How to help someone who has major depression – with The Sims (Video)
A quote from the actor Stephen Fry, who suffers from depression, sums up caring about someone with depression perfectly. “It’s hard to be a friend to someone who’s depressed, but it is one of the kindest, noblest, and best things you will ever do.”
The first part is spot on. It isn’t easy to care about someone who’s going through a severe depression. If you haven’t gone through it yourself, you probably don’t quite know what to do, how to act, or what to say.
In this video, we cover the most important things to know about helping someone who has major depression.
Transcript:
A quote from the actor Stephen Fry, who suffers from depression, sums up caring about someone with depression perfectly. “It’s hard to be a friend to someone who’s depressed, but it is one of the kindest, noblest, and best things you will ever do.”
The first part is spot on. It isn’t easy to care about someone who’s going through a severe depression. If you haven’t gone through it yourself, you probably don’t quite know what to do, how to act, or what to say.
First of all, do your homework. Make sure that you understand depression pretty well. There’s a lot of information online, including our channel and the Wing of Madness website. If you understand more about depression, it will help both of you immeasurably.
Next, the thing that’s crucial is making sure their treatment is on track. If they’re seeing a doctor and/or a therapist, make sure that they are keeping their appointments. If they’re not seeing a doctor, encourage them to make an appointment. If the issue is money and they don’t have insurance, find a clinic that operates on a sliding scale. Take care of the details and following up, because that’s the kind of thing that’s really difficult for someone with depression.
Don’t give up on them if they’re being unsociable. Don’t be put off if they aren’t responding to your calls and texts. Depression is making them withdraw from everyone. You need to keep the connection going, because they’re not really up to it. What you say isn’t that important. You’re letting them know that you’re thinking of them and that you care about them.
Someone who has depression doesn’t want to bring you down, so they may avoid your company. They don’t want to burden you with their negativity.
If you live together, you may have to take on a lot of chores. It might seem to you that the depressed person is being lazy. They probably aren’t, assuming they usually pull their own weight. Feeling exhausted is a common symptom of depression. It’s similar to how you feel when you’re very sick and you barely have the energy to take a shower.
Make sure that they get out of the house on a regular basis, other than just to work or school. It doesn’t have to be for any reason in particular, just hanging out. People with depression are usually more comfortable in low-stress environments, especially if they have anxiety along with their major depression. Go out for coffee, shopping, to a museum, or a bookstore. Anywhere they’re comfortable.
Your outing should not, however, include alcohol of any kind, as alcohol is a depressant, the last thing they need. It might make them feel better for a while, but they’ll feel worse later on than they would have without it.
Being out in natural surroundings is beneficial for everyone, and especially for people with depression. That doesn’t mean you have to go hiking. Just being exposed to a natural environment is thought to lower stress, as well as alleviating symptoms of depression and anxiety. In other words, a park will do, or botanical gardens – anywhere that’s green.
Don’t be afraid to ask the person if they’re suicidal. You won’t put the idea in their head, and it will probably be a relief for them to talk about it openly. If they are suicidal, ask them if they have an actual plan, or if it’s just an idea or thoughts. If they have a plan, you should call their doctor immediately.
Probably the most important thing you can do overall is just being there. Talk to them, or just be with them. What do you talk about? Well, don’t be fake cheerful, don’t insist that everything will be fine, don’t try to make them laugh.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t try to make them feel better. If they like kitten videos, watch kitten videos with them. Watch a movie, or again, just hang out. It really is just the being there that makes a big difference to someone who’s severely depressed.
We hope that this video has been helpful. Please remember to like and subscribe if you’re interested in more videos about depression.