High Functioning: How to Overcome Your Hidden Depression and Reclaim Your Joy

Many of us experience periods in our lives when something feels ＂off＂ when we struggle to find joy in happy moments, feel pessimistic about the future, and take little pleasure in things we used to enjoy. On the surface, we might be good at pretending we’re doing fine--we are motivated and productive at work, pulling our weight at home, and conducting a normal social life--but behind that façade we are barely surviving, and certainly not thriving.

We’re all familiar with what depression can look like--but there’s another, lesser-known face to this illness. High functioning depression (HFD) doesn’t conform to the image of depression that typically comes to mind: someone who is deeply sad and finds it hard to get out of bed in the morning. As a result, people with HFD often have no idea why they are suffering, or what to do about it.

In High Functioning, Dr. Judith Joseph radically shifts the way those of us with HFD see ourselves, revealing that what we’re feeling is not simply ＂negativity＂ or stress. Drawing on original research, client cases, and her personal experience with HFD, Dr. Judith empowers readers with five simple tools to reclaim their lives from this poorly understood condition. By following her Her 5 V’s - validation, venting, values, vision, and vitals - we can wake up happier, become more satisfied in our relationships, and regain joy in the present while looking forward to tomorrow.

Judith Joseph MD, MBA, is a board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist and researcher who specializes in mental health and trauma. She is the founder of and chief investigator at Manhattan Behavioral Medicine, New York City’s premier clinical research site, a clinical assistant professor in child and adolescent psychiatry at NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan, and chairwoman of the Women in Medicine Board at Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

As one of social media’s favorite psychiatrists, Dr. Judith gets over 15 million views a month. Her Instagram, full of funny, role-playing videos and revealing insights, got more than 10 million impressions and her TikToks were viewed more than 5 million times just last month alone. She holds an undergraduate degree from Duke as well as a medical doctorate and master’s in business administration from Columbia.