Depression. What is it? Why would a normally healthy optomist person become depressed? If things go wrong, doesn’t it convince you not to feel sorry for yourself? So what if your 23-year marriage ends and your future ex-husband moves in with his best friend? they leave you to face 2 devastated teenagers; loses his father and father-in-law to cancer; have extreme job challenges; And, your new condo, bought without REALLY knowing what to look for (just don’t buy a house with an upstairs laundry room above the living room!) and develops a roof leak and a laundry leak in the waiting room. And, you are the primary caregiver for a very needy Mother.

You can handle all of this, right? And when, the following year, you also lose your mother and grandmother to cancer, that doesn’t push you to the limit, does it? Particularly when you also have multiple sclerosis, which has been misdiagnosed for over 35 years, and the worst thing for MS is stress and anxiety. You can handle everything, right?

Well, I found out that I couldn’t. Consider the following list of symptoms to check out if you think you might be suffering from depression. Or, if you, like me, are convinced you CAN HAND IT, if the rain just stopped; or, if the roof just stopped leaking (I’ve already tried to fix it 2 times and it still hasn’t worked – now I have a gallon bucket in the front hallway to catch the water that is dripping from the hole in the roof); or, if children simply stopped being “normal” teenagers, when you no longer have a husband to help you deal with teenagers on a day-to-day basis.

Here is a checklist of depressive illness symptoms:

1) Loss of energy and interest.

2) Decreased ability to have fun.

3) Decreased or increased sleep or appetite.

4) Difficulty concentrating; indecision; slow or confused thinking.

5) Exaggerated feelings of sadness, hopelessness or anxiety.

6) Feelings of worthlessness.

7) Recurring thoughts about death and suicide.

I clearly remember my “last straw”. I read the list above and was sure these 7 symptoms were NOT describing me. Then, with all my water problems at home, I went to work in my fourth (upper) floor office which had a flat roof. As I was on the phone with the roofer who said that my roof shouldn’t have leaks, and I was telling him that it still had leaks, and that if you didn’t believe me, you could come and see my bucket full of water. in my driveway, when I heard the familiar “pitter-patt” noise that freaked me out at home. I looked up at the ceiling of my office just in time to see the water starting to gush off the ceiling tiles, around the pendant lights and pour into my office. That did it. I went home. That night, I woke up thinking I heard the “pitter-patt” in the upstairs laundry room, water dripping into my living room. I got up, turned off the water in the washing machine; I stuffed all my towels around the washing machine and stood with my back to the wall in my first anxiety attack, thinking that if this was what my life had become, why would I want to go on living?

This event scared me into going to see my doctor. He did a little “depression” test on me. Knowing my fragile condition, he asked me for statements and, based both on my answers and the detailed symptom deterioration document that he had begun to prepare for him, prescribed an antidepressant medication.

That day I learned two fundamental things: three, actually. The first is that it is critical to have a doctor you trust, know you, and LISTEN to what you are saying. Second, because he knew about my MS, he told me that depression was a common secondary symptom of MS. (At the time, I hadn’t done my research on MS symptoms yet; the Disabilitykey Workbook, found at http://www.disabilitykey.com, is the bottom line of all my symptoms and systems: Long Term Disability and Social Security Disability Insurance – research for me Third, I learned that no matter how strong your personality is, and no matter how positive a person is, depression is NOT something you can overcome by simply “having thoughts positive “;” keeping your upper lip stiff. “If you really think you are suffering from depression, there is nothing wrong with talking to your doctor and seeking their advice.

Everything I’ve discussed so far happened over a dozen years ago. I am still taking antidepressant medications and they help me. I’ve looked everywhere for the original test my doctor used on me, and finally found one in one of my favorite resources, called “Institute for Algorithmic Medicine” (which is an academic talk about testing for medical conditions). The test is the “Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale.” As you read the following questions, ask yourself where the statement ranks on the following scale:

1) A little time for me.

2) Part of the time for me.

3) A good part of the time for me.

4) Most of the time for me.

I fell down discouraged and sad.

The morning is when I feel best.

I have crying episodes or I feel like it.

I have trouble sleeping at night.

Like as much as I used to.

I still enjoy sex.

I notice that I am losing weight.

I have a constipation disorder.

My heart beats faster than usual.

I get tired for no reason.

My mind is as clear as it used to be.

It’s easy for me to do the things I used to do.

I am restless and I cannot stay still.

I feel hopeful about the future.

I am more irritable than usual.

It’s easy for me to make decisions.

I feel that I am useful and necessary.

My life is quite full.

I feel like others would be better off if I was dead.

I still enjoy the things that I used to do.

This little test, with your self-assessment for each claim and with the documentation of your symptoms of deterioration, so that your doctor knows more about you and what is happening in your life, he / she can better decide what to do to help you achieve better results. a better quality of life. Perhaps antidepressant medication is not what you need, something else would be better for you. But, if you don’t learn, document, seek help, and talk to your doctor, he / she can’t help you help yourself.

Many of you are probably wondering how I can put myself out there; I only put in these blogs what is happening in my life. I am doing this, sharing these experiences so you know that I have been there; I have done that; I have the t-shirts! For more information about me, see the “about us” section on the website: http://www.disabilitykey.com.