A brave lad has opened up about his secret 10-year battle with depression in an incredibly moving video.
Doug Leddin posted the clip on Facebook yesterday and revealed that he feels as if he's been 'living two different lives'. It has since gone viral after racking up 865,933 views.
The 27-year-old says he made the video to break down the stigma that still surrounds mental health and to encourage sufferers to speak out.
The full post reads:
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It's not often I post something too serious on Social Media and I'm not sure this is the right thing to do and to be honest i'm nervous as hell writing this status but I hope it helps others and I hope you can share this if you think it will help someone.
There is something I have wanted to get off my chest for a long time, 10 years in fact. This will come as a surprise to some of my closest friends who I just couldn't talk to for fear of loosing them or not being accepted.
But after a lot of thought and consideration I decided to make a video to lift this burden off my shoulders and to share my experiences with you.
I'm talking about depression and its something we all need to talk more about, for too long people have suffered in silence and its not right and as hard as it is to talk about it, it genuinely does help. Im not saying that by opening up to your friends, family, colleagues or even teammates that it will make everything ok, but it will certainly help.
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To my best friends I have to say sorry, sorry for not having the courage to do this sooner.
To my family, thank you for the support over the past 10 years.
I'm now 27 and in a much better place in my life. I have spent years in and out of doctors, John of Gods and various other places getting help since the age of 16. It was a dark place and I suffered alone and I shouldn't have. The past year have been much better and i'm thankfully in a place now that I feel comfortable sharing this and although I wish it didn't take me this long to open up it did and I cant change that but hopefully I can encourage a few others to do the same.
I suppose the reason I'm doing this is to try encourage others to speak about their mental health issues with family, friends or even organisations.
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If you think this could help someone please feel free to share it.
Together we can beat the stigma associated with mental health, an issue that is on the rise with people of our generation.
Just remember you are not alone!
If anyone needs to talk to anyone there are plenty of organisations out there that can help.
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If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, The CALMzoneoffers amazing support when things get tough.
The helpline and web chat service are open 5pm to midnight, every day of the year.
NATIONWIDE: 0800 58 58 58
LONDON: 0808 802 58
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WEBCHAT: www.thecalmzone.net/get-help
Alternatively, you can contact Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or the free phone number is 116123.
Words by Sian Broderick
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