Stress and the outcome of such

I agree Gypsy with you on the varying degrees of happiness, my father in law even though we have some differences of opinion, I tend to agree with him on one thing, he called me a simple man, [it was part of his way of trying to denigrate my opinions and life style], I am a simple man and I enjoy the simplicity of keeping my outlook as uncomplicated as I can in order to free my thoughts, i am mid 50's, thankful for having no regrets in life or relationships so I am a very lucky person, mind you I had to work through the self worth and identity issues and well the financial side its ongoing, you have to work to come to some of sort of inner calm at some stage, etc etc

Doggie,

Some great advice here.
Many people care for other's situation.

Take a look at these books and the Black dog (no puns intended) website.

www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/about-us

The "black Dog " of depression is an interesting concept that does help.

As mentioned before

www.beyondblue.org.au/index.aspx?

If reading can help, remember that you don't neccessarily have to buy the books, visit your local library and see what you can borrow.

Acknowledging and understanding of these situations helps both yourself and those closest to you.
Also while you are researching have a look at " Mindfulness " as an approach to help clear your life & thoughts.

Although it sounds an odd title "Mindfullness for Dummies" is a good starting point.
The name seems to evoke a flippant attitude but it is far from that.

Fossil

Doggie, totally bummed you are going through this. I have had Bipolar disorder for most of life after being diagnosed 20 years ago (i'm 40 now) and I too struggle with the ups and downs and my downs are terrifying and prolonged.

Drugs are a must for me and have ultimately meant I can mostly function but I have found that mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy have been very helpful. there are lots of resources out there and people here have mentioned some good ones.

I have also learned that exercise is a really good way to get the endorphins kicking in. I'ts bloody hard when you are in a dark place but my psychologist once told me to do the opposite of what your depression is telling you to do. I still fail miserably at taking heed of her advice but it does help when i do.

A book that I find essential is called 'Beating the Blues: a self help guide to overcoming depression' by Lindsay Tanner and Susan Ball . it was recommended by my therapist and has some great advice and techniques to help.

Also, one thing that helps me is to take things one step at a time and to focus on the present as best you can. take baby steps and set achievable targets for yourself at this stage.

Remember that depression will nudge you to only see the negative side of things, but that is NOT YOU, its the depression talking. You are still the GREAT and EXCELLENT person before you became depressed and you will still be so when you start feeling better.

Most of all you are not alone in any sense. there are many people that love you and wish to see you through this, including the seabreezers.

A

^^^^^ hes a cutie

Carefully pick the people you ask for help, some people will never give the answer you're looking for.

As with my parents, they could never understand, so I stopped asking for their opinion.

Negative people need to be avoided.

There is an old budhust saying something like this:
You can't change the past, but you can f#*k up the present by worrying about the future.

Get out doors as much as you can , re-connect with nature.Do some gardening , take time to smell the roses.Re discover the sense of awe you had when you where a kid.

Most important keep a sense of humour about everything , even your own situation.

Good Luck