I know what it feels like to be stuck, feeling as though things could not possibly get any better, feeling so low and deep in depression, that it seems the only option is to not be here anymore.

Thirteen Reasons Why is a 13 part Netflix television series based on the book of the same name by Jay Asher. It's a controversial tale about bullying, abuse and teenage suicide that is currently stimulating hundreds of thousands of passionate conversations all over the world.

Despite having many physical similarities which make us human, we are actually all as unique as finger-prints. We see this in so many of our differences in our tastes, our likes and our dislikes. We also see this is variations in responses to treatments.

"Mental health conditions during pregnancy and early parenthood can affect anyone, and occur in every culture. Like depression or anxiety that occur at any other time, these mental health conditions don't have one definite cause - rather, they are likely to result from a combination of factors." Beyond Blue

"Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them." Tolstoy

According to Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia (PANDA), one in seven new mothers and one in ten new fathers experiences postnatal depression or anxiety. In this latest Up Close & Personal essay, Diana Kirk shares with us her intimate experience with postnatal depression following the birth of her first son.

"If you're pretty crazy then you're in good company because the human race as a whole is out of its goddam head." Albert Ellis - founder of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) and pioneer in the development of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT).

The following article in our series on depression focuses on the second goal of the World Health Organisation's (WHO) recommended management plan for the treatment of a depressive disorder - the treatment of depressed mood with psychotherapy. 

Three hundred million people world wide live with depression. The Black Dog. The Dark Storm. The Tar Pit. The Black Hole. But what is depression and what causes it? Read on to learn the opinions of several mental health clinicians in this first of our The Psychology of It series on depression.

In early September, 2016, we discovered by chance a Facebook post by Christopher Sewell describing in raw detail, his first-hand struggle living with anxiety and depression. Christopher is a husband and a father and a surfer and a mate who is not defined by his disorders. Instead, he is brave and generous and shares this incredible insight into his experiences.