You know deep down that you're struggling. You've been having symptoms of depression, but they're not stopping you from living your life. Sure, some tasks are more difficult. Getting out of bed in the morning is hard. Falling asleep at night is harder. You've been self isolating. But you're not depressed because you're still functional, right? The depression isn't showing up in the way that you would expect it to, so you don't need to help
your mental health, do you? Unfortunately, mental illness is not that simple. Sometimes it hides behind a facade of normalcy. It lurks beneath the surface, plaguing you just enough to cause inner turmoil, but not enough to make you really pay attention. High functioning depression is a real problem and can be just as detrimental as any other mental illness.
So join me today and let's talk about high functioning depression, what it is, how it can impact us and what we can do to help ourselves deal with it. My name is Ethan Jewell and welcome back to Feel Your Feelings. It would be a lot easier if mental illness was really cut and dry. You could identify exactly how you feel, how you display how you feel and be able to move on from there. But unfortunately it isn't
always so easy. Psychologist Don Potter states depression isn't always something you can see in others or pinpoint easily in yourself. For some people, depression lives under the surface. It can be extremely challenging to go about your day-to-day, but to the rest of the world, you seem to be doing reasonably well. This is referred to as high functioning depression and will be the topic for today's episode.
For some, depression can be fully debilitating, making them unable to get out of bed, unable to go to work, unable to maintain connections and see friends. This is understood and seen as an acceptable form of mental illness. After all, it's relatively visible to other people, so that completely validates it. What happens when other people can't see the symptoms? What happens when the symptoms of depression linger under the surface, but don't fully stop you from engaging with your life
as you normally do? This is where the problem with high functioning depression lies. These symptoms still exist under the surface. These could include feeling sad or hopeless, becoming disinterested in passions, trouble sleeping, difficulty concentrating, negative thoughts about yourself or others. The truth is, high functioning depression can often feel the same as major depressive disorder, although somebody
might not appear that way. Someone struggling with high functioning depression, maybe barely hanging on by a thread. The difference is almost like an external versus internal injury. If you break a leg or an arm, everyone will be able to see and know. But if you have some kind of illness or disease inside without many external symptoms, nobody will know and accommodate and sympathize and be there for you, even though you are struggling as well.
This difference in handling symptoms can vary from person to person. Some people might be able to mask the symptoms and be high functioning, potentially convincing themselves that nothing is wrong. After all, other people seemingly have it worse and are struggling more. So why would I need to address my depression? That's the mindset I lived with for many years. I've struggled a lot with depression and at times was incredibly high functioning.
I went on multiple national tours for my music while feeling very depressed. I would work a 16 hour tour days while dealing with intense heavy depression symptoms. I felt worn down to the bone. This is a silent killer. On the surface. You may convince yourself that you don't need to address this kind of depression. If you're getting things done. Who cares if you feel a little bad? But that couldn't be further
from the truth. Untreated depression and the chronic stress, fatigue, and sadness caused by it can literally destroy you from the inside out. Some studies have found that untreated depression can lead to aches and pains, chronic fatigue, changes in appetite, and digestive issues. By ignoring these symptoms, you can literally experience more pain and fatigue in your body. This is not just a mental issue. It's not something you can just ignore. It goes deeper than that.
This can affect every aspect of your life. This can affect your ability to get out of the bed in the morning without aches and pains. Not only that, but no matter how high functioning you may think you are, this kind of depression will silently affect your relationships and achievements. Because you are burdened by the underlying exhaustion and struggle that comes with high functioning depression, you often won't feel the energy or have the time to pour into other
people or activities. Your hobbies will become less of a priority. Seeing friends or family may become less of a priority all because you are struggling and not addressing it. I don't want to sound dramatic, but this is a real issue. A very real issue. I want you to take this as a wake up call. If you've been struggling with symptoms of depression but have been convincing yourself it isn't that bad because you can still function, please do something about it.
Acknowledge that your depression and your struggle is just as real as anybody else's, regardless of how functioning you are. This process of recovery and changing your mindset looks different for everyone, but I recommend first educating yourself about this illness. Look up high functioning depression and what you can do if it's available for you. Look into options for therapy. Practice self empathy and self-care.
Allow yourself to feel bad and don't feel like you have to keep pushing through it. Build a support system and express how you feel to loved ones. This is a very real issue. It's something that I personally wrote off for years and years. After all, if I could still function so well with this depression that was plaguing me, why would I seek help? There are other people out there struggling more. Somebody else's struggle does not affect you just because somebody else may be struggling
more with depression. Just because somebody else may be having a harder time in life, doesn't invalidate your own fight. So please take high functioning depression seriously. If you or somebody you know seems to be struggling with this, able to function well while suffering internally, please address it. Take it seriously. Do research on what you can do, tell friends and family, but take it seriously. You do not have to struggle silently and alone.
You do not have to be convinced that you're doing fine just because you can complete your tasks. It is OK to lean and to help. It is OK to have a hard day. It is. OK, that's gonna wrap it up for today's episode. Thank you so much for being here. If you need more help feeling your feelings, I recommend checking my music out on all platforms under the name of Ethan Jewel. I've got a new song called Do You Wanna Fall In Love coming out August 16th and I think you might really enjoy it.
Also, shoot me a message on my Instagram at Jewel Boy under score and let me know what you thought about today's episode. So thank you so much for being here. Thank you for understanding that high functioning depression is still depression. And as always, thank you for feeling your feelings. I'll see you next time.