Thanks for this insightful thread, Craig. I'm glad you've found what works for you to remain balanced in this crazy world! But as you also said, there are also actual physical reasons for depression that simply can't be fixed by positive thinking.

Personally, I have the chemical imbalance thing going on which makes me very suicidal if I try to decrease my AD. Remember too that depression can be a real symptom of MS -- we're not just feeling sorry for ourselves that we have MS. A part in the brain can be damaged over time from the MS that affects mood, depression, etc.

Also, I believe depression, like any other illness, can run in families. One of my children is bi-polar, one had depression symptoms for awhile which AD's helped. After being hospitalized twice with major depression in '92 and '94, I'll gladly remain on my AD since as soon as I try to decrease and go off of them, those horrible thoughts come right back. Thankfully I have no bad side effects from the Zoloft.

Like everything else in life, each of us has to find what works best for ourselves. Yes, I do agree that minimal exposure to the media is preferred these days! That's their business, but we don't have to participate!