The bouts of depression come and go.

Some days I make it out of bed for my classes. Other days I sleep until I have to go to work.

I sleep to pass the time I would otherwise spend conscious and feeling worthless, trapped inside my head. Some days I don’t eat until dinner time. Other days I binge every meal until I’m disgustingly full. The feelings eat at me until I pull myself out of isolation.

BOWERS

But I’m not the only one who plays this mental game.

Approximately 18.8 million fellow Americans 18 and older suffer from major depressive disorder — also known as depression — according to the National Institutes of Mental Health. Depression is the most common mental disorder, according to the American Psychological Association.

Depression includes symptoms of “fatigue and decreased energy, insomnia or excessive sleeping, difficulty concentrating and remembering details,” loss of interest in activities that once brought a person pleasure, “feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness,” as well as fluctuation in appetite, according to the NIMH.

Before I discovered the culprit that threw me into deep and depressive pits, those debilitating feelings drastically affected my sleep cycle, my eating habits and caused my general outlook on life to become stingingly pessimistic.

So, more than a year ago I began seeing a psychologist after being referred out by the Counseling and Psychiatric Services at the University’s Health Center. I started with weekly sessions, and now I go every three weeks.

Though I sought out help, millions will not.

It is estimated that 80 percent of people with depression do not receive treatment for depression.

There is a stigma and an almost embarrassment attached with therapy. But without it, I don’t know where I would be. Opting for treatment pulled me out of a place I never want to revisit.

What the NIMH refers to as “talk therapy” is crucial in sorting out the mental mess that is depression.

Just as therapy is critical in treating depression, avoiding isolation and socializing can lift your mood. I try constantly to surround myself with friends, co-workers and family members when I can to keep out of the unforgiving corners of my mind that convince me I’m worthless.

As soon as I enter the newsroom, the people I work with pull me out of the mental jail I stick myself in each day when I am alone.

As soon as I enter my best friends’ house, I’m revived and reminded of the little things in life that bring a smile across my lips.

There are outlets. There are solutions. Don’t corner yourself like I did.

CAPS offers short-term counseling among its offerings and can also refer students to psychologists and psychiatrists in Athens if long-term therapy is needed. Though I still combat the disorder and suffer through stretches of time where my depression cripples me, setting foot inside the health center was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

My fight with depression has proven to be an uphill battle — a battle I’ve tried to combat quietly — and it began by putting one foot in front of the other in order to seek out help.

— Rachel G. Bowers is the sports editor for The Red & Black