depression and the artistic mind

[eyeatus]

feels like a blessing and a curse. i think it will come in handy when i learn how to make darker songs.

anyone else here struggling with depression?

[jrisreal]

I don't know if I do. I'm not exactly the happiest kid in town...

[knell]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

[eyeatus]

so true. i appreciate that post knell.

[knell]

Glad I could help. Perspective is a powerful tool.

[Mehlovich]

-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

THIS.

Best thing I've done in years.

[Electric_Head]

depression is a fickle state of mind
find your happy place and overcome the depression

[Pistonsbeneath]

have had some extremely tough times i have to say

have read all the books in the world on the subject but sometimes all i can do is try and stay alive

its just one of those things though and i try not to burden people with it when its happening

[magma]

My ex suffered badly due to a lot of unresolved issues from being a teenager... the really hard thing with depression is that it saps your will to do stuff and see people, when often doing stuff and seeing people is exactly what your brain is craving.

Don't isolate yourself with headphones and Ableton and expect a work of genius to come out... you've got to be able to communicate with other people to be a coherent artist. Make sure you've always got something to look forward to with your mates.

[Mehlovich]

My ex suffered badly due to a lot of unresolved issues from being a teenager... the really hard thing with depression is that it saps your will to do stuff and see people, when often doing stuff and seeing people is exactly what your brain is craving.

Don't isolate yourself with headphones and Ableton and expect a work of genius to come out... you've got to be able to communicate with other people to be a coherent artist. Make sure you've always got something to look forward to with your mates.

^cannot stress this enough! Change your way of living, eat healthy, smoke less weed, work out and get out of the house. Thats the way to overcome depression.

[butter_man]

i try not to burden people with it when its happening

[grillis]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

I think a lot of this just wouldn't make sense to someone in a depressed state of mind, especially: "Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh." & ending every suggestion with 'you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise' shows a blatant misunderstanding of the condition.

[tuckerlinen]

i try not to burden people with it when its happening

[mks]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

I agree with your main points but you come across as someone that never had to deal with this and don't really have a good perspective on what it is like.

So tell me how it was when you spun the globe in South Africa and your finger landed on the US? And then you moved here? I bet it was your parents that moved you here...

[Bass Music]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

You're addressing it as if the problem is having nothing to do. You can still have a routine, job/college/uni/whatever, friends etc and still be depressed. Though it is obviously harder to fall into it with all these things, but still happens. I think the real way to work towards getting rid of it is to address the problem(s) that is getting you down, as scary or hard as it may be in your lethargic state.

[zerbaman]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

That changed my life.

[knell]

Look people, I'm not going to go into my past mental issues or how I got to the mental state I am now. I just listed what works for me when I get stuck in that mentality, in my particular subjective experience of the world. A hard, forced reset of the world is what always fixes me, not medications, therapy, or any traditional methodology. If that works for you too, great!

If not, disregard it, and don't act as if I'm trying to update the DSM-IV with my ramblings.

[mks]

I hear you man, I am feeling like I need a reset for myself at the moment.

I have always rejected any pills or whatever but find myself self medicating in other ways.

There is some good advice in this thread.

EZ

[ThomasEll]

You only have one life to live. If you're depressed and wondering why you're here and what the point of it all is, I suggest the following:

-Get on a boat, doesn't matter where it's going, and build a new life wherever you end up, even if it's begging. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Talk to every attractive girl you meet (if you're single) and try to get to know them. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go on an adventure with a close friend, get lost and try and find your way back. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Spin a globe, and stop it with your finger. Move to that place and learn the culture, make friends, and try to make everyone you meet laugh. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Go urban exploring. Find the closest city to you and locate an out of bounds area within it. Grab a flashlight and a camera and explore. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Contemplate how you got to the point where you could possibly be sad when you've practically hit the genetic lottery. You are a homo sapien sapien with access to the internet. You have beaten incredible odds. You have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.
-Try and make some form of art that hasn't been done before. Who cares if people laugh at you, you have nothing to lose if you were just going to sit around and mope otherwise.

tl;dr - you have one fucking life, you have all your fucking fingers and toes, go out and do something interesting in the tiny window of time that fate has allowed you.

You're addressing it as if the problem is having nothing to do. You can still have a routine, job/college/uni/whatever, friends etc and still be depressed. Though it is obviously harder to fall into it with all these things, but still happens. I think the real way to work towards getting rid of it is to address the problem(s) that is getting you down, as scary or hard as it may be in your lethargic state.

Often, and this was the case with me, it was being trapped in the routine that was the problem. Obviously this isn't going to be the case with everyone, but sometimes the best thing to do is just get away from whatever it is that's making you feel shit, even if this means moving away, or dramatically changing how you are living your life.

[knell]

Cheers mks et al, gotta take everything I say with a grain of salt, is all.

Also I should mention that not all of my hard resets that I've attempted have landed me in a better position than when I started, but I sure as hell snap out of no-energy cant-get-happy-no-matter-what fuck-life funk.

Often, and this was the case with me, it was being trapped in the routine that was the problem.

^^^^ absolutely, exact same with me.