Anime as a Coping Mechanism

I was that kid in school, you know they one that took anime too seriously. I wore a cosplay at least once to class and had no idea how to talk to non-weebs. Hell, this was circa early 2000s so the word weeaboo was still just an insult on 4-Chan at that point. I had no plans for the future and had regular depressive episodes. After being put on antidepressants, I still had depression but they made it easier to pretend I was okay. They helped me mask the depression so my mental illness was more bearable for those that had to deal with me. My method for dealing with it for myself was escapism with anime, video games, books and later on manga/comics.

Tbh I believe most things humans do outside of basic survival are coping mechanisms but there are variations: How healthy is it? How disruptive to one's own life is it? How socially acceptable? and so on. Also how are the mechanism used. One example would be communal religions: once a week sermon and occasional church events are usually healthy, non-disruptive, and socially okay. On the other hand cults where the members have to all live within a gated area and under the control of the leader(s) are the very opposite. Same basic mechanism but very different application. So where does my anime escapism lie on this spectrum?

To conclude this entry, Im planning on writing a series of blogs analyzing my use of anime and related media as coping mechanisms and how has affected my life. 

*Important note: Im not formally trained in psychology. I have taken a few psych classes in college but none of this series should be used to diagnose or treat any mental health issue. This is pure a blog of self reflection, a written curiosity for others amusement.