People don't believe I'm really depressed, how can I explain it to them?

I've had it explained to me like this. Depression is like a boulder chained to your ankle. You can't just unhook the chain and walk away whenever you feel like it. Sometimes the boulder is a little lighter, and you can function almost normally, sometimes it's heavier and it weighs you down, but it is always there. However with help, time, and effort you can learn how to carry that boulder a little easier.

I see you are concerned because people don't take your depression seriously. Am I hearing you correctly?

I've learned that you should never have to explain those types of things to people. You know you are depressed, if they don't believe you then it's their problem. They can't fathom what you are going through, because they are not in your shoes and that is okay. Not everyone can understand.

Even people that seem happy, can get sad too. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Depression can effect anyone. Sometimes not all at once, but in small bursts every now and then. You always believed my fake smile. I keep it to myself, and have been suffering alone.

People who haven't felt depression will not know what it is, or how it feels. If you are explaining how you feel and they are still not believing you, they probably wont ever.

This might be really unhelpful, but some people just don't believe depression can happen. To those ones, you can't explain anything. Others believe people who have decent lives (enough to eat, place to sleep, education, etc.) can't get depressed. To those ones, you can try to explain depression. Some of them might understand. Others might not.

These people need to know that depression isn't merely an "emotion" your experiencing, but it is a medical psychological disorder (Under the DSM- official classification for these "illness), that affects you in all aspects of life, psychologically, socially and biologically.

I don't know your exact symptoms, but depression is a real disease that has shown to have genetic and environmental factors. See if your family has a history of any sort of mental illness. I know that when my mom made a family chart it seemed like 50% of the people had been diagnosed with some type of mood disorder. Also, check the diagnosis criteria for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and depression. This shouldn't be used to diagnose yourself, but if it turns out several symptoms are present, you may want to see a psychiatrist. Also, statistics are extremely hard to argue with. About 20% of minors have had an episode of MDD, and depression affects about the same rate in the general population. Lastly, if you're in a school of some sort, counselors are fantastic references. They can get you connected with psychiatrist and can explain depression to whom ever it is that doesn't believe you. That's actually how I got the help I needed. My school counselor talked to my parents, we agreed to admit myself into an inpatient unit, and then I saw a psychiatrist who started me on an antidepressant. Today, I'm doing better. My meds have changed so that the doses are higher and I'm taking more than one. I hope this gives you an idea of how to get the help you need!

That is a difficult situation, and I am sorry you are going through it. Often times, people do not understand depression. Of course this does not mean you aren't experiencing it. What would an ideal conversation sound like between you and your friend who doesn't understand?

tell them to research it or watch a video on it because anxiety can be quite traumatising so it makes you sad when people dont understand