Curing Depression

Because I'm a psychology buff and also spent many, many years in deep depression I have a strong desire to understand how I slipped into depression and how I managed to be cured.

I remember all too clearly the dreary, purposeless days...and years. I didn't realize I was suffering from depression because the circumstances of my daily life explained why I was unhappy. Depression goes far deeper than unhappiness but I had no way of knowing this.

It wasn't until a life crisis when I was in my mid 40's that I was forced to search for help. My doctor, god love him, made sure I received excellent counselling and that's where the cure started. Along with the counselling I received an antidepressant which allowed me the chance to think more clearly and reconstruct my life. The counselling felt like baring my soul and having the demons scraped from my innards but my counselor managed over about 12 years to drill into my brain the need to look at all situations in more than one way. She taught me to think before I felt. I shouldn't say "taught". She guided my thoughts toward logic and clarity.

Too many times I weaned myself off the antidepressants before I was really ready and that caused repeated depressive episodes which delayed my cure. The counselling decreased as my mental health increased and I haven't needed it for about 10 years now. Some people believe that depression is a physical brain disorder and that sufferers will need medication to cope for the rest of their lives. I believe that depression is merely a symptom of difficulty in coping with our lives. Once we develop some coping skills we can gradually be cured of the depression.

I've joked lately that an expression I seem to use a lot is, "It's not the worst thing in the world", and that has become my philosophy. It could always be worse so we should enjoy any niblets of pleasure and happiness that comes our way and try to steer clear of bad vibes.

I'm happy now because I have peace. A depressed person may look collapsed and drained of energy but their brain is in turmoil. Sure, I worry a bit about my family and my future but I don't allow the worries to eat me up like they used to. I've learned to look at things in many ways until I can make sense of them. And that ability to slow my reactions has made my life calmer and happier.

Some of my blogs end up being read on the internet by strangers who key in specific words so I hope anyone who reads this will see that there is hope. There really can be a cure and no need for continued medication.