Originally Posted by
dbearw 
Yes- I know how you feel. But I'm bipolar so I always know I can wait it out and I'll go up. Have you been on antidepressants? I assume you have but keep in mind they may take a while and a few tries for them to work. Definitely do as your doc says- and hang in there. It did take me a few yrs to get the meds where I think this must be what non-depressed people feel like. Keep sharing.
I've been on just about everything except for an SNRI. Including fun ones like seroquel and risperdal (for stabilization... I don't THINK I'm actually psychotic quite yet). I (and they) don't think I am bipolar--but my recent past has been so turbulent with drugs (including meds) that I can't quite get a definite diagnosis.
But anyway, medicine hasn't worked, and that's why ECT is on the table. Kind of a last resort thing. I've thrown everything at it I can: 30 to 60 minutes every day in a gym in cardio, omega-3's, mindfulness, overdosing on prozac (which leads to the very unpleasant "serotonin syndrome," and is something that of course should never be done, and that I only did in lieu of doing myself in), caffeine pills, etc. I haven't really explored the "inflammatory" theory of depression yet I guess... maybe I should try St. Johns Wort or antibiotics or something....
Thank you to everyone who has posted so far; some posts were encouraging, others indicative of a potentially huge mountain ahead, which worries me a little. But still, thank you for posting your reality--it helps just to be able to identify with someone.