I'm depressed, but that's okay

Shortly after I began my teaching career, I felt I couldn't stay focused, and I had a terrible time trying to balance a new job with my role as a husband and relatively-new dad. Since every other kid in my school was being checked for ADD, I thought I'd do the same. I underwent a battery of tests only to be diagnosed with depression and anxiety.

Nothing makes you feel more depressed than being diagnosed with depression. The stigma attached to the disease isn't what it used to be, but it affects so many in many different ways. I was prescribed a number of meds before finding one that works, and I'm on that one to this day. Medication isn't enough for most depressed persons; therapy can be very effective in treating the disease. I've had my share of therapy sessions, too.

I cringe when I hear that people "suffer" from depression. I don't. I live with it. I try to recognize when it's getting the best of me and rely on certain strategies to deal with it. Some of them can be found here.

The bottom line: If you know someone who might be depressed, encourage him or her to see a doctor for a test. Yeah, sometimes I think having ADD would've been easier, but I also know that one can have a very happy life living with depression.