I'm always here to listen

Auntie Greg, this is probably your first serious problem. I really don't know what to do or who to ask. My mother suffers from severe depression and it is starting to depress me. I love my mum very much but her being so down all the time really gets to me, and I don't want to leave her on her own because she depends on me, but I really have been thinking about taking my own life to end my pain. I can't think of anything better to do. I want my mum back, the mother she used to be before all this shit happened. Please help.

Anonymous

Hello there,
I'd like to start by just saying that I'm always willing to try to help out with serious problems, often the off-loading can be just as helpful as the advice provided.
Depression is an awful condition, not only for those who directly suffer, but also of course, for those people around them, people like yourself. Inevitably our instincts always tell us to help the ones we love, as we should, but you also have to consider yourself in all of this. However bad the problems become you need time that's devoted to you, so that even if it's just for a few hours a day you can attempt to put these problems out of your mind and relax. Maybe it would be possible to ask family, a friend of the family, or a close friend of your mums to help out and share the workload with you a bit.
Though you will want to try as much as you can to help your mum, you unfortunately have to realise that you alone will not be able to cure her. You have your own life to live and I'm sure that the 'mother she used to be' would not want you to spend your whole life simply worrying about her, and watching opportunities and friendships pass you by, let alone considering taking your own life.
Try to find someone to help out with your mum if you're worried about leaving her, and then you could use this time to throw yourself into college or work, or maybe even take up a new hobby so that you can take your mind off these worries, after all, being dragged down with your mum won't put you in a position where you can really help her.
I'm no expert on this kind of thing by any means, and I really hope some of the stuff I've said might be helpful. If you want to chat, just email me on greg@4ftpimp.co.uk, and if nothing else I can just listen to your problems, and maybe help.
Much love

P.S. Stay strong, there's always people who can help, even if it's someone who can just listen.