Posted by Tamar on April 19, 2005, at 14:45:57
In reply to Breakdown a breakthrough?, posted by Excellent camper on April 19, 2005, at 11:34:43
It’s hard when you feel so responsible for your illness. But you did what you did because you were unwell. There’s a terrible stigma attached to depression, as if we’re weak people who just need to pull up our socks and get on with life. I can only assume that people who think we’re weak have never had a real depressive episode, and have never felt it’s impossible to get up in the morning, impossible to leave the house, impossible to face other human beings. As if we would choose to be depressed! It’s a cliché, but it’s easier for us (and others) to accept that having a broken leg, or diabetes, isn’t our fault. But depression is an illness just like arthritis or diabetes or multiple sclerosis or anything else.
It *is* possible to move on, but it takes time. And there’s no cast iron guarantee that the depression won’t return. It’s a serious illness, and like any other serious illness it might require you to make some adjustments, some of which will be long term. I was seriously depressed for about two years, and I’m feeling much better now, but I know that the depression may come back. In the mean time I’m doing everything I can to stay well. And my life is much better and richer than it was: when I began to deal with my depression I had to address a number of very difficult problems, but although it was very hard it helped a lot. My career, my marriage and my general health are better than they’ve been for years (better even than before I became depressed). So there is hope! It’s hard work, but it’s worth doing.
I hope you begin to feel better soon.
Tamar
poster:Tamar
thread:486415
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20050409/msgs/486488.html