81 Interviews With People Struggling With Depression

We have interviewed 81 people who have struggled with depression. These stories are full of tips on how to overcome depression.

Most recent stories of people struggling with depression

How I’m Seeking Moments of Happiness Despite Struggling With Depression

How I’m Seeking Moments of Happiness Despite Struggling With Depression

April 25, 2024
Helped by: Medication, Therapy
How Boxing and Therapy Help Me Recover My Identity After Extreme Weight Loss

How Boxing and Therapy Help Me Recover My Identity After Extreme Weight Loss

April 24, 2024
Helped by: Exercise, Self-improvement, Therapy
How Therapy, Medication and Baking Help Me Navigate Depression and OCD

How Therapy, Medication and Baking Help Me Navigate Depression and OCD

April 18, 2024
Helped by: Medication, Self-improvement, Therapy, Treatment

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Are you struggling with depression?

I’ve interviewed 81 people struggling with depression, and here are the top 5 most mentioned tips that helped these people overcome it:

  1. Therapy (49 people helped)
  2. Self-improvement (41 people helped)
  3. Social support (30 people helped)
  4. Self-Care (29 people helped)
  5. Medication (23 people helped)

In our many years of publishing helpful mental health content, we always received questions from our readers about specific situations. While we have a lot of helpful tips to share on how to be happier, we simply can’t offer advice for every situation.

That’s why I’ve set out to interview folks with every type of mental health struggle. My job as an interviewer is to categorize these interviews and present them in a way that is most helpful to our readers.

Read all the case studies

Case studies

Therapy Helped Me Overcome Depression and Better Cope With Chronic Health Conditions

“I clearly remember feeling like I was stuck deep down at the bottom of a dark hole where I could barely breathe. It was especially disturbing because I didn’t care if I stayed down there and never saw light again. Looking back, I realize that my severe depressive episode had been building for years, but I didn’t really notice it.”

Struggled with:
Anxiety
Chronic pain
Depression

Helped by:
Mindfulness
Self-Care
Self-improvement
Therapy

Sam Featured Image

Case studies

How Sobriety, Therapy, and Self-Care Help Me Navigate BPD and Bipolar Disorder Better

“I used to have a mindset of: “poor me” – “I’m just a victim” and “none of this is my fault”. Eventually, I knew I had to change that narrative to one of control. I had to take accountability for the things that I could change, and be honest about the things I was doing that were making everything worse.”

Struggled with:
Anxiety
Bipolar Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder
Depression
Suicidal

Helped by:
Exercise
Religion
Self-Care
Self-improvement

Therapy

Marci Rossi Featured Image

Case studies

Conquering Alcoholism and Hopelessness And Helping Others Do the Same

“I used alcohol to deal with stress, anxiety, boredom–essentially any negative feeling that I didn’t want to experience. I was also using it to try to generate positive feelings–to celebrate, to have fun, to socialize. Turning to alcohol for so many different reasons made it hard to control. I started by setting rules for myself, like only drinking on the weekends and only after a certain hour. But I consistently broke those rules, so they kept getting looser and looser.”

Struggled with:
Addiction
Anxiety
Depression

Helped by:
Exercise
Rehab
Self-improvement

Therapy

Adam Grimm Featured Image

Case studies

My Journey From Severe Migraines and Workplace Hostility to Reinventing Myself

“So now I’m still having migraines and nerve pain, have been removed from my job and friends, was ordered to not contact anyone from my unit, my future livelihood was at risk, and my leadership was only willing to try to remove me from sight. This lasted for almost three years.”

Struggled with:
Bullying
Chronic pain
Depression
Stress

Helped by:
Reinventing yourself
Self-improvement
Therapy
Treatment

Aidan Pilet Featured Image

Case studies

How I’m Navigating Lifelong Anxiety With Breathwork and Better Boundaries

“I found that practicing breathwork and working on my breathing was more than 50% of my battle. Not breathing correctly caused my anxiety to be triggered easier and with my breathing being shallow, it made it hard to talk at length. I believe this kept me in fight, flight, freeze mode for prolonged periods of time.”

Struggled with:
Anxiety
Depression
Stress

Helped by:
Mindfulness
Self-Care
Self-improvement

Rachel Miller Featured Image

Case studies

My Journey to Get Back on My Feet After Alcoholism and an Ischemic Stroke

“The dual journey of recovering from a traumatic neurological event while also protecting my sobriety has felt daunting, perilous, and isolating. It felt like I’d been just practicing recovery from alcoholism for the past seven years just so that I’d be ready for the big test this year.”

Struggled with:
Addiction
Depression
Stress
Stroke

Helped by:
Reinventing yourself
Self-Care
Self-improvement

Summer Willis Featured Image

Case studies

Overcoming Grief and Assault With 29 Marathons and Now Helping Others Do the Same

“A man spiked my drink and assaulted me, leading to a diagnosis of PTSD and depression. This event fundamentally changed my life, leading me into a violent relationship and a period of repression and struggle. Despite these challenges, life moved on. I got married, and had two beautiful boys, but then faced another intense period of grief, losing seven loved ones in just a few months.”

Struggled with:
Abuse
Assault
Depression
Grief
PTSD

Helped by:
Exercise
Medication
Religion
Self-Care
Self-improvement

Susan Gold Featured Image

Case studies

Breaking Free from Abuse and a Toxic Family to find Self-Love and Authentic Happiness

“The abuse expanded over time. My mother could be incredibly kind and would have given Martha Stewart a run for her money. The problem came when her mood and personality would flip on a dime, her eyes in slits, and I would be beaten, almost to the point of blacking out, for what reason I couldn’t understand.”

Struggled with:
Abuse
Childhood
Depression
PTSD
Suicidal

Helped by:
Meditation
Self-acceptance
Self-improvement

Therapy