I would like to know if there are any mothers living in South Africa who have young children living overseas with their father and if so how you cope. My children live in England. I find it extremely difficult and I only saw my children (age 8 and 5) twice this year. I can't live in England because I have severe depression and needed to recover and I doubt I will ever be able to live there because I tried it for 5 years and I became very ill and I would just get a relapse. I was very ill and needed a whole year of therapy which is still ongoing and it took a year to find the right medication as well.

I cannot imagine going through what you are dealing with, not being able to see you children, and while I am not going through the same thing, perhaps I can offer some advice.

What is the reason for you staying in Africa? Is there something there that keeps you happy? Sometimes when you have to move as far away from your home as england is to you, the best help can be creating an environment just like your home in Africa.

And as far as the depression goes, have you tried shock therapy? My boyfriend's mother suffers from severe depression and the doctors wouldn't admit her to the psych ward because she was a high suicidal risk, but one doctor took the initiative to start her on shock therapy and now she is doing great, and just ended her last treatment. Sometimes it can be even better than medication, and she only has to take light doses of anti-depressants to keep her head above water. This might help you, too, if you haven't tried it, but of course that is up to your doctor to decide if it is right for you.

Best of luck. I cannot imagine going through what you're dealing with.