Let me tell you about one of my best friends. His name is Thor. He is a medium sized mostly black-furred dog.
Despite Thor’s extreme mistreatment in a kill-station in Romania prior to being rescued, he has a kind, docile and loving temperant. He has become an integral part of my life. Thor came to me with another rescue dog, by the name of Buda, who is tragically no longer with us.
“Thor has helped me immensely with my mental health without even realising it.”
I would currently describe my experience of living with depression as constantly being followed by dark clouds. You can’t get rid of these dark clouds. I have tried. I hear many others have also tried to permanently get rid of their respective dark clouds. They have also tried but failed.
My dark clouds are currently a comfortable distance away. But I know with certainty that they still continue to follow me.
When these dark clouds take control, they unleash a barrage of extreme negativity upon the affected individual. These actions make the affected person feel a blunting of emotion, a sense of loneliness, and arguably the most dangerous feeling of all, hopelessness.
The analogy black dog of depression is often used as a simple and effective way of describing the effects of depression.
However, the black dog in my life is not my depression. The black dog is my super-hero of a dog, Thor.
He will never know what he means to me. He will never know how much he has helped me through my numerous difficult episodes of depression.
Like super-heroes are expected to, Thor helped to save me.
Lee Serpa Azevado 