Zinco, I have only one brother and I find myself comparing my life to his often and feeling very inadequate too. I went from being a self-sufficient, thriving attorney to now not being able to hold down a job. If it weren't for my husband, I would be in a dire situation. My brother doesn't have a mental illness and is thriving and very busy.

I can talk to my brother and sister-in-law about my current depression - - at least for a while. Then it seems they either don't know what to say or are sick off hearing about it because when I bring the subject up in an email, it now goes ignored.

I'm glad to hear you think your current "episode" may be just situational. Talking about it on here may help you to get some mood improvement, i.e., hopefully it is not the vicious cycle at work.