This isn't my usual type of post but I have been struggling with this for a very long time and I finally found the words.
I struggle with these two core parts of my soul. I am confident, crazy, wild...sometimes I want to be spontaneous and fun. But I can't because I struggle with depression.
I have voices in my head that tell me how much better off the world would be without me. There are also voices that sing show tunes. I like smiling. But frankly there's a part of me that loves to cry.
I have hard days when I can't get out of bed because of all that I have to do. Then there are days where I can't get into bed because of all that I want to do. My soul feels torn in two directions.
Each day, however, I learn how they compliment each other. My depression gives me a unique perspective on the world, one of dark empathy. That empathy helps me find characters and really listen to my friends. The memory of the bubbly confident girl gives me hope during the dark days. That hope isn't enough some days. My desire to sing and dance is overpowered by the need to huddle in a ball and weep. Red lipstick gives me confidence. Nice clothes help me pretend that I'm happy. But I'm not. I want to do things! Create memories and have experiences. But there is a chain around my ankle shackling me to my bed.
I really feel like two different people. But the concept of bipolar disorder didn't fit at all. I then realized that depression isn't the stumbling block of the theatre kid inside of me, or the other way around. They are both me. And it sucks.
I want to cry and do stupid things to my body. But I also want to be in the center of the excitement. I want to join the groups that are partying. I long to be apart of something bigger than myself. Theatre has certainly fed that desire over the years.
Not every day is a struggle to get out of bed, but it's always a struggle to decide which soul to feed. Do I feed the darkness? Or the thirst for light? Immediately you may have picked one that is better than the other. But the number one thing I have learned is that depression isn't bad. Darkness isn't evil. Light isn't better, or even good sometimes. You need sadness. You need joy. I can't get by with just one. I just wish they would stop fighting with each other!!
I seem to have a harder time finding joy, so over the years I've convinced myself that I don't deserve it. That the confident theatre student is a facade. And that I am only supposed to be sad and melancholy. I don't know how to break down that belief. I want to. But it's hard to realize that you deserve something that you yourself seem to have been sabotaging.
I want to fit in with the weird, quirky, loud, confident, exciting, wild, crazy, and fun theatre family. I also don't want to leave my bed. There is no easy solution. I can't just get up and stay happy, it's not that simple. But I guess I could try.
