“My favorite escapes from depression are meds and writing,” says Diana Spechler in a New York Times opinion piece. “But I can’t do both at once.” Friends have been forwarding to me her columns in the “Going Off” series, which chronicles her attempt to wean off the medications she takes for depression, anxiety, and insomnia....

A friend of mine approached me the other day in tears. The nine year old of a close friend of hers tried to kill himself. “He’s nine!!??!!” she said. “How do you explain that?” It’s true that we are all born with genes that predispose us to all sorts of things—in my case bipolar disorder...

Consider these statistics: Nearly 50 percent of asthma patients suffer from symptoms of depression. At least 40 percent of persons with Parkinson’s disease experience depression, and anxiety is often reported. Forty to 65 percent of patients who have had a heart attack suffer from depression. The lifetime risk for depression in patients with multiple sclerosis...

Once a year or so I’m tempted to shave my head like I’m going through chemo to make my depression visible to others. I’m thinking if I pulled a Sinead O’Connor, people would take the illness seriously. I saw a commercial the other day for some leukemia association, and I was jealous. I know that’s...

A major survey by Nursing Times found that eight out of 10 nurses feel they are under more pressure at work than they were 12 months ago, with seven out of 10 suffering the side-effects of work-related stress resulting in physical or mental health problems. More than eight out of 10 nurses say their team...