great story! something similar happened for me: I was depressed for many years, sometimes with dips into terrible lows, but often just prolonged isolation periods that left me "passing the time", not living. and just as for you, it started with small changes I had to think up. may be one day I will write those out too, but sure enough - walking (preferably in nature) and contributing to others in some way thus building a meaningful connection was very important. I also took some adaptogen herbs and changed my diet drastically, but it all helped a lot. good luck with your school - you sure deserve good things to happen to you!