John’s story
Here is a typical story of someone suffering from depression:
John had a good relationship, two lovely children, good health and good friends. He was promoted to an excellent job. After a while, he began to worry, constantly thinking and planning about work. He had a tough time getting to sleep. He would wake up late at night, tense with worry. John didn’t share any of this with his wife, friends or coworkers. He thought he should have felt happy. As he became more tired, he had a tough time focusing; it became difficult to work and even more difficult to make decisions. He began to lose interest in his social and home life, wasn’t hungry and lost weight. All he wanted to do was sleep – he even lost interest in sex.
John saw no reason for his problems. He thought he should be happy and energetic, so he began to work even harder. He became cranky at work, then jittery, then increasingly tired. Feeling despair, John’s negative thoughts were always present. His sense of guilt and worthlessness and fear of job loss and family problems continued to grow until the pain became so great that he had to seek help.
With help and continuing support, John was able to return to a fulfilling life.
Part of the problem was that because John did not share his distress with anyone he just worked harder, unable to break out of the downward cycle. Most often (if not always) it is impossible for anyone to handle this on their own. Any activity or thought just seems to feed the cycle and exacerbate the problem. Reaching out to others has been proven successful in breaking any kind of closed cycle. Then the recovery process can begin.
Remember that you do not have to know the cause or the full extent of the problem to begin looking for solutions. continued...