Hello,

A friend of mine recently confessed to me that she's struggling with major depression. I have bipolar II, so I definitely have experience with the depression side. However, I experience mood highs as well. So I know my experience is fundamentally different, and everyone's experience is different anyway...

I'm meeting her this weekend for lunch to talk about it.

Do you all have any suggestions on how to approach this with her? Suggestions on subjects to avoid, specific things you wish people had asked you while you were suffering in silence, or things you wish people had reassured you about? She seems really scared to reach out and ask for help, and she also seem the type to ignore her feelings until they build up to a toxic level, both of which I can really relate to.

I think she reached out to me because she knows I've been through "mental health things". I used to live with her and she witnessed my last mixed episode, major depressive episode, initial diagnosis, and med-switch firsthand. We are pretty close, but I haven't seen her much since I moved 2 hrs away.

Thanks in advance!