Vanessa Fletcher

Mrs.OKeefe

English IV

6/2

How Can Depression Affect Your Life?

The Question

The question Im asking is how can depression affect your life and how can you prevent

depression from happening. Depression is something that can happen to many people throughout

their lifetime. Its a sign of sadness someone is experiencing and they have no clue of how to get

out of it. Knowing the answer to this question will not only help me but itll help many others in

their time of need. I know many people whos facing depression right now but theyre not sure of

how to get out of it. If they knew any of the prevents then maybe itll be easier for them to fight

this sadness.

Depression is a sign of weakness. You might be sad over all but in the end it shows

weakness. When youre fighting depression youre scared to let anyone help you. You dont

want anyone to see you down so you try your best to hold everything in. holding everything in is

not going to help you because you start overthinking a lot and thats what leads into your

depression. The whole point of my project is to find out why this happens, why do people think

themselves into a bad mood or why dont they just tell anyone whats going on.

Why I Ask This Question

I asked this question for multiple reasons. One reason I asked this question is because I

experienced depression once upon a time. I want to know if there are anyways to avoid falling
into a deep depression. Being depressed is not the best feeling so for me to know ways to prevent

this would be the best feeling ever. Not only can these preventions help me but theyll also help

someone in need. I love helping people and giving advice so with these helpful tips I can save a

friend. Usually when someone is going through something I try my best to help them out even if

Ive never experienced their problem. My job as a friend is to let you know I understand and help

you understand that youre not alone.

Giving a helping hand to someone in need is very powerful. You never know what

someone is going through and to let them know that youre there for them can really soothe

them. No one wants to believe that theyre completely alone in any situation. Its good to know

youll always have a friend by your side. Something serious as depression is hard to face alone.

You never really know who to trust your issues with so you keep everything to yourself.

Something as simple as taking a few breathers can help you feel better.

Another reason I ask this question is because its always good to know extra information.

The information may not help you nor a friend but if anyone needs help youll know the exact

thing to say to them. Not all preventions work but if your intentions are good when trying to help

someone then those bad preventions should turn out to be good preventions.

What I Knew Before I Started Searching

What I knew before researching this topic is that depression is not something anyone

wants to experienced. Ive been through depression before so trust me I know. I know that

depression can happen to whoever whenever. It doesnt matter the time of day or what month it

is, if youre over thinking somethings or if you feel as if youre not good enough for someone

then the depression will hit you hard. I experienced depression multiple times in my life. One
time I experienced depression was around December my junior year of high school. I remember

this like it was yesterday. I started to feel like less of person. Everything I did was never good

enough for anyone. What really put me deep into depression is when one of my teachers (not

mentioning any names) told me How you can you get this right when everyone else got it

wrong. I felt as if he was saying I wasnt good enough for this subject or I was slow. Those

words hurt me. I went home and cried for days. I never knew a teacher could make someone feel

so low.

I was already going through something but when this teacher said this it put the icing on

the cake. I didnt want to talk to anyone about my problems. I felt as if someone was going to

judge me and tell me Im over reacting or was just going to tell to get over it. When facing

depression every little thing gets to you and makes you want to give up. Although depression is

horrible, you can get through it; you have to fight the urge to be weak and just talk to someone,

let someone know youre hurting and maybe they can help you get through it. Facing depression

isnt the end of your life though. I know for a fact that you work with someone then everything

will get better. It takes time in order to be happy again but it doesnt take a lifetime. Ive been

depressed many times before this situation but those topics I rather not talk about. The one thing

I can say though, youre never alone everyone is facing their own problems but by working

tomorrow you both can get through those problems.

The Search

Ive found many sources and documents in order to help my search. Throughout my

research, I found some valuable information. I read interviews,watched videos, read articles, and

also interviewed someone on my own. With all this new information I found out everyone can
face depression in many ways. When researching my topic, I found a source that gives 9 ways in

order to prevent depression. The name of this source is 9 surprising depression symptoms. Not

only did I find ways to prevent depression but I also found ways to fall into depression. While

doing my research I interviewed Latrice Beal. not only is Latrice apart of the depression

community but shes also my mother. I never knew what my mother was going through but she

always have a smile on her face and no matter what she reminds happy.

Being depressed youll view someone as a sad lump walking around with their head

down but not Latrice, she walks around with her head held high each and everyday. With all of

the problems shes having right now youll think shell be stuck in the bed and contemplating life

but she doesnt. Latrice fights through it all even if she is by herself. Dont let the happiness fool

you though. She might cry herself to sleep every night but once she wakes up its a whole new

story. Something that I took out of this interview is You live to fight another day. Just because

youre upset now doesnt mean youll be that way forever. Just give it time, youll get through it.

The reason this was a big takeaway for me is because shes giving great advice. Honestly, you

might be going through a lot but you do live to fight another day. Things might be tough but at

the end of the day youll get through anything you put your mind to.

Sometimes you might need someone in your corner in order for you to get better but not

all the time. Sometimes you can just do simple things like meditating to help clear your mind of

all negative energy and youll be better. Depression is a tough situation but anything you set your

mind to do, you can do it and youll accomplish your goal. Another source I found was a

biography about a little boy who experienced depression.

 The little boy who experienced the depression name was Drew Carey. While Drew was

growing up he always thought his friends were better than him. This led him to fall into a deep

depression. He never thought he was funny enough or cool enough so he started to think he was

less of a person. This was until he went to college. As a college he realized he was done feeling

sorry for himself, he wanted to do something he could be proud of. He became a comedian.

