Depression and bi-polar disorder

Clinical depression is a severe condition to live with. Every time that you think things are finally getting better, something, even the smallest thing, will throw a monkey wrench into the works. When things are seriously off in your life, it's like you would rather have the whole world come to a stop.
I, myself, do not suffer in this way. Many members of my family do, or have bi-polar disorder, which is just as bad.
One of the biggest problems I face with depression is that no treatment is one hundred percent effective. It is almost impossible to get the right medication in the right dosage. Even when you can, the slightest change in metabolism can make it useless all over again.
The social stigma attached to emotional disorders is another aspect of depression that is difficult to deal with. Sometimes even family members will say, "Just get over it!" As if it were that simple! When the clinical illness is combined with traumatic events, of one kind or another, it just isn't possible to "get over" some things. It doesn't help to try to trivialize what a person is feeling either. In fact, sometimes it makes more sense just to acknowledge that they are feeling an intense emotion, even if you cannot understand it.
There is a lot to be said for just a little compassion, just being there when a person suffering from depression needs to be comforted. Understand that when they are angry and want to lash out, it isn't necessarily your fault. When a person is depressed, they will say things to you that they do not really mean, and that just depresses them even further.
I think what I really want to say to my family is that, no matter what they say or how they feel at any given time, I love them. I know they love me. When you are angry at the Universe in general, don't try to hold that anger inside. I will understand that it is not directed at me. Likewise, when you are upset, and don't really know why, that's okay too. You just worry about getting through that next bout of depression as best you can. I will be there on the other side with my hand out to pull you through.