【英語閱讀題】有9個高功能抑鬱者。這些是他們想讓你知道的事。

Just because someone』s condition isn』t visible, doesn』t mean it』s not real.你看不著的，不代表不存在。

Take a moment to consider the acquaintances you talk to every day: It could be a coworker, neighbor or even a favorite barista. They smile, chat about their weekend plans and ask after your kids. 有的人能笑能聊天。

Now imagine that on the inside, they』re experiencing debilitating headaches, loneliness and persistent negative thoughts. Their energy is so low it was almost impossible for them to pull themselves out of bed this morning. But you』d never know it. 但是他們卻可能早上沒辦法把自己從床上拽起來。

This is the reality for people who live with dysthymia, or chronic depression ― a high-functioning iteration of the disease. Like major depression, high-functioning depression can cause changes in appetite, poor sleep and emotional difficulties. But it』s a lot harder to spot.

像其他抑鬱者一樣，高功能抑鬱者也會有態度改變、睡眠障礙和情緒問題。但是非常難以辨認。

Depression affects nearly 350 million people worldwide, which means chances are you know someone who has some form of the disorder.

抑鬱者可能就在你身邊。

Arguably one of the most challenging aspects of high-functioning depression is the lack of understanding that comes with blending in so well. We asked members of our HuffPost Lifestyle Facebook community who face the condition to tell us what they wished everyone else understood:

我們請他們來說，他們想讓你知道什麼。

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1. People can』t comprehend the difficulty of their symptoms.人們不能理解這些癥狀的複雜性。

Depression is a difficult, debilitating condition. End of story.

「Because I can work full time and do well, own my own home and take care of everything myself, people underestimate just how deeply I struggle and how hard it is to function some days. It takes time to process things. Negative experiences stay with me for awhile when others can move on quickly. They just label me as negative, dramatic or too sensitive but it』s my process.」 ―Christine Dolan

就因為我能該幹嘛幹嘛，他們無法理解我有多痛苦。當別人說做就做，說走就走時，我卻總要面對我的負面情緒。他們不知道，他們只會說我太敏感或者negative（負面）什麼的。

2. Everyday activities, like going to work, still feel impossible.日常活動，比如去工作，仍然覺得艱難。

Just because you see a person with this type of condition powering through their to-do list doesn』t mean it comes naturally for them.

「It』s hard enough holding it together but it』s even harder when you know people are misjudging you and not giving you credit just for getting out of bed.」 ―Christine Dolan

能把計劃單上的事都做完，並不意味著很輕鬆。

3. Their illness doesn』t have to be seen in order to be real.癥狀不一定是外顯的。

Not all health conditions are visible to the naked eye. But just because you don』t notice an illness, doesn』t mean it doesn』t exist.

「Just because I seem successful and look like I have it all together doesn』t mean I can』t be 5 minutes or one bad experience away from a total breakdown. And that fact scares the hell out of me.」 ―Michelle Martin Haywood

「我看起來很好很成功，不代表我沒有痛苦。」

4. They appreciate you checking in on them.關心是有用的，他們會感激。

Support from others reminds a person with depression that they』re not alone.

「You should text and check on me, even if I don』t or can』t text right back.

The thoughts are very, very exhausting so just getting through the day needs to be enough sometimes.」 ―Julie Kenney Myett

支持會讓他們覺得不那麼孤獨。

5. The condition goes deeper than just life』s circumstances.境況不是單純循環，而是越來越糟。

Depression has a way of taking every negative thought you have about yourself and putting it up on a big screen inside your mind. Just because it seems like someone 「has it all,」 doesn』t mean they』re not affected by the mental health condition.

「I work full-time and I』m married. I try very hard to be 『normal.』 People ask me 『Why are you sad? You have everything. You』re so beautiful. You have a lovely husband, a good job, money etc.』 If only they knew the turmoil in my head ... it never goes away and it is very exhausting.」 ―Jayne SC

抑鬱會把負面情緒富集起來。

我非常努力地去表現得「正常」。他們會問，你為什麼不開心？你已經什麼都有了。我希望他們理解，……我頭腦中有一些東西，始終會揮之不去。

6. The appearance on the outside doesn』t always match the inside.經常出現行為與內心想法的不一致性

What you see isn』t always what you get when it comes to high-functioning depression. A person my look like they have everything figured out or may be functioning normally, but their inner world could be vastly different.

「From the outside I look like I have it all together, but the truth is I find everything exhausting. Getting up, eating breakfast, taking my kids to school ― all of it saps my energy. I walk around in a state of perpetual exhaustion.」 ―Jennifer Hazen

他們能把事情管理得井井有條。

「真實情況是，起床，吃飯，送孩子上學，這些都在耗費我的能量。」

7. A little gesture goes a long way.小事大影響。

It may seem like no big deal to you, but offering to do something as simple for your loved one may make a huge difference.

「I wish people would make more of an effort to come to me rather than expecting me to travel (a lot of my friends and family live a couple of hours away), it would take so much pressure off.」 ―Caitriona Foley

去做一些微小的事表示你愛他們，他們會很開心。

8. Feeling better isn』t a matter of just adjusting their attitude.（這個不知道怎麼翻譯）

You can』t just 「get over」 depression or 「stop feeling sad.」 Depression at its core is a physiological disorder and affects areas of the brain. It also comes with physical symptoms as well.

「People think you are lazy when it takes the your entire will to get out of bed in the morning.」 ―Meredith Elmore

抑鬱不能「想開了就好」，或者「開心點」。它會影響大腦。

當你拼盡全力起床時，他們只會說你懶。

9. Treatment works.治療有用。

What works for one person may not work for another. There』s a host of options for managing and recovering from depression, from lifestyle habits to specific medical care like therapy or medication, and usually an effective plan requires employing more than one. Treatment does work and people can have a full life despite of the condition.

「It is a very difficult issue to live with especially if you have people depending on you all the time. I』m still aware every second of everyday about my feelings, my surroundings and how I』m going to get through the next five minutes, but I』m glad for myself that I have figured out how to live my life.」 ―Goldie Fantastic

原文鏈接：

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/things-people-with-high-functioning-depression-want-you-to-know_us_57ed52d8e4b024a52d2d9160

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大家看到了，我這個連渣翻譯都算不上。但是……我的水平就是這樣了。我基本上做不到好好翻譯。

如果覺得我的翻譯有病有毒，歡迎自己動手……（笑臉）

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