As someone that was diagnosed with depression a few short years ago, it came as no surprise when you finally admitted that you seemed to have fallen into a depression of your own over the past few months. All of the signs were there. I wanted to reach out to you earlier on, but I knew I needed to be patient until you were ready to speak up. I needed you to realize that you were merely surviving each day without me pointing it out first.

A majority of people you meet throughout your lifetime has gone through, is going through, or is going to go through depression. While many may find that heartbreaking, I, on the other hand, find it rather encouraging. Just look at everyone around you. Look at these people that have hit absolute rock bottom and somehow made it through the day. They are proof that you can have the strength to carry on. These people that have seen the darkest of days, they help show that hard times do not last forever. They are proof that while you feel more alone than ever, that you, in fact, are far from it. They are proof that life is not always easy, but that it gets better from here.

One of the hardest things to go through is to watch a person that you love struggle to stay afloat. I want you to know that you don't have to keep treading water. You don't have to fight against the crashing waves alone if you don't want to. I am here with a buoy and we can stay afloat together. I want you to know that regardless of whether you need someone that will just sit in the darkness with you for a while or whether you need someone to bring some sunshine into your life, I can be and want to be whatever will help you.

You are still so young and so naive. You are still learning who you are and that is perfectly okay. I wish you weren't so hard on yourself. Most of us are struggling to stay afloat each day. It does not mean that we are never happy or that we have it all figured out. I know that the world feels so cold when you're depressed. And while sometimes it seems the bad may never stop, try to remember that the sun continues to rise and we continue to grow. I know it's not a comfortable feeling- the empty feeling of being depressed. But you know what I have learned over the course of the years?

I have learned that I am stronger than before because I have looked darkness in the eyes and was able to walk away. I love harder because I know what the power of love and support from those around you can do to a person. I know that this feeling is but a blimp in the rest of your life. So hang in there love. Let yourself feel the sadness. Let yourself see the world for what it is. Let yourself breakdown. At the end, you will come out so much stronger than you ever dreamt.