When one partner is suffering from depression, it can wreak havoc on even the most resilient marriage. While many do their best to support a depressed spouse, this can be emotionally challenging for both of you. If depression is testing your marriage, consider seeing marriage counseling to work through the problem together.

The Impact of Being Married to Someone with Depression

Having a spouse with depression can mean being overwhelmed by responsibilities that you would typically be sharing—parenting, household chores, keeping a job/career, or running a business. It can also mean forgoing social, family, or work-related opportunities to stay home, and feeling isolated and lonely. In the long run, depression can deplete your energy, patience, and understanding, and even build resentment toward your spouse, despite your best intentions.

If you want to improve your marriage, you may want to consider the best way to support your spouse who is living with depression. Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness can be contagious; feeling as if you can’t help your spouse can leave you feeling helpless and hopeless as well. Living with these challenges on a day-to-day basis can be overwhelming. Don’t let depression be the cause of your marriage ending.

Sustaining Your Marriage When You Are Depressed

Depression can change you and your perception of many things in life, including your marriage. It can make you lose interest in things and people that used to matter to you, even your family. With such low energy and motivation, how can you sustain your marriage?

Depression can deprive you of the feeling of love. You can have a cognitive understanding of the love you have for your spouse, but you are likely to feel emotionally disconnected from them. You may notice you no longer desire to be intimate. When you’re depressed, your mind also processes information differently, and you may misinterpret cues and circumstances. You can perceive people, including your spouse, as being critical of you when they are not.

This can all overwhelm your marriage. But if the primary root of your marital difficulties is your depression, talking to a therapist can help.

The Value of Therapy and Marriage Counseling

Depression is a real emotional condition with symptoms that cannot be resolved through willpower alone. Therapy can help a person with depression to feel better and function more successfully. Marriage counseling can also be vital for a marriage where one spouse is experiencing depression, to help the couple reestablish communication, improve emotional connection, and revive their relationship.

Your marriage is worth saving. Depression doesn’t have to mean the end. Therapy can help relieve symptoms of depression and help you to regain normal functionality. Marriage counseling can help in healing the hurt and lead to better understanding of one another. A therapist can help you both see each others’ perspectives and move forward together.

You don’t have to walk away or give up your marriage because you are depressed; call CCS–Pinehurst instead. If depression is the main contributor to your marital challenges, you can strengthen and revive your marriage by seeking help from a therapist independently contracted with Carolina Counseling Services — Pinehurst, NC. Call today to schedule your first appointment.

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