FORGIVE FRIENDS?

Dear Jellybean,

I have chronic depression, & I've been taking depression medication for awhile now. Well, when I told my friends about it & that I had almost commited suicide, most of them took it hard. But a couple of them didn't take me seriously, even when I was diagnosed, they didn't have any sympathy, in fact, one of them pretended to be really upset & was crying like crazy. Then I found out she was acting. It really hurts that I feel they don't love me. It's like they didn't care if I had died or not. What do you think I should do? Should I just forgive them & keep being friends?
-Cafelover182

Dear Cafelover182,

When you're depressed, one of the issues is that you're super-sensitive to everything around you. So what might be gentle teasing to another person, can seem like total meanness to you.

It's really hard for me to tell you if your friends are worth keeping. I can tell you that your friends are not therapists, and even if they really care about you and want to be helpful, they don't have the skills or knowledge to handle your depression like a professional could. So they might make jokes, to cheer you up, or make themselves feel more comfortable. Or they may just not understand the seriousness of their condition, because they lack the experience of dealing with depression-sufferers.

Keep on taking your medication, and hopefully seeing a therapist. Doing both together is what ends up "curing" most people from depressive episodes. As for your friends, count on them to be supportive and kind, but don't rely on them to get you through the darkest times. They just don't know how.

I can't tell you whether to "forgive" these people and keep them as friends. But it might be a lot to deal with, losing your friends just as you're trying to get over depression. Take it slow, and don't make any decisions from anger.