Learning to live with depression: Our family's journey

Nearly three months ago, I had the worst moment of my life. My husband - after months of my worrying - opened up for the first time about the deep depression he was battling.

But to this day, I'm grateful. I'm grateful that he realized he needed support. I'm grateful he saw his physician to get medical attention, and that he didn't give up when his first medication didn't work for him. I'm grateful he sought the help of our EAP program, and he was brave enough to share with his boss his struggles.

I wish seeking out help for depression meant you flipped the magic switch and that things have become automatically better. And many days, it has. I so much more appreciate the days when my husband plays with the kids and I hear them giggling in the next room.

But I still brace the days for the calls when he tells me he's having a "bad day" - when the medications aren't working with his body's chemistry and he can't function as well as normal.

Getting through depression as a family is, truly, a family affair. Having tough talks with little kids who might not understand what daddy is struggling with is not easy. Keeping the support of managing the household, when you're trying to lift up your loved one - is a challenge.

But you can get through it. Day by day, hour by hour.  I know; my friends whose husbands have quietly suffered know too.

It takes prayer. And patience. And persistence.

If you're struggling in your family with someone with depression, please know I am thinking of you!!!