There is No Quick Fix to Depression

Reponse to an article entitled :

These 12 Incredibly Successful People Will Change The Way You Think About Depression

written in the comments section by
Mathew DelPorto

I highlighted and made bold the statements I agree strongly with.

"This is a nice fluff article, aimed at certain readers who could use a motivation boost. The sad truth is, most of the examples are of people whose depression was brought on by specific circumstances, and therefore treatable as a temporary condition. President Lincoln’s wife Mary Todd was the one with the lifelong debilitating depression, which caused him great stress and anguish. She never recovered, by the way. To the well-meaning folks who say “just lean on your friends,” or “just do ______”: your words are more dangerous than helpful. To the depressed person, you are passing judgment, and if your advice doesn’t work for them, they often feel even more like a failure. For many people, depression is a physiological issue. Sure, having a supportive network is helpful, but without targeted lifelong medical treatment, that support system will be constantly tested by the depressed person. Failure is inevitable. Also, depression often accompanies other medical issues, such as MS, Autoimmune disorders, etc. One issue affects the other, and they need to be treated together. So please, please PLEASE – if you know someone who’s struggling, ASK THEM what’s wrong, ASK THEM how they feel, ASK THEM what they think they need. But don’t TELL THEM what they should do. Be there consistently, give non-accusational feedback on their rants, and help them find a solution that works. Just like when taking meds, it may take several tries to find the right solution. By the way, we all figure that the spouse (or parent) should be the one to help, so we back off. But they’re so intimately involved with the person that even if they have the energy to be supportive (after taking care of kids, bills, etc) their person often interprets the attempts to help as criticism. Be that one person who grits their teeth and digs in for the long haul. Be prepared for resistance, anger, suspicion – don’t let yourself be walked on – and hopefully you’ll make a difference in that person’s life."
source
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/21/successful-people-with-de_n_5570970.html