Depression, the secret we share | Andrew Solomon | TEDxMet 

I've been trying to explain why I am always in bed to my parents for 3 years. I showed them this video and for the first time ever, nobody needed to talk. My dad cried and my mom thanked me, and then I went back to bed.

This is the best talk on depression.

He explained depression in the most accurate way. "Why would I be depressed when my life is going all good?" "Others are going through so much more and handling it pretty well, but why can't I?" These self-doubts and voices in our own head that trivialise our feelings are the worst problems of depression, I feel

I’m pretty sure this is the fifth time i’m watching this but it’s honestly one of the best talks about depression.

I never thought one could love depression like the way he mentioned. Only those who have suffered through it understands the pain and agony that depression brings.

I cannot express how important I feel this talk is, and more of the world needs to see it.

Andrew is my cousin and he is a great guy to talk to in person and his husband is really nice.

I come and watch this one from time to time. When he said depression is not the lack of joy but the lack of vitality, that hit me like a truck. No other statement perfectly sums up depression.

As I watch this in my room, hiding away from the kids, depressed, with the covers over my head...

As a person struggling with depression, it is very refreshing to hear someone explain exactly how it feels. It is indeed a secret we share. Thankfully, exercise (especially weightlifting) and mindfulness are my "friends" and healers at the moment.

OMG This man is amazing. This is the first time I've heard someone REALLY describe living with depression in a truly honest understandable all encompassing way. I've struggled to explain to family and friends what it's like at it's worst. Andrew nails it!

What a beautiful soul so refreshing to hear people like this great man

This is the best talk about depression I’ve ever heard and it honestly helped me understand myself so much more

Andrew always helps me feel better when I'm having my darkest days.

My daughter is suffering from depression and is a teen girl. Listening to this made me cry. I know the journey ahead won't be easy, and it's hard to be a parent and watch your child in pain and despair. This is a video I want her to watch so that she knows she's not alone and to destigmatize depression. I want her to have the tools to understand this disease and to be compassionate to herself. It is with gratitude for this video and enlightening us all to the pain and resilience you have exhibited. Thank you!

This talk is really important, he touched me with every word. As I suffer from depression myself I feel every word, but what can a person do when they have no support system who understands..

This guy perfectly describes and captures the horror of depression. Excellent talk.

Mental health stinks speak out dont suffer in silence nothing to be ashamed off its mental health I have bipolar manic depression I also have hypoxia brain injury I died 26minutes spent weeks months in coma rehab hospital learning talk walk again been a recovery massive discovery never ever give up on yourself many will never yourselves keep going doing amazing things stay strong stay positive stay safe everyone takecare becareful out there dont let guards down sending luck hugs prayers most of all love from headway Nottingham UK you got this you got it great speech well done x

To anyone who has been watching these talks to feel supported :), I would recommend you some other raw and beautifully articulated talks on depression. They are:- 1. By Sam Moukaddem 2. Gill Hayes 3. John Nieuwenburg Helped me alot :)

It has finally hit me at 50 and I am glad to hear someone that understands.I WILL get healthy.I would do anything to meet this great man.Maybe one day

I’m so so SO glad I watched this. I’ve had some of the thoughts such as “life is pointless because we’re all going to die” as well as “we’re all just trapped in our bodies” thinking I was having some sort of spiritual epiphany while others lived blissfully unaware. I forgot that just as much as anxiety can lie to us, so can depression. I’ve been so scared but to hear people who’ve had verbatim what’s been inside my head makes me want to cry in relief and sadness. Our greatest gift in this world is each another and I wish so badly we lived in a better society that cared more about helping each other through connection and proper care rather than individual gain and material fulfillment with money. I feel we’re disconnected from everything, our food, our planet and one another. This could very well be me having depressed delusions but I feel trapped by these thoughts and have no where else to put them.

This is one of the most moving stories I've ever heard. If you ever read this, thank you so much.❤

This is...such an excellent expression of what depression is. This gentleman is eloquent.

"Each of us is trapped in our own bodies". That is such a strange concept to contemplate. Even after seeing this talk 10's of times over the last few years it is still soothing and informative to know someone else gets it. "Like the stations of the cross" when making a sandwich. So true!

