1. Chronic Fatigue:
    Hmm...I'm up all night on the internet, and I get my sleeping schedule (which has never been REALLY solid in my life) completely messed up.  I don't excercise, and I don't eat the way I should. I'm overweight, of course I feel like shit and am tired all the time.

2. When I DO sleep--I sleep for 12+ Hours at a time...:
    Being overweight requires more energy on my body.  Therefore, when I do sleep, it's simply making up for lost time.

3. Sudden Weight Gain:
    I'm a freshman in college--don't they call that the "freshman 10"...or 20, in my case.

4. Loss of pleasure in the things I once enjoyed:
    I don't play anymore cause I'm either in class, studying, working, or too tired to get up the energy to play...it has nothing to do with being "Depressed".

5. Lack of Social interaction:
    Psh...who has time for friends? Srsly. I'm a homebody. I like to be at home, by myself.  I don't like having a lot of people around. Is there anything wrong with that?

6. Pain/Weakness in my muscles and joints:
    Could easily be explained by the fact that I'm in BED all the time, sleeping or crying.  You would feel stiff and sore too if all you did was lay around!

7. Panic Attacks:
    I'm a smoker. Maybe panic attacks are my body's way of saying "NICOTINE!!!!"

Does that not make sense to you?

Now, what's the point in taking the medication, becoming a zombie, screwing with my thought processes, etc, if there's another remedy? I don't know what that is...but it might not be depression.

I wonder how many people are falsely diagnosed with depression on average...

I just want to feel better. That's all I want.

I want to be rested, motivated, happy, energized...all that. I'm none of that right now.

I just want to feel better.

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"This is a crazy-mixed-up world,
and you've gotta look it right in the eye."
-Bob Dylan

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I'd look for another way. Your descriptions seem to disprove the whole depression thing.

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Not necessarily.

But then again, if you are able to recognize where the problem is coming from, then try to fix it without the meds first.

You could set yourself a month long time limit to fix it yourself.

If nothing changes, or it gets worse, then you know that you should probably take the meds.

Make sense?

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The world is only as sweet as you make it and only as terrible as you see it

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stop making excuses. your depressed take them

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that guy is stupid. dont take them.

well, its a good sign that you at least notice your problem- that IS the first step to...well, almost everytrhing

now comes the hard part, like you said, MOTIVATION. what motivates me is just the challenge of being better at things than other people..(im really competitive) so i wanna be stronger than other people, i work out, i wanna have more willpower and endurance, i run, i wanna have a good job so i get better grades....its impossible to motivate someone on the internet and really hard to do it even in person. its something you have to do on your own....if it helps just think about how much more you WILL be able to do once you get in a routine of exercise and healthy sleep, etc. and how much more fun you will have!...not to mention you will live longer

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This is the Internet, so you better listen to what I have to say!

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I suggest you take the prescription.  
From my own experience and people I know's experience, it really lifts you up. Yeah, it's false happiness, but its either that or nothing.

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No, it's not. Medication is hardly the only option she has, if she can figure out what's wrong and fix it, that'd be infinitely better.

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"Under the hardness of her facade a woman's heart is still beating."

^ Don't do that.

Forget that websites like LW ever existed, walk away and never look back.

Its not healthy.

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The world is only as sweet as you make it and only as terrible as you see it