Depression Made Trendy Through Tumblr

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I am so tired of seeing stuff like this on tumblr:







It's just really frustrating to me how depression is made to look really trendy and cool on this website. Many blogs I have visited are exclusively based on stuff like this and while I understand that some people find it therapeutic, i just think it's revolting. To me, it just helps to confirm the stereotypes of depressed people; that they are self indulgent teenagers who are following a fashion trend.

I get that some people find it easier to express how they feel in a gifs or in a blog post, but I just can't relate to this. Most of these gifs and posts portray mental illnesses as if everyone experiences them the same. If you're a girl, you must be depressed because you hate your body. You must be trying to get approval from people. You must be some timid little defenseless flower that has never done anything in your life but has this irrational belief that you're the worst person ever.

Obviously, these people exist but I can't picture myself like that. I just feel it's an attempt to make depression something beautiful and inspiring and it really isn't (at least not for me). It feels like I'm being pandered to, actually, like I'm supposed to be glad that they are portraying one of the most disgusting illnesses as something sexy and deep.

I'm not really sure where I;m going with this. I'm just frustrated by this crap.

I'm sorry you feel that way. I don't know if I agree with you though. I think the "trend" is to normalize a condition because it's been a taboo subject for centuries. People are ashamed of it and don't feel comfortable talking about it. If the images you're seeing imply a specific stereotype, eventually, that stereotype will broaden and more people will relate.

Depression is depression. If a girl is depressed "because" of "her body", she'd probably be depressed despite how beautiful it was.. and because it's a personal insecurity, she will attach her reasons for depression to this insecurity. I also think if she's depressed with her body - she's likely dealing with a lot of nutritional deficiencies which is contributing towards how her body is looking.

The photos you posted come from people and it's probably how a person is/was feeling when it was initially posted.

Look up "emo" subculture. Emos are a whole subculture of teens, mainly females, who think depression and being brooding and obsessed with dark stuff is really cool. This is different from goths, apparently, although there is some overlap. How many are actually, clinically depressed, and how many just think slitting your wrists makes you hot stuff, is hard to say. Tumblr is a site geared towards teens and young adults, who tend to be really superficial anyway. Maybe some of these emos think that they're rebelling against our culture's superficiality, problem is they're still superficial, only in a different way. I bet you won't find deep discussions on the current global economic train wreck on Tumblr! If Tumblr makes you mad, just keep off it.

While I don't really like those kinds of pictures either, I try to be charitable about people's motivations. I assume that they are trying to express feelings they can't really elsewhere, or just giving into the urge to wallow in their depression, which is often part of being depressed.

It's very common when you're depressed to try to desperately cling to any possible upside about it that you can, which often amounts to thinking that you're more deep than other people or whatever. It's stupid, because depression is horrible and there really is no upside to it, but that's the way people often think. I ought to disclose that I used to think this way too when I was younger, so I can't be too hard on people.

These teens are just trying to cope with their disease. What's a lot worse in my opinion are the self-injury pics that get spread around on Tumblr. Black and white angsty pictures never really did anyone any harm, but the self-injury pictures are pretty disturbing, trigger bad memories/urges, and encourage people to escalate and one-up each other with their self-harm.

Some of it is trendy, and it's stupid.

I don't get any of that on my tumblr though. Depends on what pages you follow. If you're tired of seeing it, unfollow those pages. Try something else like earthlynation or blackfashion or whatever. I follow fashion, animals, science, & passion. I really dont see any self-harm images from the San Diego Zoo.

Could you imagine though? "It was more than molting... he was a really depressed parrot."

Can't say I have spent any time on that site....also I fail to see how any of those make depression look 'cool'. I think it can be said though anyone who thinks depression is 'cool' probably hasn't actually suffered with it.

I guess I could see how it may romanticize depression in some ways...

I guess one thing that frustrated me when I was depressed was that I wasn't like any of those people on tumblr who made that, nor was I an emo or anything like that.

Normally, my view is just not to look at them. However every so often it annoys me when people I know reblog stuff like this. I totally get that people are trying to raise awareness of depression and trying to express how they feel. I get that it's about solidarity and I get that people who make these things have the best intentions. However something about it feels very wrong (especially when people post pictures of their fresh wounds).

I guess I'm just annoyed at this unifying idea of how people all experience something. I guess I feel a little isolated and alienated by it all. I don't begrudge people of their coping mechanisms, though. If it helps, it helps.

And yes, Pezar, I'm very aware of the emo subculture. I don't plan on getting off of tumblr though. I'm a big girl (just one with a bad temper, haha).

I don't think tumblr (or anything on the internet) is doing anything new n this regard. What about the old poets who inspired readers to off themselves?

"Trendiness" is also up for debate. I guess some people will claim to have been depressed before depression was cool?

tumblr is THE site for attention seeking just look at the pages dedicated to cutting

I think it's very sad that young people who are clearly experiencing a lot of mental pain are turning to the internet for support and solidarity, where anyone can see it and judge them for it. Cutting in particular is the result of a complex mental state that is often misunderstood. The people posting those photos need people in the real world to physically help them, not strangers on the internet.

This post is pretty hypocritical I guess, since I post here on WP about my problems instead of talking to people in real life.

Although Tumblr is a platform for groups promoting stuff like that, it is not the cause. You only need to go outside or turn on the TV to see plenty of people attention seeking. At least the internet provides some level of anonymity. I remember a lot of forums used to get closed down because users were deliberately egging on people with serious mental issues.

I'm still using Tumblr, though. I have anything that might trigger blacklisted. My life is not complete without F-yeahfluiddynamics , didyouknowgaming and stuffonmyrabbit!