Imagine You're at the Beach...

 

How do you best describe depression?

Imagine you are at the beach, and you decide to play in the water. You only go ankle deep, at first. It’s not scary. You can handle that no problem. Then you go in deeper, the water is at your knees. You aren’t afraid but a bit more conscious of what’s around you. You decide to go in farther, waist deep. It’s a little unsettling, but you begin to swim around, become comfortable. It becomes familiar. You switch from swimming to floating. You close your eyes and lose track of time. Letting the feeling surround you. It’s cold, but you’re used to it. You know it should discomfort you, but you become numb. No longer understanding that it’s not something you should feel for as long as you have. When you eventually open your eyes, you realize the shore is gone. You don’t know where you are anymore. You are just surrounded by cold darkness. Alone. You might see boats in passing, but they usually don’t notice you. On occasion there might be driftwood, but nothing stable enough to float you back to shore. An empty boat may appear to bring you back, but you’re usually swimming for a long time before it comes around.

-AW