Tao I think it is great that you have an appt set up for Friday. You are right, sometimes it can be a much longer wait. While I was in group therapy they told us we had to find a pdoc long before we were ready to leave the group... if we waited until we "graduated" we'd likely have a long wait. It is great news that someone was able to fit you in quickly.

I also agree that therapy is a necessity. Sometimes therapy alone isn't enough and we need meds, but I don't think meds ever do it on their own because they just sort of "set the stage" for wellness by "fixing" our brain chemistry so that it can accept improvement.

I would hope that your pastor would understand the need for therapy and/or medicine. You are right that many people don't, but that is only because they are not informed about what clinical depression really is and how it effects us. Don't worry about those people, the only thing important is that you know better. If you find someone close to you that wants to understand the illness better, I wrote a paper you can get at
-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
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