sorry you are going through such a rough time. please know you are not alone. The first time i went through a major depression episode it lasted a year and was accompanied by a horrible sinus infection and bronchitus most of that year. The last major depression lasted 2 years and i was bedridden for about 6 months of it. Now i'm in another one that has been coming on since April and i've admitted myself into a day treatment program that consists mostly of group therapy.
A lot of people in the day treatment program are dealing with this kind of depression. And about 80 percent of those who get to the point of constant fatigue, non-stop crying, hopelessness, poor hygiene (because of the fatigue) are bipolar I or bipolar II. Typically, most don't know they are...and those who have been told they are or suggested they might tend to have a lot of denial about it until they can't deny it any longer. I'd suggest you read up on what it means to be bipolar. You may not be, but chances are high that you might be.
Anyway, I'm guessing you don't have a lot of resources available to you in Alaska, but seeing as how it's dark there for months on end at different times of the year then there's also probably a lot of people who suffer depressions during those months. And often times there is a role in that played by seasonal affective disorder. (SAD for short, quite fitting i think).
welcome to the mental health forum and i hope you find your spirits lifting soon. I told you my story just so you could know you are not alone, but please know that i seem to be a small percentage of people who experience major depressions for more than a month or two....so chances are high that you will be throwing snowballs at friends again soon.
hugs,
jenna