Depression Community

This is just a simple straight-forward question directed at people who found quitting smoking helped relieve their depression to some degree. I will leave out my long struggle with depression. Besides - I am not thinking very well right now and hard to write.
I was a bit of a health and exercise nut in my mid-late teens. I was also very sick as a child for the first 10 years. Maybe all the exercise was my way of trying to never return to those early years. In my early 20's I went to a nutritionist because of what I thought was fatigue. That and other earlier signs would have me believe I was probably depressed during that time. There were certainly some clear and unusual stressors back then. But at 22 my anxiety had me believe that going into the navy was what I needed. I did well in boot camp but by week 6 or 7 I was having trouble functioning and eventually sent home (with an Honorable Discharge). I was absolutely devastated and severely depressed. I got help but kept to myself. Everyone was getting married or having children and I was seriously broken not knowing what happened. With help I was able to start college for my A.A.S degree. I took a full load of credits in the day and in the evening worked. I would stay up late, in my fathers work room that I fixed up, to do my school work. After all th years of watching my friends drink, smoke, and hangout I thought how discusting smoking was. But I started drinking coffee and smoking. I later found out the cigarettes were acting as an MAO (anti-depressant). I am now going to be 60 and have had MDD, and now Fibro, for some time. I am also on disability because of these illnesses. After being on every med there is for almost 40 years I am now classified as "treatment resistant" by my psychiatrist who is about the best there is. It took close to a year but I finally tried another psychiatrist and several other meds made no difference. I do force myself to go to a healthclub and exercise but it drains the little energy I have. My doctors have long known about the cigarettes (1 pack a day) but stopped pushing me to quit a while ago because physically I was tested okay and they knew my struggles with depression.
LIJ hospital by me has one of the best stop-smoking programs around and I had been to their meetings several times. As the literature states it is very hard for people with my conditions to quit.
So does anyone have any REAL EXPERIENCE with improving their depression by quitting cigarettes? I am aware of all the other reasons to quit.