As for meds, they're not for everybody. A good psychiatrist will work with you to find what works better/best. Ideally, you should feel more like yourself, not less. Feeling like you're struggling through thick mud or an endless black tunnel is usually off-kilter brain chemistry, not your true self. Sadness can be a normal, natural response to real events, but when it goes on too long, it can cause more permanent or at least tenacious changes to your brain. Meds can help reset things, and help get you into a better position to make some of the longer-term changes you want in your life.
But it's worth a try. I'm clinically depressed. Have been for years. My body doesn't make enough serotonin. The citalopram increases the serotonin levels so I can be "normal". It helps me a lot.
^^^^^
What they said. But if you do try meds you also have to be patient for awhile, since it sometimes takes a couple of trials to figure out what works best for you. I've been clinically depressed all of my life, and I thought I was doing well on sertraline. Then we added wellbutrin for one of my many attempts to quit smoking . didn't work for the smoking, but for the depression - wow. I think that I may feel like "normal" people do.
And it didn't take anything away, just added. It's kind of like going from black and white to full color,
Good points, and I agree. I don't feel critical of smokers. Honestly, two years ago I fully expected to be one for the rest of my life, whether I liked it or not.
I'd completely given up on quitting. But when my hands got so bad that I was dropping lit cigarettes on me and around the house I figured I had to do something. And was lucky enough that while I was researching these strange electronic things I saw that half the links were to ECF, So I stopped by, asked some questions and got recommendations before I bought anything. And here I am, two years later.

(So glad I only posted this once. We've been having power blips all day. I do have a nice UPS, but unfortunately the broadcast from the top of the water tower doesn't)
-- It's good to hear you are still alive though --- I was just sort of worried about you is all.