Feeling perpetually down.

[thewestguy1]

Hi, My name is Max and I am 14 years old coming on to 15, and lately I've been feeling really down, I wouldn't say I'm depressed, that may be an exaggeration but yeah I am not happy by any means.

I haven't got a bad life, well actually I have a really good life, but I can't help but feel sad...recently I got hit by a car and this really put me down, one of the only things I liked about myself was the fact that I was pretty intelligent but now I can't even say that...I've forgotten nearly everything I knew, I don't look good, I'm not strong I have no strong attributes and I'm pretty much a social pariah I have just 2 friends, and one of them isn't the sort of person I want to be around atm (all he thinks about is getting piss drunk) and I need to take a half hour train ride to see my other friend, I go to a youth club, but everyone there is a lot older than me, and i always end up making a fool of myself, so yeah...the main reason I'm unhappy is because I really don't like myself, all I do is sleep watch tv or attempt to socialize and act cool...I don't really know if there is a point in this post, and I'm sorry if it's a little messy but I'm just sort of ranting (plus I haven't gotten a good nights sleep in a wee while)

[Celestial.]

Hi Max. (Welcome to TeenHelp. )

It's good that you've been able to recognise your feelings and reach out for help about them. There are definitely a lot of people on here who can empathise with at least most of what you're going through, and I really hope we can help.

Sorry to hear about the incident with the car. That can't have been easy to go through or recover from. One thing that could help now is to try and focus on the positives. Yes, you may have lost a few things, but you still have your life, right? You still have time to turn things around? If you're forgotten things, think of it as having the chance to experience the joy of learning them all over again... or something less corny than that. But do you see where I'm going? Look on the bright side, the silver lining, all that sort of stuff.

If you want to increase your social circle, why don't you take up a new sport or hobby? You already mentioned the youth club, but if that's making you feel foolish or uncomfortable, I'm sure there's plenty of other things you can try. Having other hobbies can also act as a reason for you to leave the house, and give you something else to think about rather than your sadness, as you put it.

If you don't like yourself, then you can do two things: one, learn to recognise the good in yourself; and two, keep improving yourself so that you can have even more self-worth. Get out there in the world, and really engage with the community. If you see how much other people like you, it might help convince you that you should like yourself too.

Don't apologise for the post; it's perfectly fine. You wanted to get your feelings out, so it's okay if it's not in a perfectly linear and chronological structure. I think the point here was to ask for help, and to convince yourself that you're not alone - because you're really not. There's always people who care, and who'll be willing to help.

Also, since you mentioned you haven't really slept in a while - simple things like having a good diet, getting sufficient sleep, and exercising daily can help relieve symptoms of depression, and help make you feel happier. So, make sure you're doing that.

Anyway. I hope I helped, and I hope you start feeling better soon.

Take care.