Each time I watch this I find myself wanting to stand up, alone in my room, to give this man a standing ovation. His brilliant mind, combined with such heartfelt experiences, makes this my favourite presentation of what living with clinical depression is truly like. I consider myself honoured to have found it, and will no doubt replay it many more times to come. ♡

The idea of valuing depression is hard to come to terms with. It is so awful and so intolerable that it is hard to imagine anything being worth it - anything.

two weeks ago I told my therapist and asked her in my session, I feel like I don’t feel, I feel like I don’t have reactions when I know I should have one, I know I am supposed to feel something but I can’t, why is that?? Is that my depression??? Now I know!!! Thank you

A “MUST listen to” for anyone wanting to better understand depression. Thank you for sharing! I love the part about (Americans) taking people into dark dingy rooms alone to talk about all of the bad things that have happened to them. SO true!

What a wonderful talk! Thank you! After loosing my mom and three cousins to COVID-19 in 2020, and three months ago my beloved sister that was like my other mother, I’m in the process of learning the difference between grief, sadness and depression. This has helped me a lot!

Thank you, Mr. Andrew Solomon! I usually do not comment on RU-vid videos. But your talk about depression is the best I have come upon so far: insightful, compelling, with a dash of humor to lighten the talk. Very much needed at a time like this. Thanks again!

I cried through this whole video

you have no idea how hard this is to explain to others, thank you for your kindness in this dark world.

This man clearly and simply described the experience of depression and he's amazing. 9 years later!

I am grateful for this talk: I was suffering from depression a long time ( I also suffer from bipolar disorder) and due to change in my medication I am feeling much better. I have come to understand that having a daily structure and plan for my day really helps me a lot. Talking a walk also makes me feel so much better. I am also taking control of my life again; I gave away my power by not believing in myself more and listening to the voices of a celebrity obsessed world. Having said that there are still some people I admire in the public but I also honor my own journey in life more. God Bless!

I LOVE this speaker! He's speaks like a poet. His words and stories ring with truth. So glad I got to find this video and listen to him!

This is shockingly accurate.

Very intelligent man, what a speach!

what a beautiful speech.

This is best TED about depression. So much in here to think about, you need to listen carefully at least twice.

Every time I get in this way, I come back and listen to Andrew's talk. The last time, I was in a terrible job, overly stressed, falling apart, and seeing no hope. I decided to hold on and fight. Things went up and things went down, and then things fell off a cliff. I decided to go back to school and change my circumstances. Perhaps changing the job and improving my financial situation would help. I put all my effort toward achieving that goal. I graduated and changed my circumstances. I found a great job with a great boss and work that I enjoy. I started my master's program. A few negative emotional events and a semester of classes in which I have little interest has brought me back, despite things going so well. At least from the outside. I don't know what the future holds, but I will try to hold on again. I'm thankful that Andrew gave this talk because it helps me think about things in a way that nothing else really can.

So damn spot on! Thank you for sharing your perspective on a common enemy we suffer.

24:13 is so important. I can’t stop thinking about it

I definitely adore how he puts across his feelings and ideas and his language skills! Perfect

Thank you so much Andrew for this perfect description of what your depression looks and feels like. It is a unique experience, yet you captured much of the thoughts through your own experiences and those for whom you interviewed. Thank you from my soul!

Andrew gives the best descriptions of what I’ve suffered from since my childhood. I’m so thankful for his talks and his writing.

Love this guy! Reminds me a little of Sheldon Cooper :)

Andrew Solomon is truly a master in every way. I love this video so dearly

It's so refreshing to hear you speak so honestly and openly about your experience with depression. I've enjoyed all your talks over the years. You seem like someone with a beautiful bright childlike soul that is determined to be at home with or without depression, in a world that hates "pure-hearts." Don't give up the faith! The world and all its pure-hearts need someone like you to encourage them to persist and keep looking for ways to find vitality again after depression pays a visit.

Thank you very much for this video. I am currently suffering from Major Depression

Thank you for sharing. Very well spoken. I can relate to most of it. I agree today’s treatments are still in the dark ages and it is a tragedy. My concern when it comes to society as a whole is a lack of empathy, without it educating people about mental illness falls on def ears. But all we can do is try and you have certainly done that. May joy find its way to you.

Priceless! Thank you sir, you know exactly what this will do for me.

You are a genius Andrew Solomon, just love this Tedx Talks, one of my top 10 for sure!!! The poem is amazing, I recall the Emily Dickinson piece, she also, a genius.

