The more specific you are about a very general feeling of loneliness is actually how you connect with people.
Phoebe BridgersRead
People are realising that vulnerability isn't a weakness, and the rise of mental health-related humour is making vulnerability feel like a strength.
Interpretation
Vulnerability is increasingly recognized as a strength rather than a weakness, aided by the acceptance of mental health-related humor.
Phoebe Bridgers highlights a shift in societal perception where vulnerability, often seen as a sign of weakness, is now embraced as a strength. This change is partly influenced by mental health-related humor, which helps people feel more comfortable expressing their vulnerabilities and acknowledging their struggles, ultimately fostering a healthier dialogue around mental health.
In practice
In a TED talk about mental health, you could use this quote to emphasize the importance of being open about struggles.
Well, you know, there's depression and depression. What I mean by depression in my own case is that depression isn't just the blues. It's not just like I have a hangover in the weekend ... the girl didn't show up or something like that. It isn't that. It's not really depression, it's a kind of mental violence which stops you from functioning properly from one moment to the next. You lose something somewhere and suddenly you're gripped by a kind of angst of the heart and of the spirit.
I'd been depressed before, of course. But I'm talking about really depressed. Not just feeling a bit down or sad, a depression that has something to do with biorhythms. I'm talking about the kind of depressed that floats in upon you like a fog. You can feel it coming and you can see where it is going to take you but you are powerless, utterly powerless to stop it. I know now.
I think it's always been normal for humans to compare themselves to each other, but we're so hyper-connected all the time now that it's driving us insane.
Depression isn't just being a bit sad. It's feeling nothing. It's not wanting to be alive anymore.
Being a depressive should not imply danger any more than being a man or even a human should. Mental illness isn't a them/us issue; we are all on the scale somewhere. So we must be very careful to resist ignorance and combat the stigma that leads to dangerous silence.
I may have looked happy but inside I was hopelessly depressed.
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