Sylvia Plath was a journalist who suffered from depression. Ms. Plath shares her experiences growing up as a woman from college onwards. The first line of Plath’s journal begins with “I may never be happy, but tonight I am content” (Plath). Ms. Plath tried her best to live to the fullest in the moment, but her disease of depression would interfere. Plath wrote, “I have the choice of being constantly active and happy or introspectively passive and sad. Or I can go mad by ricocheting in between” (1). Plath struggled with being independent, and her thoughts of depression eventually weighed down enough to cause her to take her own life. Considering the big impact depression had on Plath’s life, she would have agreed that depression is a very real social epidemic.

Sylvia Plath created a numerous amount of pieces including her journals, poems, and books. Plath’s depression symptoms were clearly evident in all of her writings from issues such as with her parents, her marriage, and her value in herself (Poetry Foundation). Plath struggled with anxiety, which was an emotion that contributed to her depression. In the poem “Cinderella”, Plath wrote “As amid the hectic music and cocktail talk, she hears the caustic ticking of the clock” (Plath). Ms. Plath was expressing in her poem that although everyone around her was enjoying the moment, she heard the ticking, meaning she felt worried or anxious. Depression involves various symptoms that can commonly include anxiety or bipolar disorders (“Depression”).  Plath added, “It is as if my life were magically run by two electric currents: joyous positive and despairing negative—whichever is running at the moment dominates my life, floods it” (1). As explained, the negative feelings such as her depression overtook her life not just in a wave but a flood, reasoning how severe the feelings were. This statement goes to prove just how powerful this disease can be. Depression does more than affect one’s mood; it affects their entire outlook and life. Plath wrote, “in me she has drowned a young girl, and it me, a old women rises toward her day after day, like a terrible fish” (1). The imagery in the poem goes to show the struggle Plath had with her self-identity as an effect of depression. Her life’s purpose seemed to be interrupted by this turmoil disease.

Plath was diagnosed with depression at age 20, meaning she suffered with her disease for 10 years before losing the battle to suicide (Cooper). She didn’t always feel depressed (Encyclopedia Britannica). Through Plath’s journal, she wrote about being in the present and feeling the moment in life. She said, “and I don’t want to die” (Plath). Ms. Plath actually had a very successful life. She was a straight A student who won a scholarship, very successful in her work, and was married at age twenty-three (“Sylvia Plath and the Depression Continuum”). By the sound of Plath’s life, nobody would be able to tell the actual severe battle she was facing underneath. Often times depressed people wish they could change circumstances no matter how great or bad they sound to other people. It follows under the symptom of overthinking and over analyzing situations. When you reflect for an extended amount of time on a situation, it can wear you down and cause a great deal of emotional distress. This sets a good reminder for us to be kind to all we speak to, as we don’t know what they’re going through beyond what we see. Depression is a silent yet powerful battle. In the poem “Elm,” Plath wrote, “I am terrified by this dark thing, that sleeps in me” (Plath). Depression is scary as it comes at unexpected times, waiting to take over the lives of many. As we can see through Plath’s example, depression holds no mercy to anyone. It’s an immense amount of awful feeling wrapped into one.

A major cause to people having depression involves their relationships. How you work and get along with people can tie into if you feel lonely or not. Many people feel they need a companion to feel happy. Society projects such high expectations of perfect relationships, although in this day and generation, people get treated quite poorly, and this can often lead to feelings of worthlessness and depression. Plath did get married, leading people to think that she was in a successful relationship. Before Plath got into her relationship, she already suffered from disorders such as depression and issues with self-worth, and that followed her into her marriage that later ended in divorce. (“Sylvia Plath and the Depression Continuum”). After Plath’s divorce, she was not only heartbroken, but she had to care for her two children alone as well (Poetry Foundation). Any breakup is hard, but when marriage and children are involved, it can be even worse, and that was the case for Plath and many in the world today. Divorce not only hurts the spouses, but the children as well, causing emotional damage to all parties and increasing the likelihood towards depression. Plath wrote in her journal, “and I stood there where he left me, tremulous with a longing, weeping in the dark. That night it was hard to sleep” (Plath). Heartbreak and depression have a similar correlation. Often after a break-up, many people don’t have motivation, don’t eat, sleep a lot, and cry. The same symptoms are acquainted with depression. If you’re not careful, heartbreak can lead to falling into a depressive state as it’s happened to numerous people including Plath.

In conclusion, depression is a very real social epidemic. It targets a variety of all sorts of people worldwide. Plath’s example really captures the essence of how destructive this disease can be. She wrote “I felt very still and empty, the way the eye of a tornado must feel, moving dully along in the middle of the surrounding hullabaloo” (“The Bell Jar”). Her writing and perception sheds light on the raw emotions felt while struggling with depression. Not only does it affect individuals, but it ripples into all sorts of relationships. Because of the attention drawn to cases like Plath’s we as a society can help to empathize towards those who suffer from this epidemic to spread awareness and support.