Depression

Author Tim Ferris listed "three concepts that I and others have found useful for preventing the inevitable ups and downs from becoming self-destructive thinking and behavior:"

1. Depression is just one phase of a natural biorhythm and thus both transient and needed...
2. How you label determines how you feel.
3. Gratitude training can be used pre- or mid-depressive symptoms to moderate the extremes and speed the transition.

Since I have bipolar disorder IMHO he hit the nail on the head for people who are not mentally ill. Reading the plentiful comments, I ran across the Ten Greatest Lies About Bipolar Disorder on Bipolar Central:

Lie #1:
You can survive without medication.

Lie #2:
You can’t control bipolar disorder.

Lie #3:
You only need the right medication and a great psychiatrist to be stable.

Lie #4:
Bipolar disorder is not a real illness, and not that many people have it.

Lie #5:
All people who have bipolar disorder are violent.

Lie #6:
People who have bipolar disorder can’t hold down a job.

Lie #7:
There is a machine or software program to scan your body or brain and determine if you have bipolar disorder.

Lie #8:
Someone with bipolar disorder will never get better.

Lie #9:
All psychiatrists are the same and give the same quality of care.

Lie #10:
There are natural proven cures for bipolar disorder that big business is hiding.