Hi, I’m a 48-year-old woman and I never seem to be happy. On a good day I’m just not happy, but on a bad day I lash out at my family. I seem to hate everything, and everyone. Also, I disagree with my husband and daughter about the littlest things that don’t even matter. I have been this way for years, and it is taking a huge toll on my marriage. I really need to do something but I can’t even figure out what I’m going through. Can you help?

You are describing symptoms of a stress-produced depression. For that I’d recommend:

1. Educate yourself about depression and how depression develops.

2. Consult with your family physician. He/she can provide antidepressant medications that are very helpful in returning your life to you.

3. Consider counselling/therapy to improve your recovery time.

4. Recognise that depression is very treatable but each person is different. For this reason, if the first antidepressant medication doesn’t suit your metabolism, it’s very common to try another one.

This is very easily treated with modern medications and professional mental health care.

I have recently had a relapse in my depression/anxiety that I had about 12 years ago. I won’t go into details about it too much. My concern is part of my symptoms: if I think too much, too in-depth, I can make myself get anxiety, and I feel as though I am losing touch with what’s real, like I’m going to go insane or something. I fight it all the time. It’s best described by saying that I feel like I’m disconnecting. Is this part of anxiety?

In your case, it’s clear that your depression has returned, with some anxiety, and the “thinking too much” tells us that a return to an antidepressant medication is your best treatment option. Medications are designed to slow the thinking process, allowing more reasoning when it comes to content. When depressed, for example, your brain is full of thoughts that won’t stop, keeping you awake at night. Antidepressant medications improve those symptoms.

In the future, keep in mind that any time your brain/mind races for a prolonged period of time, it’s a sign your brain chemistry has changed to some degree. You’re not going insane, just returning to the depression as you suspected. I’d recommend consulting with a psychiatrist and returning to treatment. Keep in mind that your brain will also be returning to those old thoughts in an effort to torment you.