There is singing in my head, one song, on a continuous loop… “All By Myself” by Eric Carmen later remade by Celine Dion:

“…I think of all the friends I’ve known, but when I dial the telephone, nobody’s home…”

I hear laughter in the background as the song is being sung by a melancholy vocalist, myself:

“… Sometimes I feel so insecure, and love is so distant and obscure, remains the cure…”

Then I can visually see myself break out into the chorus with tears gliding down my cheeks:

“All by myself, don’t want to be, all by myself anymore…”

The laughing is growing and I am shrinking down into the fetal position on the floor, slinking my way into a corner. The source of my laughing, Depression, my friend, my foe, my constant companion.

It arrived back from its vacation a little over a week ago. Not wanting to stay quiet and play with Anxiety in the background, it has taken over my body. It has put all those ‘lovely’ negative thoughts back in my head that I worked so hard to get rid of… worthlessness, hopelessness, loneliness. I’ve tried to fight back, telling it that it will not take over me and every morning it is the personality trait that is dominant.

“You have no friends!” it echoes. There is a brief pause before it cackles, “And you don’t deserve any.”

This is a normal feeling that comes in waves throughout the year. For the most part, I can tell Depression to shut up, but this time, this time I can’t. I am silenced. I am not quite sure of the main cause of this Depressive state as it has been going on for over a week but I do know a few factors that have contributed:

My Business Trip: I love traveling for my job. I get to see new places, try local cuisine. This time I even met a friend for dinner. But traveling disturbs my routine and while I enjoy it, these trips are so jammed packed with work that I am constantly moving and never really decompress.

No Vacation: My husband, daughter and I took a vacation in April 2016 and will not be going on another vacation until October 2018. Yes, 2 1/2 years. We tried planning a long weekend this year but there were other commitments. So once again, no decompression.

Socialization: My therapist recommends I get out more with my friends. Easier said than actually done. Everyone is so busy except during the week. Even though it is summer, I work during the week.

It’s this last point that has been eating away at my happiness and refueling my Depression.

There was a group of friends of mine, close friends, close enough to call each other ‘Bestie’. Over the last year and a half there has been distance, mainly because our daughters no longer take dance. My instincts tell me there is more and I will sit and analyze this to no avail. My thoughts tell me I did something wrong or said something wrong. There were birthday parties my daughter wasn’t invited to. I blame myself for this. What did I do? Did I say something? I know, they are sick of dealing with me. There are photos of fun weekday pool gatherings. Stephanie, you work, you can’t go. There has been effort on my part earlier this year but now, now I am just so drained I have no more strength to try anymore. I know this is only hurting myself, and my daughter since she misses out on playing with her friends.

I feel alone, so, so, alone.

When I am lucid and logical I realize the falseness of this. “We’re all busy,” I tell myself, “Weekends are usually family time.” I mean, how can I deny the latter? That is when my husband, daughter and I can do something. I constantly tell myself that you have friends that you go out with. I just went out to see a musical with one of them. I have my best friend in the whole world living with me, my husband. I have family.

And yet, there is something missing.

Something about this group of friends and me. Something that is eating away at me. They don’t get it and at times, I don’t think they want to try anymore. They don’t get what living with Depression is like. They don’t understand how a Depressive thinks. I can’t blame them for this. My brain is not easy to understand. My husband, after knowing me for almost 21 years, still has times where my mind confuses him. Hell, my mind confuses me. And at times, those rare occasions where I do get to meet up with the ‘Besties’, I tend to feel uncomfortable because I constantly feel like I am being seen only as my illness. I know this is my Depression speaking. Sometimes it is just hard to separate my logical mind from my sick mind.

I have friends that get it. Friends that I met because we share Depression and Anxiety diagnosis’. I enjoy their company. I don’t feel like any topic is off limits. When my friend and I went to the musical, we discussed hospitalizations. They fulfill my socialization need. Then why the funk… why the constant loneliness, why the “You have no friends, and you don’t deserve any”?

I wish I knew.

Lies Depression tells us.