Seeking support for depression

A former lawyer who has seen the devastating effects of depression firsthand, including the loss of his legal career, is hoping to use those experiences to help other lawyers. Mark Schmid, a former attorney living in the Kansas City area, said he wants to start a support group that would allow lawyers to come together in a safe, anonymous setting to share their struggles. "There's an amazing feeling when you find out you're not alone," he said. Some of them may not have even yet acknowledged that the issue they are dealing with is depression, he said. Schmid didn't at first, but he said looking back with the knowledge he has now, the signs were all there a decade ago when he hit a particularly bumpy patch. He had let himself go physically at that time, he said. He became more irritable. His law partner even came out and asked him if he was depressed, and Schmid said he "totally blew that off." "I think it was a variety of things," Schmid, 62, said of why he didn't face the problem. "I didn't exactly know what depression was, I didn't know what the symptoms were and equally important, I didn't want to know. The idea of seeking some type of assistance if I was depressed was, at least at that point, totally beyond the pale for me." But leaving it untreated had disastrous effects on his career. When he became severely depressed, Schmid said he did "some very crazy things" professionally. Deadlines were missed. He lied to clients. He lied to his partner. "As a result, I basically self-destructed," he said. Complaints were filed against him, and still in the throes of depression, he felt too overwhelmed to deal with the discipline process, so he just ignored it. Ultimately, it led to a default disbarment in 2010. Schmid has spent the years since building himself back up, and said starting the support group is a top priority. Schmid noticed there wasn't any lawyer-specific support groups for depression when he started doing research about such groups in Missouri and Kansas after he read an article that "made a very compelling case" for having a lawyer support group for depression. He talked with a representative from MOLAP, he said, and decided to start pursuing creating a group on his own. Schmid said he would like to start an informal group, maybe around 15 or 20 people, who come together regularly to "have a cup of coffee or have lunch and share whatever challenges they're having." "You're able to identify with each other in a way that someone who has not had depression, or is not suffering from depression or another mental illness, can't," he explained. Schmid said he's been working on spreading the word, but he has had some trouble getting the group started due to a lack of funds for marketing as well as not having a law license. He has started working to get his license reinstated because he wants to practice law again. He also wants to show a positive example for others who might be experiencing similar struggles. "I just want to show you can rehabilitate yourself. You can get better," he said. What's most important, he said, is to move forward and recognize the problem and "understand there are things that can be done to help and improve the profession." "At the end of day, whatever happens with me, I feel an obligation, both as a lawyer, and just as a person who suffered from depression to do something," he said. "I think we all need to help each other." Published: Mon, Nov 27, 2017