Earlier this year we lost several beloved figures to suicide such as Kate Spade, Anthony Bourdain, and Avicii to name a few, re-starting a worldwide conversation on mental illness. However, despite the far from new dialogue surrounding depression many people still seem woefully uninformed on how it works and how it is treated. One of the most common uneducated ideas about depression is that it is something that can be willed away if you just try hard enough, and thanks to the internet those who have actually struggled with the disease have a platform to dispell this myth.

Comedian Andy Richter might be known for his hilarious one-liners on Conan O’Brien’s show, but behind the scenes, the entertainer struggles with depression

Image credits: Andy Richter

One Twitter user tweeted out a common misconception about the illness which set off the comic

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And prompted him to share personal details from his battle with depression

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Image credits: AndyRichter

Others who have struggled with their mental health applauded his explanation

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And some even added their own explanations