I, to, have been through the frustrations of being depressed. first time was as a senior in high school, second time took me away from a job that I loved and felt needed. After being under the care of some doctors, I have medication that helps, both with the physical pain of fibromyalgia and with the pain of depression, and I can tell when I have forgotten to take my meds. The best that has come of this is being able to help people with the same problems. You can often tell by looking at and talking to people that something is wrong and they are so scared to talk about it, but they will if you push a little. I work at a Tax Prep business that had many clients who were depressed because of life and problems with the IRS. After I talked to them and explained how I was once so low that all I could do was cry and watch tv and it took years of hard work to come out of it, they begin to see that it might not be too permanent. It is very rewarding to see them walk away with a smile on their face instead of a frown. I do have to be very careful about who I am around because I fall back very easily, especially when I do not work. keeping busy with something that is valued by someone is a part of coming back. that usefullness is too important to ignore. My extended family has had depression in every generation that I have known and it scares me to think about a cousin who is no longer with us because gramma convinced everyone that he did not need to get medical care for his problem.....
Best way to help? Be willing to really listen, watch, and be there when a person needs help, whether they know it or not. and do not give them the trite answers. you will never just snap out of it.... and if you want to know how it feels? Look around you when you are in a crowd of people and think : nobody cares about you, nobody wants to talk to you, they may want to be a friend but you have nothing in common. I used to be alone in a crowd of people, in a college dorm, and the housemother could not believe that was ever a possibility. Be a friend and listen. You do not have to agree, you do not have to share, just listen and listen and listen.
sorry for rambling on and on, I do hope that this strand does not stop. or if it does, that people keep it going by starting another one. it is too bad that robin williams was the one who got this started, we need to keep it going to keep others from following suit.....