No medicine for me anymore either! I slept almost a whole year of my life away. I would literally fall asleep sitting up at my desk right in front of my teacher. She would yell at me everyday telling me to get more sleep or exercise or whatever. And i am like, you don't think i do those things? *****. anyway,

that was zoloft, realized it was making me sleep always and have terrible dreams. switched to wellbutrin. wasn't working so well and while it kept e up at night, it made me fatigued in the gym really easily? and then i was given prozac and by that point i just said no forget it. i didn't even take one dose.

i've been managing i guess by avoiding sad things like another poster has mentioned. i used to listen to sad music, and although it was so good i realized it wasn't helping. and i always remind myself that when i start to feel horrible, that i will eventually not feel that way. but it is really hard when i start to feel hopeless. i just sort of have to wait it out.

i tried cognitive therapy, normal psychology therapy, and went to a psychiatrist. each one just made me more upset because i would have to talk and remind myself about all my problems and i just felt so weak and embarrassed to speak in front of this older, wiser person. Oh and one lady thought it would help to say, "well you should be happy because there are people who have nothing in life and are still happy." i almost punched her in the face. that's what like, your parents tell you not a trained psychologist. how that statement could possibly help how i feel at all is beyond me. it made me feel worse because i couldn't be happy with what i had and there are unfortunate people out there and that just makes me sad in itself.

anyway, i think what i need to do is find a passion. idk if that is impossible to do while feeling this way, or if it is what i need to do to stop feeling this way.

so i think you are doing what you could. i am interested in getting a light box for the winter months because that is also my worst time. i have heard nothing but good things.

I was diagnosed with clinical depression about 18 years ago, along with post traumatic stress disorder. It's been a struggle and I have been off and on meds for years, but now I'm off and I am managing. I keep a low dose of ativan just in case but I have not taken it in forever.

I answer stress and anxiety with exercise now, it used to be food, hence my weight. I don't mean anything strenuous - just a walk or bike ride to clear my head and it helps a lot. I also have a service dog and a therapy dog which REALLY help me.

I've struggled with depression for many years. Lots of people don't believe I have this struggle because I'm a really positive, energetic person. But it's definitely there!

At first I was on meds and in therapy. I had PTSD, was on Prozac for some time. Later I was on Wellbutrin and Ativan. Tried other stuff too. It got me out of the funk I was in for most of the time back then, but I still didn't have good quality of life...for so many reasons.

Then I discovered I had sleep apnea, so getting a CPAP made a big difference. And that got me changing my sleep habits, going to bed and getting up at the same time every day. That helped my mood swings a lot. But I was still quite numb from the meds, in many ways. And I gained a lot of weight from all the meds I was taking for everything that was physically as well as emotionally wrong with me. When I discovered that the meds had a weight gain side effect, I was so angry! NO ONE told me about that!

So I set out to get all that stuff out of my system and to find how to maintain my own mental health. It took over a year to go off the meds and another year to two to stop feeling the effects of withdrawl. I had to make sure I had an hour of natural sunlight a day. I had to change my diet drastically to deal with allergies, chronic bronchitis, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. I had to get divorced and move away to get on top of stress management. I got a new therapist that deals with solution-based therapy. I hired a personal trainer that got me into Pilates and that alone has made the biggest difference in the management of my mental state. That and one other thing, Emotional Brain Training, a very effective method I needed to learn for dealing with stress and anxiety.

All that took me a long time to discover. I still struggle some days, especially when I've been self-indulgent and haven't been sticking to the plan, but if I stay on top of it, I am genuinely happy and feel free from depression and anxiety.

Hello, all. I, too, suffer from major depressive disorder (MDD), with a side order of GAD (generalized anxiety disorder). My therapist also believes that I have developed a personality disorder called Avoidant Personality Disorder (AvPD) due to my history of abuse within my family.

I've run the gamut of medications - Prozac, Paxil, Topamax, Wellbutrin, Abilify, Luvox, Buspirone - you name it, I've probably been on it. My last medication "cocktail" was Wellbutrin + Luvox + Abilify.

None of them did ANYTHING for me but make me a zombie in one way or another. Prozac made me sleep 24 hours a day. Paxil made me feel numb, Topamax made me forgetful and literally made me stutter in conversation. I would say something and then 5 minutes later forget what I'd said. Abilify and Luvox were useless. And the only upside of Wellbutrin was that I lost maybe 10 pounds. That was it.

