A very good friend recommended this book to me--and his record is over 90%. And I was well enough to go to my favorite local bookstore and get a copy!

I appreciate the ideas for help in the book. They are constructive for maintenance if you are already functioning. But we have an issue in our culture with terminology.

There's depression and there is major Depression. And, I'm sorry, sir, but one of these is a disease or some kind of medical dysfunction for sure.

And, no, the drugs and other remedies we have aren't much better than what's in Plath's The Bell Jar. We've been told the drugs are better, but mostly, the marketing has been a lot better.

Also major depression is not related to "happiness." You don't get sick because you are unhappy. That's another misunderstanding. People aren't thrilled to have any illness, but that correlation is not causation. There are millions of unhappy people walking around just fine who are not depressed, and I'm not sure if this book would help them or not. It might improve their life, depending on their circumstances.

A holistic approach is definitely the priority here; and now many apps exist to help track all moods and activities.

But most of the activities in the book require that you can get out of bed--get out of the house. So people need to understand there is depression and Depression. And our "mental health system" is lacking in every way. If anyone you care about would need more than this book, you might start to worry and be disturbed. So advocate for better resources and care now!!