If you have ongoing severe mental health problems such as depression, severe uncontrolled anxiety, suicidal ideation, uncontrolled BPD, untreated trauma...

It is NOT the time to date, period.

No matter how carefully you watch your words or body cues, there's still some cues that will pass and will be detected. And as you're more vulnerable than the average woman, it makes you easy prey for low value men seeking to have their whole cake and their money. Abusers and other plain scrummy men are actively seeking out easy prey aka unsecure, uncomfortable, less stable women and that DOES includes mentally ill women.

I am talking as a formerly depressed person. I used to be an absolute MESS 7 years-ish ago.

Do not lie to yourself by thinking you've read 10001 dating strategies here and feel ready as you're still struggling. Part of the FDS strategy is SEEKING OUT FOR YOURSELF FIRST, and that means also making sure your own mental issues are EASY to get under control and that you KNOW your triggers and strategies to attenuate them, so you don't appear a easy target.

On the other side, HVM are seeking for their equal, aka someone that has their shit together. This may feel discriminatory as hell, but that's the reality. They'll appreciate so much more a woman that knows how to hold it together, mental illness or not, compared to a woman that must be picked up everyday. Mental health can also push you to directly/indirectly hurt a HVM and push him away. And it can also cause you to have less high standards/weaker boundaries to compensate you feeling "unworthy/broken/lesser" due to your mental health, and thus making yourself even more vulnerable to LVM/NVM.

Keep in mind that being single isn't the end of the fucking world. If you crave sex, get a vibrator and/or a dildo, because narcs, abusers, and fuckboys are SALIVATING at the idea of a easy peasy prey.

If you want to date, I suggest you to take a 1 year complete break from dating and:

  • Assert your current situation, what is not QUITE fine to you. Do you feel your sleeping habits are fucked up? Do you feel your social habits aren't quite what you'd like them to be? Be bluntly honest with yourself and don't lie to yourself that such habit is fine. To others it may not be fine and make your MH quite obvious to them.
  • Give yourself a 1 year overarching goal to prove yourself that you CAN do it. it can be cleanliness goals for yourself and your home if you have depression, it can be mood goals (using a mood tracker, and using strategies if you notice a constant trend of negative mood), it can be social anxiety goals such as doing a small speech in front of people (Toastmasters, etc), it can be going to therapy in order to figure out what is going on at core if you don't go to therapy, et cetera.
  • Dedicate that full year to YOU because you damn love yourself. Selfcare, beyond the consumerism self-care, can be financial education in order to get the finances under order, it can be though self-love and admitting something is clearly not right for you and taking it under control and changing it.
  • Go to r/FemaleLevelUpStrategy to read about other's experiences about MH.
  • Take to core that your particular situation isn't completely unique and that you're legitimately NOT alone in that. Some people have been through the SAME stuff you're currently feeling, and share their journey to healing so people like you don't go through the same struggle as they did. Do yourself a favor, and LISTEN. Try out what they did, ask them how they did X and Y.