Every other week I help run a book club for people suffering from depression (the emails from the Depression Alliance are headed up “DABOOKCLUB” which makes it all sound quite street). It’s a small group of people, strangers really, meeting up in a cafe to talk about the book and how things are going. Often when I mention I’m going, people look a bit horrified (“er, that sounds…depressing”). But, actually, I always leave feeling heartened. The people who go may be unable to love themselves, may be lost, tired, but without exception they are touchingly compassionate towards each other. Someone will venture to discuss why things are not so good at the moment – medication not making a difference, therapy a six week wait away, friends uncomprehending – and all eyes will be on them, intent, heads nodding encouragement. It’s sort of lovely.

Anyway, I thought I would write about the books that we’re reading. It takes a couple of months to get through each one (we tend to do a couple of chapters every fortnight) so I’ll write when we get to the end.

For the past two months, we’ve been reading The Depression Cure by Dr Steve Ilardi, subtitled The Six-Step Programme to Beat Depression Without Drugs.

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