people find that getting up early in the morning takes its toll on them, others find that the stresses of work take its toll on them.
Depression does not take its toll on me although for those who it does, I would expect that many other areas of their life make them feel like they are fighting a battle.
The important thing is the approach and the attitude to the situation. For me, it is an opportunity to help someone feel better and to give something back to the person I love. For this I feel truly honoured and instead of the situation taking its toll on me, it is a positive thing in my life.
How do you focus/see my illness?
I believe I am quite sensitive to peoples feelings so in a way I can feel like I relate. For a long time I have wondered if I have suffered depression at various places in my life (I have never had medical advice and this is usually from looking back) so sometimes I feel like I know what the illness is like.
In other ways I keep in mind that I cannot fully appreciate what another person is feeling.
In my eyes the illness is a challenge and something to overcome, for me and for you.
Does it restrict what you or I do in our life?
Depression is a factor in determining what we do and what we don't do in our lives. That can be looked on as both a good and a bad thing.
There are many things in our life that influence what we do, and if one day you are feeling particularly down that might stop us from going out somewhere.
Ultimately, at your stage of depression it is not limiting in any major way. For someone really struggling with depression, they may not be able to work or leave the house which is going to have obvious restrictions.
Do you resent the illness and it's affects?
Absolutely not.
Everything in life can be looked at as a challenge or as a problem.
By resenting anything, your are not looking at it positively and it is going to have a negative effect.
I look at the illness as a good experience of life. The experience I gain from dealing with people suffering from depression can be applied to many other areas of my and other peoples lives. I can better help other people who are in a similar position and I can better help myself in some ways.
How do my mood changes affect your life?
Mood changes come as a shock at first, especially when they are irrational and when they cannot be prevented or changed through any logical actions.
For example, most of the time the mood swings will have to run their course despite both of us knowing what is happening and trying to put it right.
It affects my life in the same way depression as a whole affects me - I learn and grow stronger from it.
How does the illness as a whole affect your life?
Just like the proverbial butterfly flapping its wings, this illness can have many different affects on my life both big and minor.
By maintaining a positive attitude to the situation I can influence these changes to be mostly good. I cannot be sure exactly what will change or what will happen as a result of my experience with depression, but I can be sure that at the end of it I will be a stronger person for it.
