Then we miss it (because) we dismissed it.” Coping with depression ![]() “We’re waiting for a five-alarm fire, and they’re telling us it’s smoldering. ![]() “When I hear people saying, ‘Check in on your strong friends,’ which has become a very common mantra (along with), ‘It’s OK to not be OK,’ I think what gets dismissed in that is, if you have strong friends who are telling you they’re not OK, we don’t know how to listen,” Simpkins says. In response, Simpkins would simply listen, which she says helped extend her daughter’s life. Simpkins saw it as a sign that something was wrong. “How could you hide something behind a smile that is so genuine? But I think it’s also important to realize that the general public is not with those people 24/7, and what you are seeing is what they are presenting in that moment at that time.”īefore Kryst died by suicide, Simpkins says she began paying closer attention to her daughter because she’d talk about some things over and over and wouldn’t stop. “When you have someone who is an achiever and who does enjoy life, it is very easy for the general public to assume that they must be OK, that they couldn’t possibly be hiding something,” Simpkins tells. Simpkins stresses that public figures are not immune to suicidal thoughts, no matter how bubbly they may appear. Simpkins says Kryst had persistent depressive disorder and had attempted suicide before. cherishing the things that I do have and the things that I have accomplished as a father, pulling myself out of (depressive states).” Depression in the public eyeĪpril Simpkins lost her daughter, Extra TV correspondent and Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst, in January to suicide. Reflecting on his mental health journey, Howard says: “I try to come from a place of gratitude first and. Black population peaks between age 25 and 34, whereas for white people, it’s between age 45 and 54, according to a 2021 report from the National Vital Statistics System. The young age of these figures highlights what Walker, who teaches psychology at the University of Houston and directs the Culture, Risk and Resilience Lab on campus, knows too well from her own work: Black people who die by suicide tend to be younger than white people who do. And former Miss USA and attorney Cheslie Kryst died Jan. “The Walking Dead” actor Moses Moseley died Jan. Kevin Ward, 44, mayor of Hyattsville, Maryland died Jan. Many prominent Black people have died by suicide this year, several of them within one week in January: Ian Alexander Jr., actor Regina King’s only child, died Jan. that they want for themselves,” Walker says. “I was a fan of and ‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ and I can’t help but to wonder if the people who sometimes are the presumably happiest on the outside are the ones who are trying to create something. It’s common for people with depression to overcompensate for feelings of emptiness by becoming the life of the party, she says. I can go back and I can take on the world.” but then on the weekend or after work, you go spend time with people who support you and love you. Walker adds that for high-functioning depression, the bad feelings may fluctuate: “Stressful things happen at work. Mayo Clinic defines persistent depressive disorder as “continuous, long-term” depression that’s “not as severe as major depression.” But she also stresses that because high-functioning depression is not a technical diagnosis, she’s hesitant to say they’re the same. Persistent depressive disorder is another official diagnosis that, for some patients, may include high-functioning depression, Walker says. Some symptoms of major depressive disorder, per Mayo Clinic, are: feeling sad or hopeless, angry outbursts or irritability, sleeping too much or too little, lack of energy, weight loss or weight gain, anxiety, feeling worthless or guilty, trouble concentrating, suicidal thoughts and unexplained body pain. “If you fall below that - everybody has a bad day. Major depressive disorder, you have to have five (symptoms) at least, and they have to persist for a couple of weeks or more,” Walker said. “There are a number of different things that fall under the umbrella of depression. The official diagnosis for depression is major depressive disorder. High-functioning depression is a colloquial term and not a technical clinical diagnosis, explains Rheeda Walker, Ph.D., psychologist and leading researcher on suicide in the Black community. rest in paradise.” Stephen "tWitch" Boss on "Ellen's Game of Games." Mike Rozman / Warner Brothers / NBC What is high-functioning depression? ![]() “High-functioning depression is scary as f-k because no one knows you’re not okay, and even if you say something no one realizes the severity because you don’t seem like someone who is falling off the deep end,” one of the tweets read.Īnother Twitter user wrote: “Prayers for Twitch’s wife and kids, always check on your strong friends.
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