Make sure the therapist works with a pharmacologist. I was able to go on with my life, but I made some bad decisions. Between episodes, I felt pretty good. In between those episodes, my own children were young. Being a parent to them was a great joy to me.
Depression is, above all else, a vicious circle.
We do things that make us more depressed, and that resulting depression means we do more self-destructive things. It's pointless to argue which came first, chicken or egg. The important thing about appreciating the circularity of depression is that we can intervene anywhere. If we change our behavior, we can feel better. If medications or music or relationships help lift our mood, we can feel better.