Doctor’s orders

Liz Miller was a successful surgeon when depression hit. Now the Mind Champion of the Year wants the medical profession to take mental health seriously. By Mary O'Hara

Uncle Ralph’s rapture

Stefan Merrill Block had never met his Uncle Ralph, but he knew all about his catastrophic life. When they eventually came face to face, he found an old man finally - and blissfully - set free by the oblivion of Alzheimer's

The kindness of strangers

After more than 20 years with depression, Zoe Lewis thought she would simply have to put up with her illness. But a friend persuaded her to try group therapy. What happened next changed her life

My private hell

She was a young, successful writer with a flourishing career and a new baby. So why did she come within moments of throwing herself from a train? Stephanie Merritt describes the crisis that almost claimed her life

Question time

Hannah Pool: Trisha Goddard reveals why she'd never go to the Priory, what's wrong with Jeremy Kyle, and why Britain is just as racist as Australia

Jihad for the soul

Theo Hobson: That people are effortlessly happy and decent is a great lie of secular society - defeating our inner satan is a struggle

The getting of wisdom

At 35, Lorna Martin had come to a crisis in her life. Turning to therapy for some answers, she recorded her progress in a weekly column that is now being published as a book. But, wonders Zoe Williams, is she really any the wiser?

When it’s bad to talk

As evidence grows that anti-depressant drugs are ineffective, more of us are likely to turn to psychotherapy. But, as Kate Hilpern reports, counselling can mean being traumatised again

‘I felt completely out of control’

One in 10 pregnant women develop some form of mental disturbance - from anxiety, irritability and sadness to obsessive compulsive disorder, agoraphobia and thoughts of suicide. At last, says Lucy Atkins, prenatal depression is being taken seriously