Worth every minute!! Can't believe there are only 73K views. He has another TEDx talk I can recall hearing in the past, if you want more of his wonderful story telling. I agree best talk on explaining what it is like to have depression to someone who is trying to understand it from a "normal" person's perspective. Can't wait to listen to it again and share it.

The way Andrew talks reminds me somewhat of the way Churchil did...What a great talk of a man with depth and sensitivity.

Finally the talk I've been longing to hear, thank you

What a wonderful speech.

What a wonderful speech. I’m very happy and proud of this man - that he has worked his way thru depression and gets up in front of large audiences and speaks honestly about his experience and what he’s learnt. Public speaking isn’t easy. Bravo

I've been watching vids about depression and self harm bc I want to help out a friend, but instead I just realized how many of those things also apply to me... The food part was so on point. When I'm hungry and I start thinking about all the steps that are requred just for me to make some food and eat it I get kinda overwhelmed and it takes me a good half an hr to motivate myself to do it.

I rarely hear such an accurate description

An excellent description of the 4 categories of depression. Thank you.

One of the best speeches on mental health

Life, too bleak to live but too unresolved to die.

Great talk!! Just want to add: He describes very severe cases (incl. his own). Don't be scared. It doesn't have to be that extreme. But do go and get help as early as possible so it doesn't get this severe.

Thank you! It touched my life entirely.

Thanks for the term 'vitality', it clears a lot of things.

hi...i am a survivor of Depression...your talk is awesome...and spot-on...thanks for sharing your amazing journey

Excellent honesty. This is a clinic in experience and understanding

This would be my favorite talk period

Superb presentation. Andrew’s eloquence is outstanding.

So much of it is something that just about everyone can identify. I sometimes have the same existential questions in which you see no meaning to any of the feelings that move within us when death is the only outcome. And not knowing what is or is not after ones death. And the mortality of your loved ones. I can see how some people plunge deep into those overwhelming feelings of doom. I'm sorry for the people that their sorrows just plummet into dark dark places.

11:22 is me everytime. no hope. no future. just an ending.

❤❤️❤❤️❤❤️❤ "the fact you never heard of it means that it's - news ... and you are a news magazine"

Andrew Solomon is the best.

The problem with todays society is that it´s hard to connect, getting a feeling of truly belonging and creating an identity. Society simply has become too corrupt, complex and irrelevant to the individual.

Amazing presentation of the suffering and experience many of us live with each year. This gave me knowledge and hope. Thank you.

I hope that everyone ehre is okay. Please be safe and remember that people care about you, even if it may not feel like it at times. If you are feeling troubled, maybe professional help is the answer, or talking to a trusted friend about what you are going through. wish you all the best.

Wonderful talk, lovely guy. Read his book many years ago although I wasnt depressed, I wanted to learn more...

This is the best video on the subject in all of existence

This talk is very important!

The truth lies... great quote

Thank you for saying things that I can't. ❤️🙏❤️

Thank you. Thank you. Just, thank you.

i felt every word and im going through it all rn

I successfully completed TMS therapy after 2 times. I tried many over the years. Very nice talk 🤗🥰

Brillianty said and presented, I'm so grateful for having watched this video, maybe someday there will be a brighter light at the end of the very dark tunnel depression traps us in.

Wonderful talk about depression, it has created hope picture in my mind . That I can rise again, I only felt life has ended , but I feel am living again 😭, thank you

We live in a society where people don't even matter.

Wonderful talk

best Ted Talk ever!!

I hope this great GentleMan is doing well God bless Him.I know about the term Dead but Still living..

Ualll!! Incrível como uma dor pode depois virar seu amor ! Eu passei por muita ansiedade , aprendi que preciso abraçar essa dor . Depois disso a ansiedade vêm diminuindo 🎉

OK...Basically, I Love You!! Thank you so much

I revisit this every once in a while.

sir, i can resonate with your feelings and i am a worrior of these so called depression. but i found a new meaning after overcoming it !

thank you for the touches of humor to break up the darkness

NEVER STOP TALKING ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH! ESPECIALLY YOU OWN!!

Thank you

My father probably had Clinical Depression, but somehow he managed to live his life. He was of course, difficult to live with. My brother still hasn’t forgiven him-he was harmed so much. I had a minor version of depression (Dysthymia) and it was truly horrid! I can’t believe how much my father must have suffered because it was not considered a problem in his lifetime.

Thank you.

Going through a depressive episode right now, this is unbearable.