Justin Dickerson, the main character in my book, In the Beginning, suffers from depression.

In a handful of the reviews that the book has received, there has been some that can’t seem to deal with, or even like Justin because she’s whiny, irritable and sometime mean. It has been insinuated that she is not a “strong” woman.

I am thankful for women’s lib. It afforded me the opportunity to become a lawyer, get better paying jobs and not to have to be ashamed when my marriage ended and I became a single mom. But the depression I suffer from, as does Justin, doesn’t make me less strong from the fruits of our labor. In less modern times, depression in women was seen as part of their frailty and she was looked after. Now, a woman needing, or admitting the need of others is sometimes looked down upon. Even by other women.

Depression is not another name for weakness.

In the book, Justin is not only a wife, and mother she is a Biblical archaeologist, with three degrees, including a doctorate. She speaks seven languages and hold a very prestigious job. She has traveled the world and discovers the hidden meaning of 2,000 year old manuscripts.

I, too have three degrees including a Juris doctorate. But let me tell you, because of my depression they were hard to get, but I persevered. But there were many days that I spent crying, or in my room, with the door closed refusing to leave the house. But do those things make me weak and intolerable.

Well, maybe a little intolerable.
Everyone feels bad or unhappy at some point in their life, and it may last for a couple of hours or as long as a couple of day, but generally, it’s only for a short period of time. Clinical depression, however, isn’t just when you feel bad or down in the dumps, it is feelings of sadness, loss, anger, or frustrations that interferes with everyday life and lasts for weeks or longer. It’s a feeling that you can’t explain to others because most of the time you don’t understand why you’re feeling like you do. And now most experts classify it as a disease.
Studies have shown that serotonin may be responsible for depression. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter an with approximately 40 million cells in the brain, more than we know are influenced in some way by it, including those brain cells related to mood, sexual desire, appetite and sleep.

Depression is believed to be caused by chemical changes in the brain. These changes may be caused by deficiencies due to genetics or may be triggered by stressful events, or both and are probably caused by imbalance in serotonin levels.

High levels of serotonin make you feel happy, while low levels can lead to low self-esteem, anxiety and excessive worry, chronic pain, panic fear, phobias, obsessions and pessimism. Low levels brought on by low cell production of serotonin influence a person’s mood in a way that leads to depression.
Because depression is due to changes in the body’s chemistry it is like having diabetes or cancer. Yet people that suffer from it aren’t treated the same as people with other diseases. As shown by some reviewers, dealing with people with clinical diabetes, or just reading about them, is irritating and looked upon with disdain.

There isn’t very much someone can do to help a person out of a depression. Understand that if depression is caused by low levels of serotonin its levels won’t increase in a person just because you fuss at them, telling them to just get over it. It’s not that simple.
Things that do help boost serotonin levels include sunlight, massages, remembering happy thoughts and exercise. So, if you want to help a person with depression take them out for a walk, talk about good times – happy thoughts, and help them to get professional help, because when they’re depressed they won’t do it themselves. It’s hard for them to even want to feel better.