Well, thats a good question Venus. The one thing I have learned as I have a depressive aspect to what I deal with, is learning about what you have that can cause bouts of depression is important because then you can understand what you DO deal with and find ways to work around it.

The one thing I have learned by dealing with what I have and not being understood by others around me IRL, is to be more understanding of others that struggle with their issues that I may not understand. I have learned that here as well as people in PC have struggles that many just cannot understand. How can we know what someone struggles with if we don't experience it ourselves? I would not understand what I have had I not been suffering with it myself and it sure is very hard to explain.

I understand your concern about medication as well, I have not taken any antidepressants yet, I am not sure I want to go that route, it concerns me. But some people truely benefit from antidepressants, my therapist has to take them and he did try to go off of them but he just cant function without them. In his case it is hereditary on his mother's side. Oh, it can be very confusing, I hear you and can't blame you for trying to see if you can manage what you have in other ways.

But I do feel that it is important to find out what disorder is present and learn about it. Some people really do need medications otherwise they truely spin out of control and can even harm themselves. We do have to be our own health advocates and get more than one opinion and do our own research. It is challenging Venus, because often there is just a push for medications with troubling side effects and as you mentioned do they actually work. It is truely a personal choice and is not an easy choice. However there are those that suffer and truely cannot seem to just think their way out of their condition, that is sad too. I dont really feel anyone enjoys depression.

I am definitely not against trying holistic approaches, why not? It is a very personal choice.

And for your depression on the soul level, well, it is very hard to view our world and troubled politics without being upset by it. And we all wonder about our personal lives and what we will be and how we will manage, it is very important to understand what we can do on a personal level and what we cannot do.
It is very hard to understand humans as a whole, everywhere around the world. We have our own sense of values and it is very hard to understand how others simply do not care as we do or see things as we do.
At some point we have to find some way of coming to terms with it, and if someone has strong values, that person will see many upsetting things they find troubling. And there comes a time where you just have to make your choices and live your life out with your own values (soul) and do your best to keep your senses and find strength in that. But always allow yourself to grow, because you will change and grow the rest of your life.

Open Eyes