I've been medication-free since January of 2010. While I've been crying a lot (and I mean a LOT!), hurting, in a lot of emotional pain... I FEEL it instead of stuffing it under a cloud. That alone is worth not being on medicine. My therapist is not pro-medication to begin with, so that actually works out a little better for me. Everyone else I've been to loves that prescription pad...

I think it's great if it works, but for me it just didn't and I didn't want to try anymore. It felt too bad to start a new medicine, go through the symptoms of withdrawal, wait to feel better... only it never came. Hope after dashed hope.

Living without the medication may be emotionally harder, but in the long run - for me - it's worth it.

During my second year in University I begun falling appart.

I am up to this day not absolutely certain what triggered it. Perhaps it was my mother getting breast cancer, or me stopping my fencing tournaments because I ruined my ankles, or perhaps my relationship with my abusive relatives that deteriorated further... I don't know perhaps all together.

I was a person that studied 8 hours a day with joy and ended up not going to my Uni classes for no reason at all. I was punishing myself by not going so that people will think I am lazy and stupid. I lay on my bed watching the ceiling for most of the day, didn't go out with friends even though I desperately wanted to deep inside and kept punishing myself while ruining my academic career which could have been brilliant.
I knew I was sick (and gained weight at the same time) but I punished myself by not going to a doctor.
Finally I was saved from that sea of nothing by my one and only love. He asked me to live together and steadily he helped me stop punishing myself and return to the lively person I was. I still feel great guilt about my self-imposed laziness-torture, which I battle.
I have never taken any anti-depressant medication and up to this day nobody except my boyfriend knows I have been to **** and back. My parents still think I am simply rebellious and lazy for having taken so long to finish my Uni.
The only reason why I didn't commit suicide was because I felt it couldn't get worse and I did have some short breaks of happiness.
Now I am getting steadily better, without having taken any other medication than a huge dose of deep love and care. I will even finally get my diploma this year

I've never been diagnosed, but like Lauren201 said, I don't have to have a doctor tell me what's wrong. Most of the time it feels like I'm trapped in my own personal cloud of gloom. Sometimes I feel like people don't want to be around me, because I'm a black hole that sucks out every shred of joy around me.

When it gets bad, I skip showering, wear the same clothes for over a week without changing, and I sometimes don't brush my hair. I actually got a mild form of periodontal disease, because I neglected my dental hygiene so badly when I would stay depressed. Now, I make sure I at least brush my teeth and floss, even if it's all I can do.

I think being a Christian has helped me a lot. I would never commit suicide, because I want to go to heaven, but sometimes I feel so self-destructive. When it gets bad I scream at my husband, sob, and say how much I hate myself and threaten suicide (though we both know I would never do it). It sounds bad, but after a good cry, I can usually get over my sorrow, and move on for a little while before it hits again. Having make-up sex helps too. I don't have much of a libido, but I tend to want sex after a making up from a fight.

Fortunately, I stopped cutting myself a long time ago, because my boyfriend at the time (now husband) begged me not to do it again.

Like I said, I have never been evaluated. But I exhibit a lot of symptoms, I believe.

As the depression sets in, I will miss a lot of sleep (I write, so a little insomnia helps), gradually become lazier and more sloppy and get a hopeless feeling and a feeling of inadequacy, like I'm wasting my life and that nothing I do is good enough, or that I'm lower than dirt. Then the crying and irritability will hit.

I've been dealing with this for years. I believe I have it under control, so I probably won't ever let myself be medicated. My mom has depression, and she was medicated for a while, and it made her act like a zombie.

Whoops. Sorry this was so long.

Have you read the book "Potatoes Not Prozac". It's a very interesting read, but a stupid title. She did her doctorate research on how food affects the chemistry of your brain and has a step by step program for getting out of depression by your food choices.

No, I haven't, but I might check that out.

I was recently "officially" diagnosed with major depression, general anxiety disorder, and borderline personality traits. I actually have a Drs. appointment Monday to discuss my evaluation. I've been dealing with it for several years now, my first counseling session was when I was in 6th grade. Oh, I also have, like, a zero sex drive but I'm deciding to pass on the depression medication, but I may go to group therapy and anger management. Since I've started making a conscious effort to lose weight, I feel better about myself and I feel better INSIDE. Cleaner and more energetic. It's only 9 pounds so far. I don't want to start feeling icky inside like I do with my pain meds, which I stopped taking last week. Aromatherapy has always really helped me. I get some nice bath salts, candles, a good book, and a phone on silent and I'm set for a while. :]