I agree with Sunny. Depression is hereditary. My mother,her mother, at one of her brothers out 12 brothers and sisters that I know of(probably more) suffer or have suffered with depression. It is a chemical imbalance in the brain. Yes, it's like having diabetes which you need insulin to treat. You need medication to treat depression. But medication isn't the cure all. You also need could counseling. My mother had the medication but no counseling. She passed away 10 years ago a very unhappy,sad person because she never got the help she needed. There was a stigma on people with "mental disorders" then. There still is but there has become more understanding of it. I don't share my problem with anyone unless I know I can trust them completely. At one point in my life, one day I was having gall bladder surgery,my son was in a severe auto accident. He was driving, his best friend was killed,he was severely hurt,didn't know if he would walk again and another friend was hurt. My son was 19 yrs old at the time. At that same time, my mother was dying of cancer(going through chemo,radiation, the whole 9 yards). I believe I had a breakdown at the time although never diagnosed. When I went back to work a month later, my performance was not up to par. I almost got fired. When they found out that I was on medication, they told me I had better stop taking it because it was causing poor work performance. They couldn't see that I was sick and needed medication to get better. They had it all turned around. People still don't understand that depression needs to be treated like any physical illness. The brain is also a part of the physical body. People say things like "get over it and get on with life". They don't even try to understand it. It's really hard when you live with someone that you love more than anyone and they don't understand. They don't understand that sometimes you don't need them to understand what you are going through, you just need them to give you a great big hug, tell you they still love you, that they don't understand but are still there for you.
Well, I always said I could write a book about what I've gone through in my life. I'd better stop now before I finish that book right here. I'm willing to here from everyone, give support, and a shoulder to cry on