Hollow

I just read that Heath Ledger, the legend whose amazing work in The Dark Knight had was praised by critics, had battled depression in his life. Well, I knew that he had drugs problem which is usually a symptom of a deeper psychological issue within an individual's soul, but I had no idea that he was battling depression. This just further proves to me how easily it is for us to dismiss depression as a real disease.

Heath Ledger is just one of the instances of people who seem to have it all, but in reality, are actually feeling empty inside. There is like a hollow inside their heart that they are desperate to fill. Although clinical depression sounds very psychological, studies have supported the hypotheses that depression does have biological origin. But the effects and consequences of depression are very psychological, which sadly many people view as trivial.

Another depression-related psychological issue whose importance people always ignore is suicidal thought. Suicidal thought is one of the major indicators for clinical depression and because clinical depression is influenced by biological factors and runs in the family, suicidal thought can also be hypothesized to be passed on to the next generations. Suicide attempters usually have similar "modus operandi". They usually give a warning that they are going to commit suicide, the warning would at least be a simple note on top of the nightstand.

When people "warn" you about committing suicide, never ever ever ever take it lightly. Never ever ever take the warning for granted because if the person who warns actually commits suicide and succeeds, you would never forgive yourself. Equally importantly, never ever ever ignore it if you find anyone of your friends to show any symptoms of clinical depression. One of the ways to fight depression is by having a strong social support and it starts with you.