Rollercoaster Life with Depression

I realized today I haven’t followed up for some time about the continuing saga of my husband’s journey with a sleep doctor, going off and back on meds, and taking of a second job…

That’s where the rollercoaster in the title of this post comes from.  We’ve had surprisingly good days, painfully bad days, and some in between.  The highs have been accentuated by the hell-deep lows.  But on the whole, I’m hopeful we’re seeing improvement.  He was diagnosed with sleep apnea and probably “atypical” narcolepsy and is trying to get used to sleeping with a CPAP machine.  It’s a little noisy, but I can live with it because…drumroll please…he’s able to stay wide awake and alert all afternoon and evening, every day, for the first time in years.  And he’s actually joked and been fun to be with, in between bouts of grumbling about his second job (which are certainly justified).

Today I had coffee with an acquaintance I’d now call a friend…she reached out after discovering the book she’d been reading to help her deal with her depressed husband was actually written by someone she knew.  She’s at the beginning of her trip on this rollercoaster, and as we talked I recognized her relief in discovering that there are people out there who have experienced what she’s living.

So just a shout-out to everyone who’s living in any way with mental illness – whether in yourself or in someone you love. Hang on tight, enjoy the heights and let them hold you up when you dip into those lows.  And remember there are tons of other people on the ride with you, screaming just as loudly as you are.

-Amy

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