Derek Stoppels

I'm a man in my forties.  My core values are Humility, Integrity, Humour, Reciprocity and Creativity.  I have a strong work ethic and I care deeply about building and maintaining positive relationships.  I am a father, a husband, a son, a brother, an uncle a friend and an advocate for reducing the stigma around men's mental health.  ​

I created this webpage to share my journey with Major Depressive Disorder and to share some of my thoughts that help me deal with that.  I want to share my story so that more Men feel comfortable sharing theirs.  

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This isn't a website about how hard it is to be a man in today's world.  This is a website about how I am trying to show up as my best self in today's world.  Even though I write about my challenges with Major Depressive Disorder I don't want you to think that I'm all mopey-dopey and just sad all the time.  That's not who I am and it's not who I want to be.  I won't let myself be the Eeyore of my life because no matter what I'm going through I still have to put on different hats and show up for the people in my life.  But I guess what I'm trying to figure out, and convince myself of, is that no matter how I show up, it is enough.  

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I came up with the "Undefeated" theme for this website, and for my life after listening to the song 'Undefeated by Frank Turner.  I started listening to Frank Turner only a couple years ago when my best friend told to check him out because he had tickets to one of his shows and wanted me to go with him.  Well, Frank Turner is saving my life!  His songs give me hope.  They are my anthems and my rallying cries.  They pick me up when I'm down, and they make me dance when I'm feeling it!   Not only that, I think I'd call him the Bruce Springsteen of Punk Rock.  I have no affiliation to Frank Turner, I'm just a huge fan...literally and figuratively!