When he blew up and became famous he knew nothing was wrong him. All he had to do was put

his mind to something and fight for what he believed in.

Looking at both these stories theyre completely different. One story is about someone

who hides her pain and the other is finding his way in life. In life many people pick and choose

which direction they want to go. Most people hide their pain with a smile but others go after

what they believe in. anything that can help you get over depression and become happy again is

always helpful. It doesnt matter if the way you go about things is different from others as long

as you are happy in the end.

What I Learned

I learned a lot throughout researching this topic. There are a lot of takeaways from this

project. A lot of people ask questions that are relevant to real life. Depression is something thats

been happening for years and will continue to go on for many more. I know that someone new is

fighting depression everyday and if you help someone a day or even just give a word of

kindness, itll help them feel better. I know that everyone face problems everyday and its not

always easy to get over it. If you find that one someone who can help you through it all then

everything will be great. You just have to find that one person whos willing to get through every

step of the journey with you.

 Not all preventions will work on everyone but the fact that youre trying to help someone

will make them feel ten times better. Its always good to know you have someone in your corner

because when your back is against the wall is the best feeling ever. Knowing youre not alone

when things get tough is anything you can ever ask for and more. Another thing I learned was

not all depressions are the same. When looking at the source Tips To Manage Seasonal Affective

Disorder, I learned that depression can happen even by not participating in winter sports. In this

article a quote that really stood out to me was Experience as much daylight as possible. The lack of sun

exposure is part of what causes SAD, and soaking up as much as you can, can lessen your symptoms. Sit by a

window or get out for a walk during daylight hours. You could even take up a winter sport to get you outside and

keep you moving. ("Tips to manage seasonal affective disorder." Nutrition Health Review, Winter 2017, p. 17.

Student Resources in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A487961093/SUIC?u=cps&xid=bb513e5d. Accessed 5

May 2017). The reason this quote stood out to me is because its letting you know that you need

sunlight in order to stay happy. If you stay inside all winter and not do anything, you start to feel

lonely and become SAD.

Lastly, I learned that depression is only a weakness. You have the power to get over it

whenever you want to. The only thing you have to do is fight for yourself. If you see youre

becoming sadder by the day and you dont know why, exercise, participate in a sport or

something. Fighting depression is easier than it sounds. The only thing you have to do want it for

yourself.

What Else I Want To Know

Something I want to know more about is why people dont fight when youre deep into

depression. If depression is only weakness why cant people build up the strength to get out of it?

I know depression is tough but if you do something you love and keep your mind clear
everything will be fine. I want to know why most people dont try to get help or why they dont

try to stay active.

Staying active or talking about your problems will keep your stress level down. Stress is

something that builds up depression so if you dont want to be depressed then why stress

yourself over little things? Depression is something that can be easily solved you just have to do

certain things in order to keep your stress level down. I know when I experienced depression I

was afraid to talk to someone. I was scared of judgement or hearing the words youre over

reacting. When I use to LOVE dancing, I danced all of my problems away. When I danced I felt

as if there was no problem in the world. Every since I stopped dancing, I have nothing to keep

my mind clear, but why? Why is it so hard to talk to someone about your problems?

I want to interview two people going through depression. With this experiment Ill tell

one person to get help while telling the other to keep everything inside. I want to see if talking to

someone really helps. If this method works then in my opinion everyone who doesnt have a

passion for something should get help from a professional.

Depression is a powerful topic. Theres all kinds of different ways to become depressed

but there are so many different ways to prevent depression from happening. The only thing you

need to do is find your passion in something you love or talk to someone. Dont be that one

person who lives a miserable life because youre scared to seek help from someone. Everyone

has problems so dont think youre any different than anyone else. The only thing you need is

someone you trust to tell your problems to.

 Work Cited

"Can Meditation Ease Pain And Anxiety?" All Things Considered, 7 Jan. 2014. Student
Resources in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A355510004/SUIC?u=cps&xid=e60d68a7.
Accessed 19 May 2017
"Coming To Terms With Depression In 'This Close To Happy'." Weekend Edition
Saturday, 4 Feb. 2017. Student Resources in Context,
link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A480290201/SUIC?u=cps&xid=e06c4e3b. Accessed 5 May
2017.
"Depressive Disorders." Sick!, UXL, 2007. Student Resources in Context,
link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CV2643900040/SUIC?u=cps&xid=e32be6de. Accessed 9 May
2017.
"Drew Carey." UXL Biographies, UXL, 2011. Student Resources in Context,
link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ2108100393/SUIC?u=cps&xid=96e94d37. Accessed 9
May 2017.
Patz, Aviva. "9 Surprising Depression Symptoms." Prevention. N.p., 03 May 2017. Web. 05 May
2017.
Solomon, Andrew. "Depression, the Secret We Share." Ted. N.p., Oct. 2013. Web. 11 May 2017.
https://docs.google.com/a/cps.edu/document/d/1S4Namsibt4m74caY8EnYgt9nE4G8lRouisB_L
W8EtE0/edit?usp=sharing
"Tips to manage seasonal affective disorder." Nutrition Health Review, Winter 2017, p. 17.
Student Resources in Context,
link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A487961093/SUIC?u=cps&xid=bb513e5d. Accessed 5 May
2017.