Why is it important to figure out why I feel sad?
A lot of people almost feel like, well, I don’t have the right to be depressed. I have so much going for me and that kind of thinking can really stop somebody from getting the kind of mental health services they need. The idea of being sad in our culture is one that lots of people struggle with. First of all, we do want people to be happy. But when a person is feeling sad, they often feel like #1. I can figure this on my own. I can get over this on my own. I’m just going to pull myself up by my bootstraps. But the problem is, is that sense of impending sadness, especially if you can’t shake it, could be a sign of something more, for example, of being depressed. And a lot of people almost feel like, well, I don’t have the right to be depressed. I have so much going for me. And that kind of thinking can really stop somebody from getting the kind of mental health services they need. Remember, if there’s only one tried and true principle we have in healthcare, it’s to test early and treat early, because the earlier we work with someone, the quicker we can bring them out of a risky situation. And that definitely applies in the case of mental health and depression. So when you’re feeling sad, one of the key issues is to talk to a healthcare professional, ideally A licensed mental health professional. To get to the core issue of what’s going on and get the combination of perhaps medication, psychotherapy, whatever is necessary to help lift that because nobody should suffer silently with that and there should be no stigma about ever seeking out the help that you need.