The Vertical Game - Peer Support Resources

Peer Support Resources horizontal rule

This site is about football, and if you're familiar with the site or with the author you know I'm as serious an Oakland Raiders fan as anyone.

From time to time, however, tragedies in the news, or events which occur in our lives or the lives of those close to us, serve to remind us that football is only a game, and really pretty trivial in the overall scheme of things.

Now, if all that interests you is football, then I suggest you click "Back" on your browser and read no further . . .

I suffer from chronic major depression. It's a physical illness—properly termed an affective or mood disorder—about which I'm neither embarrassed nor ashamed. I've learned that millions of other Americans—an estimated 6 to 10 million adults—also suffer from depression. It's the leading cause of lost time in the American workplace. Yes, you read that right— not cancer, not heart disease, not flu, not alcoholism, but depression. Yet despite all that, it is largely misunderstood and, sadly, widely stigmatized by the general population.

Just to bring this discussion a little closer to home, depression has rendered me unable to work, made me subject to frequent forgetfulness and confusion, and sapped my physical energy to a fraction of what it once was. These symptoms, far from being unusual, are among the most common seen in cases of depression. More about me. Depression is believed to result from an imbalance of neurotransmitters (especially serotonin, and in males, norepinephrine as well) in the brain. It also has a genetic component, i.e., it tends to run in families, and in many cases has an environmental ("situational") basis too.

Other common mood disorders—much less rare than you might think—include bipolar disorder (manic depression), anxiety/panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and seasonal affective disorder. There are also ten classes of generally recognized personality disorders.

I'd like to let readers know about a great online resource which offers peer support, resource links, mail lists and more for those with mood disorders and related problems. There's a great deal of very useful information available on the Net if one knows where to look for it.

Walkers in Darkness, Inc. is a nonprofit organization founded in 1991 which runs a first-rate web site featuring message forums and chat rooms. The site is named Walkers Web. You can participate in the chat sessions using either IRC or a Java-enabled browser. And the site includes links to resources for information and/or help on a wide range of issues. You must register to use the site, but registration is free and your identity information is kept confidential.

If for whatever reason you're feeling troubled, worried, manic, anxious, frightened, or down, and need to share personal matters with someone else in a nonjudgmental and supportive environment, you'll find this site invaluable. This is true for the significant others of those with problems, too. You are not alone!

Finally, if you are feeling suicidal—and I've been there in the past—please, take 10 minutes to check out this link:

The material there is nonjudgmental and insightful. It saved my life. I imagine it has saved thousands of other lives as well. It can help you understand better why you're feeling so bad that you no longer want to live. And knowledge is liberating. :-)