I was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety, and bi-polar. Here's how I am med-free (note I said med-free, not cured.)
I had to completely break away from what was dragging me down and provoking my mood swings. I grew up in a very abusive home. The only thing they didn't do to me was sexually abuse me. (Thank God, at least they didn't do that!) Even after I married and moved out, I still lived within driving distance of them. They would keep on and keep on with there verbal/emotional and physical abuse, either over the phone, or they'd invite themselves over without asking. My husband was hesitant to believe me about what was going on, since he couldn't imagine parents treating their kids they way mine treated me. Therefore, he didn't do anything to keep them from coming over or calling. Yes, on the telephone, I could just hang up, but as soon as I did, they'd get in their car and come to my house, even though it was 1 and a hours away from them. (After he finally got clued in to it, he moved me across a couple state lines to prevent this, and he didn't call them to give them our new phone number.) Moving was the best thing I did.
Before I moved, I was going through all those med changes and dx changes. Docs and I couldn't seem to get it right. My side effects were worse than the depression/ anxiety/mood swings. So I too made up my mind to go med free. I slowly took myself off all those anti-depressants and mood stabilizers. Once I was down to nothing, I set my mind to just be. Be me. Whoever that was, I was just gonna be me. And if no one else liked the "true" me, well, they could stuff it. I'm determined not to go back....
As to when I get those neat little switches flipped in my brain, and I go from one extreme to the other, I cut myself some slack. I know I'm not perfect; I know I'm not like everybody else. I don't fit the norm, and I'm perfectly fine with that. It's everyone else's problem, not mine. All I do is make sure I do no harm to myself and/or others. And that's the hard part. But it is doable. It does take practice though, because you gotta know when this happens. You have to learn to control the emotion. Yes, I have been in therapy to learn how to cope. That therapy is priceless. I'm also lucky. I have family members that will gladly make it known to me that I seem highly irritable, or if I take things the wrong way to easily, or if they're "walking on eggshells" around me. They do this in love, not because they want to get their way with me. I take their criticism seriously. (No, they do not use this to their advantage. I wouldn't let 'em get away with that. I've also learned what justifiable anger is. I've also learned that it's okay to have things that annoy/aggravate/anger/etc. me, and that it is not okay for someone to do it to me out of spite. My folks know I know that too.
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I have had depression/anxiety/bi-polar probably since birth, since I don't know any different at all. I cannot say, "I want to be my old self again." There is no "old self." You know what? I don't want to be any different either. I don't want to be other than what I am, and that's what meds did to me. They did change my personality. All I want is to not hurt myself or others, and I don't want to emotionally/mentally hurt every day. I don't have to. I don't have the reminders of it everyday. I understand why I am the way I am and I'm okay with it. I've learned how to take the destruction of bi-polar and used it for something positive, when and only when I can. It's up to others to decide if they can put up with me. If they can't, oh well.
Blessed by God.
