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100 Sad Days: Day 20; Tears of a Clown

Everyone always says "but you are always the life and soul of the party. You are always smiling. You are the last person I thought that would suffer from depression". 

I have spoken about it before: it's all about masks and putting on a face. No, that's not true, it isn't all about that. I am naturally a happy-go-lucky person. Just sometimes I am not and I used to feel the need to hide it behind larger laughs and smiles. 

Today I am looking at Comedians and why so many suffer with depression. This isn't in light of the recent sad news about Robin Williams as this blog had already been written. However I feel a need to mention him too. 

When we think of comedians and depression we think Jack Dee. His act was born out of a lack of success and he went on the stage once miserable and it took off from there. However he (as far as I know) doesn't suffer with this disease. 

I think the route of the problem lies in the mass highs. And from a great height there is always a great low. Keeping up appearances can be tiring for anyone especially those in the "funny" spotlight. I Googled comedians (and comedic actors/writers) with depression and the list is astounding:-
Caroline Aherne, Woody Allen, Drew Barrymore, Jim Carey, Ellen DeGeneres, Stephen Fry, Tony Hancock, Frankie Howerd, Hugh Laurie, Spike Milligan, Dudley Moore, Bill Oddie, Jimmy Perry, Peter Sellers, Catherine Tate, David Walliams, Ruby Wax, Kenneth Williams, Owen Wilson. 

Not all admit to depression but some have commented on the hardship of being a top comedian. These include; Peter Cook, Miranda Hart, Groucho Marx, Eric Morecambe. 

Sadly some of our best comics couldn't see a way out and committed suicide (albeit in the recent case this is still just allegedly).  It seems creative and highly renowned scientific types are at risk too:-
Ray Charles; Darwin, Eminem, Gaugin, Hemingway, Keats, Matisse, Mozart, Newton, Rockefeller, Tolstoy, Twain, Van Gogh, Oscar Wilde, Virginia Woolf...

Unsurprisingly those in the spotlight have struggled too:- 
Winston Churchill, Courtney Cox, Jonny Depp, Kirsten Dunst, Harrison Ford, Hepburn, Beyoncé, JK Rowling.

The lists go on and on. This isn't something you are alone in despite the fact that the disease makes you believe you are.  I am not promising there is a quick way out, but seek help and you can start to see the dim far off light at the end of a long dark tunnel. Trust me. 




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