[quote=@Light the Dark]
It saddens me, in this day and age, that there is really still such a stigma against mental illness. Not just a stigma, but a lack of understanding even some of the 'simplest' forms of mental illness, like depression. As someone who suffers from depression and anxiety and has to fight daily to live a productive life, it sometimes makes me feel worthless. I've had people say to me that I just needed to think positively, and my depression would go away. If it was that easy, don't you think I'd be better by now?

I had more that I planned to say, but another lovely side effect of depression is my memory is shit. Ah well.
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I've realized a long time ago that most people tend to stick to what they know and only learn from what they experience. That's why you hear ignorant comments about mental illness from people who have never had even an hour of psych coursework in their life and they think they're professors or something.

They don't respect what they don't understand, and that includes the complexity of mental illness, which is a phenomenon studied by many different professionals that can spend more than a decade in learning before they start treating people with these problems.

The stupid people don't make anything easier, but I think people who, either by dint of personal experience and/or imagination, can relate to your struggles and empathize with you. You aren't worthless, and you're stronger than those fuckers because you gotta fight harder than they do. Don't view yourself through their lens; don't look to please them. Remember who counts -- those who you decide count, your loved ones. The world is a nasty place to those who are not up to the lofty standards of 'normalcy' that humanity imposes and reinforces, even though many fall short of that ideal behind closed doors.

I hope you keep up the fight.