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Depression is a Demon Slain Daily
This one goes out to all the warriors battling mental illness daily.
If invisible demons invaded Earth, would you join the fight?
That’s the metaphor that’s taken shape in my mind, the more I think about the struggle with depression in myself and those I care about. Mental illness is killing people every day in my country and around the world… and yet so many others remain unaware of the struggle.
When I wake up in the morning and my depression or anxiety hits me especially hard, it’s like a baseball bat to the back of the head. My plans for the day (or even week) will be decimated, and I’m left struggling for the strength to get out of bed.
There are days when every action I take pulls a piece of my soul out through my skin, and I feel it every step of the way. Movement feels like scaling a mountain. Talking makes me sad and irritable. Arranging my thoughts to get work done is about as easy as doing a jigsaw puzzle on a sailboat in stormy seas.
I wish I could say I always soldier on through it, but sometimes I fold beneath the weight. Sometimes the best I can manage is to take care of myself at the most basic level and make it through the day. And you know what?
That’s okay.
