What is an undiagnosed depressive?
Well my friend, I’m glad you asked,
They could be the life and soul of the party,
The one always good for a laugh.
Or the one standing on the bridge up there,
With a rope tied round their throat.
Who are the undiagnosed depressives?
That’s the problem, nobody knows.
They’re the ones that keep their feeling hid,
So those closest won’t suspect,
Till they’re found with their wrists slashed open,
Or that rope around their neck.
The ones most others would describe,
As full of life and fun,
That one day push into their mouth,
The barrel of their gun.
These are the undiagnosed depressives,
So how can they be helped?
The truth is, no-one can help them,
Until they begin to help themselves.
Which very rarely happens,
Because they believe nobody cares,
So secretly slip deeper,
Into their own pit of despair.
Where behind closed doors and windows,
Away from the public gaze,
The undiagnosed depressive’s mask,
Slowly slips away.
And the tears they’ve held in check so long,
Begin to flow with ease,
As the undiagnosed depressive,
Begging, crumples to their knees.
Whilst reaching for a bottle,
Of alcohol or pills,
Yet knowing, when they sober up,
The pain will be there still.
But it’s the only way they know to cope,
Until death comes as a friend,
And they go to the only place there is,
Where they’ll never more need to pretend.
A beautiful poem Steve,very empathetic,I was diagnosed with 'Environmental Depression' and so for me much of your poem is my life,I can relate to it ,my depression was caused by other people (cruel people)but because of them, I am stuck with it, and I live with 'Post traumatic stress syndrome' too.I wont let it hold me down though,as life is beautiful,and that is what I always hold on to.
God bless you my dear friend.
Love to you and yours always,
From
Kay.
A sad state for one to be in. Even diagnosed depressives give up the fight. If only people would pay attention to those around them, then maybe they could help before it's too late.
I love your poems because there are so well written and convey information like this one. I can't help thinking that you are writing from your own experience.
My one concern about these hidden depressives is, not that they will take their own lives and perhaps remove their genes, if it is genetic, from the gene pool, but that that they will, as some are want to do, take others with them in some sort of blame, like a workplace shooting.
Oh, my goodness! You have touched upon a subject that hits home. I won't go into details but this happy mother of five well taken care of children, was found on the back seat of a taxi. O.D.. You have touched upon a problem that has always been here........."Where behind closed doors and windows,"......but not seen or understood by most. Thank you for opening some eyes, Steve!
Here in SoCal (San Diego) the city streets (especially downtown) are littered with the mentally oppressed. Many presume you are not sick unless they see some manifestation in the body. Sick thoughts, though, can easily devour the flesh (at times) more effectively than fever or disease. I grew up with a paranoid/schizophrenic, and I was close, for a season, with several who were chronically depressed. To this day I still battle depression on occasion. It's very real and very personal. The darkness is consuming like a heavy wet blanket over you. From my own experiences I've found that the spiritual component of this affliction, is the most important, and certainly the most overlooked in a modern drug-oriented culture. Your thoughts here opened up a door in me that I usually keep shut. Written well. Peace... r
The deep-dive literary meditations presented as stories, poems, and essays in The American Poet Who Went Home Again, A Mosaic of My Soul at Work, have captivated and inspired readers ever since its first paperback publication in 2008.
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God bless you my dear friend.
Love to you and yours always,
From
Kay.
My one concern about these hidden depressives is, not that they will take their own lives and perhaps remove their genes, if it is genetic, from the gene pool, but that that they will, as some are want to do, take others with them in some sort of blame, like a workplace shooting.
Ron
Love ya!
Jane
Regis