Depression is only sometimes about things in our lives. Then it's called "reactive" depression. As often as not it's about scrambled brain chemistry and there's no visible reason for it to happen. That's one of the really frustrating things about depression, the people around us wanting to "cheer us up." ARGH. It doesn't work that way!

Depression is an illness. It needs to be treated, just like bronchitis or diabetes. The right treatment can work wonders. Just two months ago I was suicidal. I got my meds adjusted and I'm like a different person--and I've had this exact same experience a bunch of times in my life. The proper medication regimen makes me functional. When the meds quit working I turn into a different person.