In Practice

A Practicing Doctor's Views on Psychiatry and Contemporary Culture.
Peter D. Kramer is a psychiatrist and author. His books include Against Depression and Listening to Prozac. See full bio

Comments on "A Quick Note: It's Depression That Keeps People Off the Job"

A Quick Note: It's Depression That Keeps People Off the Job

In manic-depressive illness, it's the depression that leads to time out of work. Read More

My depression has gotten so

My depression has gotten so bad that I cannot even find it within myself to find a job after being laid off 6 months ago, it has affected my ability to do anything and the longer time goes on the worse it gets. I truly feel as if all I do is just breathe. Yet it is just viewed by others as me not being responsible.

It's a vicious circle,

It's a vicious circle, really. I got depressed, so I had to leave my job. Since I had to leave my job, I can't afford psychiatric help, and especially not therapy. Since I am not getting any better, I can't even imagine looking for a job. And the problem is not just that OTHERS think I am being lazy/irresponsible/weak etc., but that I find myself worthless, too...

I am in a similar vicious

I am in a similar vicious cycle. I was depressed and highly anxious at work but now that I am no longer employed I feel even more helpless. My workplace was unhealthy for me but now I am stuck in my own mind all day and I feel I can't get out. I feel worthless right now and want to get my act together but it is hard to even get out of bed. I am grateful to have such a supportive and loving family but I still feel embarrassed when I am around them...like some worthless, unemployed loser. I am so scared I will never make anything of my life. I graduated from college with such high hopes for myself and now many years later I feel like I have accomplished nothing. I know I need to change my thinking, be aware of my cognitive distortions, get out and run again, etc. I know what I need to do to get better but I am having such a hard time doing it. My insurance just ended so I now have lost my psych resources. I just want to get out of this deep hole I have dug for myself, but I have no ladder.

Depression and Employment

The question is, which comes first, depression or unemployment? When I was unemployed the lack of structure almost led me into another depression. When I went back to work, the depression lifted.

Wendy Aron, author of Hide & Seek: How I Laughed at Depression, Conquered My Fears and Found Happiness
http://www.wendyaron.com

The depression was there

The depression was there before the unemployment

Depression can be incredibly

Depression can be incredibly debilitating. I hope that you feel much better, soon.

From what i've observed the

From what i've observed the busier the better for depressives and even melancholics for that matter. How nice your colleague was apart of that study. Sincerely David

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