What Is Depression?

Along with Anxiety, Depression (also known as major despressive disorder) is a common mental health issue among young adults and teens.

Depression is, according to the American Psychiatric Association, a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Depression causes feelings of sadness and/or loss a lost of interest in activity one once enjoyed.

1 of 15 adults are affected by depression in a given year, with one in six people experienceing depression in their lifetime. Most commonly depression tends to appear in someone during their late teen years and early twenties.

Some symptoms of depression: (note the symptoms must last 2 weeks or more in order to be diagnosed with depression)

• Overall feelings of sadness
• Change in appetite, loss or gain.
• No sleep or too much sleep
• Difficulty thinking or focusing
• Slowed movements and speech
• Increase fatigue
• Feeling worthless
• feeling guilty
• Thoughts of suicide or death.

It is important to note that depression is not the samething as sadness. Sadness tends to be a repsonse to an event, such as loss of job, a death amoung family memebers, an unhappy incident. These sadnesses can experience the same symptoms of depression but depression spans the time of more than two weeks. Depression also doesn’t have a trigger event that causes it. Depression can appear at anytime, even when someone maybe going through a happy period of their life.

Depression as many factors, including genetics. Depression can run in families. Depression also tends to develop in people who deal with lots of stress and low self-esteem. Enviorment also is a key factor.

Depression is not somethings someone can just wake up from, it will not just disappear overnight. Most time people require treatment in order to fight depression. There are many different treatment options to choose from based on each persons case.

What is important to remember is that depression is not a “weakness.” Depression affects many strong people and can be overcome with help. There is nothing wrong in sreeking medical and professional help. Know that the people around you love you and wish to help you. Take the time to confided in a trusted love one if you believe you suffer from depression.

Information on depression for this blog post was collected from, the American Phychiatric Association and the Mayo Clinic.