I have an older sister who has been suffering from depression for practically all of her life. When we were younger, I didn't know what depression was, or that she had an actual illness. But I always knew something was wrong with her. And as we both grew older it became more and more obvious. But dumb me still never put the pieces together until just a few years ago, when I began to suffer from depression myself because of my chronic pain.

Anyway, the past several months I've been doing everything I can think of to help her out of her depression. It's been pretty bad. She's been through two failed marriages, with two children resulting from each one, and currently lives with her younger two sons, who are seventeen and fourteen. I've been hearing that she's been secluding herself, and feeling pretty bad.

A few months ago I started talking about the problem with my mother and another sister, and enlisting their help in getting her out of the house more. I have started visiting recently, since I've finally begun to drive again. A few days ago, my mother told me that my sister had said she felt better about herself now than she had in years, and I hope our attempts are paying off. But her depression is different from mine. I want to do more, but I don't want to do the wrong thing. Is there anyone out there who has lived with long-term depression and might give me some wisdom on what I might do? I would really appreciate anything. This is very important to me.

Thank you for listening, and thanks in advance for any help you might give.

Sincerely,
Idealist