((((((((Just floating))))))) At the risk of sounding obnoxious, I will kind of play a devil's advocate, all the while agreeing actually with Turquoise.
We have the very strong msconception that everyone who doesn't share our MI can depend on and reliably prove that the future for them is good. In fact, NO ONE has any proof of how tommorrow will be. We hope for the best, assume that tomorrow will be like today (seldom worse) and usually it is.
For the huge majority of people with depression, this will be an episodic illness with remissions and varying stretches of "normal" life. Do I have numbers of how many? NO. And it doesn't matter what the numbers are. Either you're one or you are not, but the chances are good that you are, and there will be what you would referr to right now as a better life. (((((Just floating))))), it boils down to that, and how able you are to use what you learn to make life more bearable for yourself during these periods. Like any other chronic illness, the prognosis is generally kind of vague. It is so individual.
Not having a guarantee that tommorrow will be better, or at least not worse, is something we all share as people, but because of depression it becomes a very frightening realization. We expect the worst, right? It doesn't have to be, because in reality, you are still who you are, with a problem that might well not last very long, or it might... Tommorrow can take care of itself, hon. Don't neglect today. Hugggs!!!!! Take some for tommorrow, just in case