John Moe: writer, humorist, and National Public Radio host has recently released his memoir “The Hilarious World of Depression.” The book, which was developed from his podcast series of the same name, is based on his own experience with clinical depression. Both the book and the series use funny, moving, and candid conversations to provide insight into how to approach and manage mental illness. This is the first in a series of blog post articles that share his perspective on mental health.

“I noticed that when I would mention something on social media, where I mostly made jokes about clinical depression, it really took off. So, I thought, well, there’s some hunger there and people are eager to drag this subject out into the sunlight and talk about it. That led to the podcasts, and they in turn led to the book.”

John Moe’s “Hilarious World of Depression” recently released memoir and popular podcast series use frank, thoughtful conversations and humor as tools to help people who suffer from depression gain insight into this disease and learn they are not alone.

“On the first episode of the podcasts,”  John recalls, “I think I said laughter isn’t the best medicine.  That’s penicillin or the polio vaccine.  But it can make a big difference."

The inspiration for the book and series sadly came from the tragic suicide of John's brother in 2007.

“I knew he had struggled with addiction.  I didn’t know he had struggled with depression.  He barely knew.  He thought it was a character flaw, a weakness on his part. It just made me really confused as to why nobody talked about it much leading up to that.”

After this traumatic event, John was motivated to remove the stigma around mental illness and get people to talk about it more on a broader scale, to prevent more tragedies like his from happening.

“If more people were talking about this in a normalizing way, like 'I've got to go to the dentist because I have a toothache,' there’s a chance, not a guarantee, but a chance it could improve. Then more people’s brothers would be alive, and sisters, and kids and neighbors and friends.”

When prompted by his wife to see a doctor about his own symptoms of depression, which he had experienced since childhood, John himself was surprised when he was actually diagnosed with major depressive disorder in 2006. His naturally curious mind drove him to learn more about the disease and discover that basically, this disorder interferes with your ability to live life the way you want.

“Major depressive disorder is common, it’s treatable, and it’s not spooky. It doesn’t mean that you’re bad, or weak, or you’re broken. It’s something that happens to a lot of people, and it can be addressed. It can’t always be completely cured, but it can be managed, and life can go on.”

Sharing his own personal experience with depression, or “Clinny D” as he calls it in his book and series, has had a tremendous healing impact on himself and his audience.

“You have to get comfortable with the world if you’re going to be nude in public,” John jokingly explains. “It’s a trade that I made. I shared a lot of stuff that was pretty private because I thought it could help people, and you know, it really did, and that keeps me going.”

The response John has received from his book and podcasts has been both overwhelming and humbling. People tell him how it has changed, and in many cases, saved their lives. John likes to point out to them that they saved their own life, and that he’s just the artisan who made the tool they could use to help them do so.

“I just encourage people to learn more, ask more questions, and get professional help. You wouldn’t try to rewire your house on your own you’d get an electrician in there to talk to you about it, so it’s the same sort of idea.”

A preview of John’s book, “The Hilarious World of Depression” and links to where it can be purchased can be found here.

HealthPartners’ Make it OK initiative  has been a dedicated sponsor of “The Hilarious World of Depression” podcast series that led to the book.  John considers them a valuable partner in breaking the stigma surrounding mental illnesses.