how do i tell the difference

I'm new around here. i just discovered the site and it has been pretty helpful. I have been struggling with what i think is depression for years now. i've been diagnosed with depression but have since stopped going to therapy.

for the past few years i have been even more depressed once october hits and the sun goes down earlier. i don't know how to tell if its just me being in a bad mood because of the winter blues or if it actually is SAD.

the past couple of days have been pretty bad. i've just been feeling really tired and not into doing anything. almost everything that happens makes me upset to almost tears. yesterday i had a bagel and soup all day long, and today i have overeaten and had a drink by myself.
i don't know what is wrong with me anymore.

i've never been so bad in that i have had eating issues. and when I'm just laying in bed at night i sometimes think that having a drink would make things better. but i know that i can't do that because i don't want to it to get the best of me.

and then to top it all off my roommate/best friend- invited me to visit our friend for the night and then basically uninvited me when i asked her about it again.

(((Petunas)))). If I were you, I would start by getting a regular gp to look at you to make sure you don't have anything physical going on, like hypothyroidism. If he doesn't find anything, see a mental health profession, psychologist or psychiatrist, those are the only ones still properly trained to diagnose mental disorders like depression. It sounds like you might well have some type of depression problem going on, but only one of the above can tell for sure. It sounds like you are having a miserable time of it, and I really hope that you feel better. Let us know how it goes

Do you have an actual drinking problem or are you just afraid of developing a drinking problem?

I agree with lonegal, it would be good to check for any physical condition.

I dunno if it's SAD or not but weather can effect everyones mood! If you're feeling a difference with less sun, maybe you should look into some light therapy to help with this. I personally have a full spectrum light bulb. It helps a lot (though for me not enough to "fix" everything). I'm looking into getting an actual SAD light.

The way I see it, it's always worth a shot. Full spectrum light bulbs are not much more expensive than normal ones - you could try this first and then if it helps you could see if you can afford SAD therapy light.

hugs to you