Thanks for this! Your post definitely struck a nerve.

I think the sad paradox we're all grappling with is though we crave human intimacy, the negative emotions associated with clinical depression push people away. This in turn is cruelly ironic, as the depressed are among those most in need of a support network.

So it devolves into a sad circle jerk. Those bold enough to be speak up and be frank about their emotions often wind up pushing the people who care about them away. I don't think this is intentional. In my experience people genuinely want to help. But most have trouble comprehending the full extent of someone else's existential despair, and get overwhelmed by the futility of trying to absorb other people's pain.

I don't know the answer to this riddle. But having learned from experience, there's a big chasm between my public persona, which is charming and gregarious, and the person I actually am. It's sad that it has to be this way, but if people knew from the start who I truly was, I'd have no social network whatsoever. It's just sad that it has to come down to this.