Advocacy text written and protected by: Anica Angela Nicole Modena Hill.
Image credit: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.
The image you’re seeing compares brain activity between someone with clinical depression and someone without. The scan on the left shows large areas of inactivity (in blue). These results are not just visuals they are proof of how depression physically alters a person’s brain function. Mood regulation, decision-making, executive function, and motivation become neurologically impaired. This is science and is a medical reality.
Common Misjudgments People Say But Shouldn’t;
• “They’re just lazy.”
→ In truth: Fatigue and cognitive shutdown are clinical symptoms of depression. This isn’t about laziness it’s about your brain’s reduced capacity to function.
• “They don’t try hard enough.”
→ Reality check: Many individuals with depression exert tremendous effort just to get through the day. Effort looks different when your brain is in survival mode.
• “They like being miserable.”
→ The truth: No one chooses pain. Depression distorts emotional regulation and dulls the ability to experience joy. It’s not a human’s preference, but it’s a medical condition.
• “They just want attention.”
→ Instead: Many people suffering don’t speak up at all, and when they do, it’s not for drama, they are just a desperate attempt to feel seen, heard, and safe.
To those who think this way, let this serve as a wake-up call. You don’t need to fully understand what someone’s going through to treat them with decency. Help. Stop weaponizing ignorance.
🧠 Depression is not weakness.
🧠 Medication is not failure.
🧠 Mental health is a human right.
Let’s commit to understanding the science before judging the symptoms.
🧠 Mental illness is real. Brain scans prove what many still dismiss.
Protecting mental health is a human right under international law (UDHR, Art. 25). Access to treatment is not a luxury it’s a necessity.
Legally speaking, under the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities (RA 7277) and Mental Health Act (RA 11036) in the Philippines, individuals with mental conditions such as depression are entitled to protection, reasonable accommodation, and respect for their dignity. You can share with me some references, and if people who are in need of help, we can share these to them.
Photo displayed above is a scientific window into what many people silently suffer from every day. So before making a judgment, pause. Before labeling someone as “lazy” or “unmotivated,” look again because their brain is not giving them the same start as yours.
Your words carry weight, choose them with care.
To leave last words and to better explainmy top-notch words here, on the left is the brain of someone living with clinical depression. Notice the dimmer activity, the slowed responses, the quieted regions of emotion and thought.
On the right is a brain without depression balanced, responsive, and active. Some still believe depression means someone isn’t trying hard enough, and yes, science says otherwise.
1. Clinical depression changes how the brain works.
2. It affects memory, focus, decision-making, and the ability to feel joy.
3. It is not laziness. It is not weakness. It is exhaustion on a neurological level.
Before you judge someone’s silence, pause. Before you label someone’s pain, learn, and before you dismiss a struggle you’ve never lived through, remember this: Your empathy is not a luxury. It is a responsibility.
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Human Rights Advocate | Certified HR Professional | Mental Health Ally
Visual references from the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Commentary protected under RA 8293 (Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines) and U.S. Copyright Law. No part of this caption or its extended article may be copied or distributed without permission.
Written and owned by:
Anica Angela Nicole Modena Hill
Author | Human Resources Professional | Law Advocate
Founder, The Soft Protocol Compan
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