I was first diagnosed with depression when I was working on a startup in 2007. I went to the doctor, told him I was feeling mild flu symptoms for a couple of months, he asked me a few questions, determined that I had depression, gave my some SSRIs, and sent me home.
It worked for a while, but then 2008 happened, our startup collapsed, the stakes got higher and the depression came back. The doc recommended I up the dosage, but I could see this would eventually lead me to a straitjacket.
Over the years I've tried different meds, various forms of therapy, studied and actively practiced life coaching, got married, had kids, moved to another country and changed everything I could think of about my life. Unfortunately the dark bouts of depression remained.
About four years ago I stumbled on a book called Highly Sensitive Person that absolutely blew my mind. I realized I had very intense emotions that I was culturally programmed to repress, which caused my psyche to overload and go into full apathy mode also known as clinical depression.
I've been on a path to figure out how to process my emotions without repressing them and combined my personal experience with several non-mainstream techniques to build Wuju. It's an online app that can help you tap into your hidden emotions and release them so they no longer influence your behaviour or cause depressive symptoms.
I've used it in the last 18 months to deal with parenting two kids, surviving infidelity, losing my job, starting a business, and covid anxiety. My longest bouts of depression now last a day at most and even that doesn't happen too often.
If you're struggling with depression, anxiety or even just procrastination that you can't seem to get rid of, Wuju might help you (it's free while in beta and will remain free for life for anyone who joins early).
If you have any questions, ping me on Twitter, where I talk a lot about emotional intelligence and how to heal from mental disorders.