Many books have been written for those suffering from depression, but what if you're suffering becuase someone you love is depressed? Research shows that if you are close to a depressed person, you are at a much higher risk of developing problems yourself, including anxiety, phobias, and even a kind of contagious depression. In this authoritative and compassionate book, psychologists Laura Epstein Rosen and Cavier Francisco Amador explain the mechanisms of depression that can cause communication breakdown, increase hostility, and ultimately destroy relationships. Through compelling real-life stories and step-by-step advice, the authors teach concrete methods that you and your loved one can use to protect yourselves and your relationship from depression's impact. Drawing on their own innovative research, the give sensitive guidance about how to recognize your needs, how to provide the best kind of support, and how to encourage the depressed person to seek treatment. Whether you are the partner, parent, friend, or child of a depressed person, you'll find this book and invaluable companion in you journey back to health.

Discusses what depression is and how it can be recognized in family members and friends and examines some of the methods for treatment.

A clinical psychologist and expert on depression updates the book that has helped thousands with its combination of professional advice and comfort There are few circumstances in life as hard and at the same time as important as being a friend to a person who is suffering from depression. What to Do When Someone You Love Is Depressed offers guidance to the friends and family of a depressed person on how to keep one's own spirits up and at the same time do what is best to help a loved one get through a difficult time. Among the many subjects addressed are • the warning signs of serious illness • how to maintain intimacy and communication • the most successful forms of treatment • what to do when someone threatens suicide This updated edition addresses readers' questions and provides new and expanded information on • how to choose the right psychiatrist • the role and limits of medication • resistant depression • the link between depression and chronic illness • specific challenging situations and advice on handling them

"Following on the success of Managing Your Depression, Susan Noonan's new book is for family members and friends of people with depression or bipolar disorder. A certified peer specialist at McLean Hospital (a comprehensive psychiatric hospital affiliated with Harvard University), Susan draws on her experiences providing support and education for those living with or caring for a person who has a mood disorder. A family member who has a mood disorder affects the entire family. Further, family members and close friends are often the first to recognize the subtle changes and symptoms of depression--and they are also the people who provide daily support to their loved ones, often at great personal price. Caring for someone with a mood disorder differs from caring for someone with a physical medical disorder, in ways that complicate the caregiving role. A concise and practical guide to the daily management of depression and bipolar depression written for the caregiver, the book explains how to reinforce lessons the patient has been taught in therapy, how to role model resilience skills, and how caregivers can and must care for themselves. It describes effective communication strategies and advises how to find appropriate professional help. Its many tables and worksheets convey much needed information in an accessible way. References, Resources, and a Glossary complete the package. Overall the book helps readers navigate the depression or biopolar disorder of someone close to them, providing readers with words to say and things to do as they try to help someone change the course of a sometimes confounding and often disabling illness"--

Each year more than 17 million Americans suffer from a depressive illness, yet few suffer in solitude. How You Can Survive When They're Depressed explores depression from the perspective of those who are closest to the sufferers of this prevalent disorder--spouses, parents, children, and lovers--and gives the successful coping strategies of many people who live with a clinical depressive or manic-depressive and often suffer in silence, believing their own problems have no claim to attention. Depression fallout is the emotional toll on the depressive's family and close friends who are unaware of their own stressful reactions and needs. Sheffield outlines the five stages of depression fallout: confusion, self-doubt, demoralization, anger, and finally, the desire to escape. Many people will find relief in the knowledge that their self-blame, guilt, sadness, and resentment are a natural result of living with a depressed person. Sheffield brings together many real-life examples from the pioneering support group she attends at Beth Israel Medical Center of how people with depression fallout have learned to cope. From setting boundaries to maintaining an outside social life, she gives practical tactics for handling the challenges and emotional stresses on a day-to-day basis.

“This compassionate, helpful book will bring hope and comfort to the loved ones of those who struggle to overcome the most common of mental illnesses.”—Rosalynn Carter When someone you love is depressed . . . . . . you feel lost, afraid, confused. . . . you long for the person who was. . . . you don’t recognize who he or she has become. . . . you feel shut out. . . . you feel angry and frustrated. . . . you feel drained. . . . you are desperate for a way to connect. . . . you feel guilty and alone. . . . you will do anything to help. “What motivates me now is to share with you what I've learned about how to cope when someone you love is depressed. What I have discovered from years of training and from having counseled hundreds of families who have shared their sorrows and their joys is that there are ways you can help someone you love who is depressed. And in that process, you will grow closer.”—from What to Do When Someone You Love is Depressed