Destiny Connect Article by Nomaswazi Nkosi. It’s about time we talk about it, too many lives are slipping away, too many people fighting alone in the dark, help is near, join me on my IGTV for the Conversations on Depression series, don’t be afraid to lean in and seek the help you need #letstalkaboutit #DepressionSeries

Bonnie Mbuli talks depression in new Instagram series

Destiny Connect

August 6, 2018

The Afternoon Express talk show host recently announced her new series on the social networking site.

“It’s about time we talk about it, too many lives are slipping away, too many people fighting alone in the dark, help is near, join me on my IGTV for the Conversations on Depression series, don’t be afraid to lean in and seek the help you need #letstalkaboutit #DepressionSeries,” she posted to her 241 000 followers.

She also posted the details of the South African Depression and Anxiety Group for those who were struggling with suicidal thoughts or fighting depression.

This comes on the heels of the suicide of Professor Bongani Mayosi, a world-famous cardiologist and health dean at the University of Cape Town, after a two-year struggle with depression.

READ MORE: Bonnie Henna pours her heart out

The weekend also saw Rhodes University student Khensani Maseko’s suicide, after she too struggled with depression for two years, after she was raped.

“I’ve recently been doing a lot of thinking and I have been so moved and quite disturbed about the rate of the suicides of young people. In light of the recent death of Professor Mayosi and all the talk around depression and how it’s really affected our communities and the people around us, I really felt moved to start a series called Let’s Talk About It, where, from time to time, I will be posting stories on my journey on depression, sharing some of the experiences I have had, some of the things I have learnt. As a way to help start a conversation, to make everyone conscious of the fact that  helps is available, you are not alone and you can get through it.”

She encouraged people to ask her questions so she could answer them and spread the message about this mental heath issue.

READ MORE:Living with depression

Mbuli, who chronicled her battles with depression in her book Eyebags and Dimples (Jacana), said in an interview in 2012 that her earliest memory of being depressed was in childhood.

“My earliest memory of it was at 11 years old. This was when I became distinctly aware of the fact that I carried a deep melancholy in my soul.”

She said depression was physically debilitating and awfully lonely.

“What makes it so difficult to detect and even acknowledge is that it affects parts of you that can’t be seen or touched, so you can’t really locate the pain. It appears to be atmospheric, as though it were an invisible cloud raining darkness over you.”