The most important thing I’ve learned is that I’m not my depression. It's something I experience and live with, but it’s not me.
– Elena Sledge, licensed mental health counselor
Therapist, Awaken Therapy Collective LLC
Advocacy
Talk to a therapist about MDD coping skills you can use at work. Therapy can help you manage MDD symptoms and improve your performance.
Natasha Tracy
Mental health author and advocate, mood disorder expert, blogger, and host of the podcast Snap Out of It! The Mental Illness in the Workplace Podcast with Natasha Tracy
Expert View
It’s important not to blame yourself for not feeling better. A downward spiral of negative thinking only makes the situation worse.
Ashley Bobo, licensed clinical social worker
Therapist, Wellview Counseling, Roswell, GA
Advocacy
Chronic illnesses aren’t fun, and they take daily management, but there’s power in acceptance. It's the only way to move forward.
– Sonja Wasden
Mental health advocate
My Experience
I didn't realize at first that you have to be in a place where you're willing to participate in therapy. I was waiting for someone to wave a magic wand and fix me, but that's not how it works. I had to do the work.
– Arielle Wozniak
Mental health coach
Expert View
The big thing that's happened over the last two decades is the idea that depression can be treated rapidly.
– Nolan Williams, MD
Associate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, assistant professor of Radiology, and director of the Brain Stimulation Lab at Stanford University
Expert View
I tell patients who are about to embark on an antidepressant treatment, don't feel discouraged if you don't start to feel better right away. It's going to take time.
-- David Mischoulon, MD, PhD
Director of the Depression Clinical and Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital.
My Experience
I really didn't have any coping skills, other than staying busy and working, which aren’t great coping skills.
Debi Strong
Depression patient and support group leader in Bigfork, MT