Hi ~ I'm so sorry you're a victim of depression. It's a nasty disease and makes one absolutely miserable. I've had depression since I was about 4 or 5. I didn't get any treatment until I left home, because my parents were too busy getting drunk.

I finally went into therapy and it made a world of difference. Perhaps it would help you too. While it certainly did NOT cure the depression, it did help to make me understand a lot of the issues that I'd been carrying around -- the baggage. I was able to get rid of the baggage that had been tormenting me -- but I still had the depression. I have clinical depression, so i'll be on medication the rest of my life. I've been on meds for about 30 yrs.

I do advise therapy. But I also think that volunteering at the mental health facility is a GREAT idea!!! When we help others, we also help ourselves. That's a lot of the reason why I'm here. If i can help just one person, I'll feel much better. And if I can't, well at least I tried.

Like Sam said, perhaps your parents react the way they do is because in their "day and age" mental illness had a stigma attached to it. They may feel very uncomfortable about it, so they joke about it. They may HATE to think that anyone in their immediate family has a mental illness -- "oh gosh, put up black curtains, and don't let anyone see us" type attitude. There are people who just WON'T talk about mental illness -- they talk like it's almost catching! Ridiculous. You might try to educate them, but I fear it may be hopeless. LOL I'm not trying to make light of this, because it's a very serious illness. But some people are so ignorant of this disease that it's almost funny.

I'm sorry you're suffering so. Is there ANY way you can move out? Or is it financially impossible? Do you have a friend you could move in with? That would be ideal if you could. Perhaps you could strive for that in the future. At any rate, we're with you 100%, and keep posting. We'll be here to help. You can vent, whine, get angry, or whatever you feel like posting. We'll be here.

God bless and please take care. Hugs, Lee