
WHY I CREATED THIS SITE
Depression is often a very isolating experience—even when the depressed person has a supportive and loving group of people to rely on.
In my own life, I often found relief in reading books about depression, spirituality or health and trying to relate the wisdom in those books to my own life as a lawyer.
When I searched on-line for materials to read that would support me in my attempt to cope with depression and my law practice, what I found was sometimes helpful, but in the end, not sufficient. Read more
LWD IN THE NEWS
LWD Creator Receives Special Service Award From Bar Association of Erie County Dan Lukasik, founder of lawyerswithdepression.com was honored by the Bar Association of Erie County with the Special Service Award, an award that is not given annually but only when, "there is a person that has contributed to the good and welfare of the Bar Association of Erie County and its members in an exceptional manner" Read the story
Reports Of Suicide Point To Job Stress The National Law Journal takes a look at a handful of recent attorney suicides. In an attempt to get to the underlying causes, LWD creator Dan Lukasik is asked to share his feelings with the author. Read the story
Lawyers and Depression President of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association Michael E. Brittain addresses the issue of lawyers and depression in his latest monthly newsletterreferencing LWD founder Dan Lukasik. Read the story
Buffalo Law Journal Previews Law School Talks At the invitation of the David Dawes Nee II Foundation, LWD creator Dan Lukasik will be speaking at 12 New York City area law schools this spring. Read the story
Esperanza hopetocope.com Profiles LWD Creator Dan Lukasik This profile of LWD creator Dan Lukasik takes an insightful look into his history and offers hope and inspiration for those suffering from depression. Read the story
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DEPRESSION IN THE NEWS
Gene Theory For Depression Is Now Discredited From Medical News Today, a study that attempted to replicate the "seminal" study that laid the foundation for psychiatry's "serotonin theory" of depression, claiming a genetic- serotonin impairment underlying depression, has been debunked by the data from 14 similar studies claiming a genetic underpinning to depression. Read the story
New Family-Focused Model Of Depression Care Needed From Medical News Today, health and social service professionals who care for adults with depression should not only tackle their clients' physical and mental health, but also detect and prevent possible spillover effects on their children, says a new report from the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine. Read the story
Internet-Based Therapy Effective In Treating Depression From Medical News Today, this article takes a look at a discovery that could lead to new treatment approaches for depression, researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have shown that internet-based therapy programs are as effective as face-to-face therapies in combating the illness. Read the story
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FEATURED ARTICLES
Happyness Skills For Lawyers With With Depression
After writing several books about recovery from depression and stress, I finally decided it was time for me to look a bit beyond recovery; Happy at Last (St. Martin’s, 2008) is the result. Let me say at the outset that happiness is not trivial. Genuine happiness is not only the transient sensation of joy, but also a feeling of overall satisfaction with your life and its course. It’s got to do with being wise and not bringing unnecessary misery on yourself. It requires that you feel a sense of meaning or purpose in your life. It’s the antidote to depression, anxiety, and stress. It’s an especially important subject for lawyers, whose very career seems at times to interfere with personal happiness. Read more
We Are What We Do
People often come to me asking for medication. They are tired of their sad mood, fatigue, and loss of interest in things that previously gave them pleasure. They are having trouble sleeping or they sleep all the time; their appetites are absent or excessive. They are irritable and their memories are shot. Often they wish they were dead. They have trouble remembering what it is to be happy.
I listen to their stories. Each one is, of course, different, but there are certain recurrent themes: Others in their families have lived similarly discouraged lives. The relationships in which they now find themselves are either full of conflict or “low temperature,” with little passion or intimacy. Their days are routine: unsatisfying jobs, few friends, lots of boredom. They feel cut off from the pleasures enjoyed by others.
Here is what I tell them: The good news is that we have effective treatments for the symptoms of depression; the bad news is that medication will not make you happy. Happiness is not simply the absence of despair. It is an affirmative state in which our lives have both meaning and pleasure. Read more
The Value Of Depression
The biggest problem with the conventional wisdom about mental illness is that it encourages people to ignore the meaning of the symptoms that are used to diagnose them. That is a problem because it deprives people of vital information that can help them improve themselves.
The conventional wisdom about mental illness is that it is caused by genetic factors, chemical imbalances and brain abnormalities. If you believe that, you have no interest in exploring the meaning of the symptoms or listening to what they may have to tell you. Rather, you are encouraged to get rid of the symptoms as quickly as possible and pay no further attention to them.
But what if those symptoms had important information for people? Read more
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