The first reference to depression having form and personality came from Sir Winston Churchill, the war time Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the second world war. It is clear that he had a brilliant mind, however he was hated and loved in equal measure and we find that history has softened the hatred to a point where he is more admired today than reviled.

He was never officially labelled an ‘Alcoholic’ even though he drank constantly. He once said, “I have taken more out of alcohol than it has taken out of me!” His doctor prescribed amphetamines and later barbiturates to help him sleep. As a result, we can see the pattern of substance abuse that is a hallmark of the long term depressed.

Many people love to recite quotes from Winston’s many notable conversations where quite a few of which were between his personal secretary, Elizabeth Nell. Yet he was more than ready to challenge anyone and one of which ran like this, “A lady came up to me one day and said ‘Sir! You are drunk’, to which I replied ‘I am drunk today madam, and tomorrow I shall be sober but you will still be ugly.’”

Often, Churchill would refer to walking the black dog for times when depression haunted his mind. Today, the black dog is almost a universal mascot for the condition.