Self books can be the most helpful resource in the world for one person and do completely nothing for the next. Also, it can vary from day to day. Someone could love a book one day and think its a waste of paper the next. It is really all about what helps you.

Have you tried any other methods of helping yourself? Have you talked to others about how you feel? Have you tried things to calm your mind and body, such as yoga, walks in parks, meditation, etc? If the books aren't working for you, I'd recommend trying other methods until you find something that seems to be helping a bit. Good luck! I hope you start to feel better soon.

Thanks Penguin, You are right, sometimes I find them useful, just a bit frustrated at the moment. I have started walking 5 miles a day, and it definitely helps, plus I've lost over a stone in two months which makes me feel much better about my appearance. I have thought about meditation and yoga, wouldn't mind giving it a go.

Thanks again, I do appreciate you taking time to answer my message.
Cheers
Andy

Congrats about losing the weight! That is great for just two months!! Yoga helps me a lot because it really really relaxes my body and mind at the same time and just calms me. Typically I recommend waiting to try medication just because it can make you seem like a zombie sometimes, but if nothing else seems to help out then you should give it a shot.

Hi Snapper57,

I know what you mean about the self-help books. At one point they were all I could buy and yet I never finished 3/4 of them. For me it was the idea of what they might be able to do - 'this one might be able to fix me' rather than the content itself.

In hindsight I think a lot of them cover many of the same things and if you can get some ideas or advice from them that you find helpful, even if it is just one point, then I would say you could counsider it handy.

In the end I found Tony Robbins very helpful, in particular his Personal Power cd's however they are pretty pricey so you may want to try borrowing one or two first to see if they are for you. I have a few friends that I have also recommended them to and they have also found them useful.

In relation to meditation, The mediatation Society of Australia run a free online, self-paced course that you may find useful. The address is http://www.meditation.org.au/index.asp .

And congrats on the weight loss, have you ever thought about entering a charity walking event? It sounds like you would do really well with all that walking you have been doing!

Best wishes,

Heather

Thanks Heather, i will explore the meditation link and the charity walk sounds like a great idea. Thanks again x

I have a history of depression in my family. There is no one thing that beats depression. Its a combination things. Self help books will work, but people need to put their complete faith in whichever one they choose.

Try making friends. I would describe depression as a hole nothing will fill. You have to try and fill that hole constantly. It can literally be anything you like. If you enjoy reading self help books it isn't an addiction. Its what you enjoy doing. You are only wasting your time if you are not learning anything. Maybe you just haven't found the one self help book. It's best to pick something to do religiously and stick to it.

Thank you for your post. I absolutely agree with you, a combination of things is usually the most effective way to cope with depression. Since the original post I have got on with my life and at the moment, I am better able to cope with lifes ups and downs - have just graduated from uni with a 2.2 and now looking to start a new career in education and freelance graphics. So I have created a future to live into and that's what drives me upwards and onwards!

I think I was wasting time - self help books are a way of procrastinating for me but I realise that this is not always the case for everyone. All I would say is question why you read them, if they move you on, great, if not, what are you avoiding/not doing?

Absolutly! The more you understand about your disorder. The more you will be able to cope with it and have the knowledge to back it up. Kinda like your own mental phamacy.