Coffee Breaks With ISLM: Depression is Real!

Depression Is For Real

ISLM Writer: Sabista

You fall sick, you get weak, you have headaches, you cannot get up, your head is dizzy, you pass out, you’re taken to a hospital, tests are run, your blood reports are normal…
What happens when your whole mental and physical self is falling apart and yet every medical report comes out normal? What happens when the world thinks you’re acting, when in reality, on the inside, your whole being is in turmoil. Everybody thinks you’re the girl who is crying wolf, when in reality, you’re just in a state where your insides are burning up but you have no physical evidence to prove it.




Ladies, depression is real. It is a real thing which can eat someone up on the inside without showing any signs on blood reports or any other test reports for that matter. It causes for you to lose your mind, your emotions, and your peace; everything you ever liked about yourself dies, over a period of time. It is like slow poison that creeps into your mind and slowly weakens your body, one part at a time. We need to start acknowledging the fact that there are diseases out there that are not tangible. That we cannot see or prove using test results but they are just as dangerous as any other disease. The Pratyusha Banerjee case got me thinking about how we Indians treat depression. We have a standard line: “Arey, raaste pe bheek thodhi maang rahe hai! Accha khasa ghar hai, teen waqt ki roti hai, phir kaheka depression?”

Depression is not something that only happens to people who beg on the roads or don’t have luxuries in life or are living in mediocre life conditions. Sometimes, the lesser people have, the happier they are. Sometimes, people who have everything and are supposed to find themselves lucky, are the ones who are depressed and exasperated of life. Luxury, money, food, house, car, clothes, jewelry etc. don’t mean that someone is happy in life and that person has no right to be depressed. Depression comes from being unhappy in life. It makes you feel like you’re stuck in a lifelong hormonal rut where you’re crying at every tiny little issue and you want to lock yourself away from the world. It’s a real thing and a lot of people suffering from it are going about life with a smile and an unbelievably cheerful attitude. So, when they give up and decide to take a drastic step to end all the mental torment and unhappiness, it comes to the rest of the world as a shock. Pratyusha’s case comes as a wakeup call. We need to be aware of the people around us and their wellbeing. We need to see the signs and act before it’s too late.




Keep an open eye for any suggestive WhatsApp statuses or Facebook shares of the people you love. People suffering from depression only need to know that someone cares and really wants to talk to them and help them. Nothing helps better than talking to the person and making them feel like they are not alone in this. Saying hurtful and mean things and mocking people for their depression only makes it worse. Calling them crazy, abusing them or asking them to stop being depressed is not how you deal with depression. It is not a switch you can flip. Something caused for this person to get depressed over time, so you can only give that person time, help and kindness to heal.

People suffering from depression needs as much care and love as any other patient suffering from a disease or disorder. We need to realize that crying over spilt milk doesn’t help. Being aware and being proactive helps. Going the extra mile to make your loved ones feel secure helps. I just hope we can make the world a better place so that we can minimize cases like Pratyusha Banerjee. Suicide should not feel like the solution to any problem. There will be health issues and a lot of breakdowns; there will be days when you’ll get irritated of taking care of this person who is not physically ill but trust me, this is the best you can do for these poor souls. They broke for a reason, give them a reason to fix themselves again.