Having dealt with a fairly serious depression (which resulted in a year of unemployment before I sought help from a psychiatrist), the two aren't entirely diffe

Having dealt with a fairly serious depression (which resulted in a year of unemployment before I sought help from a psychiatrist), the two aren't entirely different. I found that establishing a routine wakeup time, especially when I shifted it to between 5am and 6am, was incredibly helpful in battling those "much more serious" problems that turned lazy mornings into nothing days. Every depression is different, so this may not be true for others, but I'm one data point that learning to wake up early is an integral part of learning to deal with a serious depression.