Ever since I moved back have been doing very little, and the same excuses always pop up. I have a feeling this article is going to help with some reality checks of mine. I tell ya, there is nothing like hearing the truth from Marines. I really need to fucking shape up!

@Chris One thing I have noticed about depression is that it stems from more than just your current situations. The demons from your past and specters that are your future have profound effects on how you feel; hell, it’s who you are after all. Something I notice in people from day to day is their lack of meditation; I am not talking Eastern meditation, but just the ideas of reflection and projection. We are so caught up in the struggle of perfection that we forget who we truly are. Take some time out of your day and remember who you are, the good and the bad. The other day I was thinking about how I yelled at my dog when she was a puppy. I was trying to sleep and she wouldn’t stop crying (she was only 6 weeks old and I had her in ‘her’ cage); I got pissed and yelled at the top of my lungs, “shut the fuck up!!” Five minutes later I fell asleep. I woke a few hours later to find her shivering in her own urine and feces; at that moment my skin went pale, my eyes filled with tears, and I couldn’t but help see what cruelty can lead to.

I’ve never been the same since that happened, when I look back I feel serious pain and remorse, but I also learned a most valuable lesson. It’s painful and depressing to remember that incident, but I do so for good reason.

Lol, great article by the way!

Thanks for writing this.

but real depression, not just “i’m sad” but “i want to kill myself” or a prolonged “nothing is worth it anymore” is a big issue. just like if your family died and you can’t just get tough, you can’t just get tough and get past depression.

i struggled with it for a long long time. how i got out of it is finding solace in exercise, learning my bad habits and fixating my attention elsewhere. it was a finding that everything is already worth it; you just have to love it.

i found my philosophies and life to stand on, but for almost a decade i just wanted to die, was struggling with school, had no social life cause i was too depressed to see people, and was constantly combatting myself so that i wouldn’t give in and take my own life.

you should get professional help if you’re really depressed. and it’s important that you do get tough with yourself; don’t give into the emotions every time you feel depressed. try to find your sanctuary- close friends, music, runner’s high- and keep going until depression doesn’t own you anymore.

i can only say so much here, but the important thing is that you keep taking a step forward. recognize that you’re in a place where you can’t just get tough and leave depression behind, but also recognize that you’re a strong person who can keep going.

“it gets better” is a campaign used to inspire gay people who are being bullied, saying that it might be terrible now, but it will get better in the future. the samething applies here- it gets better, so believe in the future, believe in yourself.

And as a single male, who really doesn’t want marriage yet, until I get my own situation in life figure out, panned out, whatever you want to say. I’d argue that I do indeed need erotic material very much. Or I’ll.. clog up mentally. >_>;;