That's fine. Do it.

In my journey out of depression some states and stages have taken over a year. I've had to learn to just let go of my preconceptions. There is no rule book for this. There is no recipe to follow. All you can do is respond to what your body is asking for, and see what the results turn out like.

I personally think depression goes hand in hand with exhaustion. Or - it does for me. They're not the same thing, but they sure do hang out in the same room. So if your body is saying it's exhausted, let it rest.

I have noticed that I have been given a LOT of advice by people who have never had depression about 'how a depressed person should act'. I have never followed that advice.

they say you should 'get out more', they say you will 'want' to 'sleep your life away' and should be stopped from this.

Where do they get that information? Who told them that? I want to know because when I ignore it and say 'this is darwinian, if cave man had depression what would he have done? Would he have gone to visit some guy with a doctoral thesis in toejam and asked for advice, or would he have just curled up into a ball on his pile of furs in his cave, and laid there and cried till he felt better?' then my life inproves. My exhaustion lifts. I cure.

When you think of us all in a space in time, the answer's pretty bloody clear. If ten million years of non-educated people can get depression and get over it without resorting to a text book, and live to give birth to your forebears then you can do it too.

But you have to listen to your body. And if it wants something, let it have it. Do what you need to do to get to work every day. Get through it however you have to. Sleep when you need to sleep.

the stage will pass eventually if you let your body go through it.

sleeping is not that bad and it will get to point where you are done with that....I agree with bridgie just do it!

I know that desire not to fight it or do anything I used to like. TOTAL lack of motivation. I've been battling that for 9 months now. Thrown everything at it - new meds, new therapist, yada yada - but still no change. I'm not working, but get up to volunteer everyday. Sometimes its the routine that keeps us hanging on. Believe me, you're not alone on this one.

Over sleeping, loss of wanting to do anything, folowed by heaver addiction to sleepiing pills pusshing depression-liflessness to its peack. Its a terriable cycle,to breake. To reconise it is even harder.

Thank you for the replies, I think it's hard to be depressed and in a marriage as well because you have responsibilities to the other person. I can't sleep all the time because I feel like a burden to my wife. She is depressed as well over the loss of our two 12 year old dogs in a 5 week span from November to December and it hits her at times, but she's OCD and moving and cleaning and doing things is how she copes and/or distracts whereas I could just sleep all the time. Luckily my job is demanding so it makes me get up every day and do things and I guess I'm lucky my wife is always active so I don't just fall into a shell of sleep. But sometimes I am very jealous of people who are alone and can do whatever they want when they want even if it's wallow in self misery and sleep.