What is Depression

I know that a good deal of people will feel sad from time to time it is just part of our lives. Feeling a little down once is a while is normal. However when a person feels bad all the time, that person may be suffering from depression. Depression can get in the way you cope with everyday life problems. Many people don't know the signs of depression. Depression is not un curable. There are ways to cope with depression and work your way out of it.

No one really knows what causes depression. It is an illness. It may have something to do with the way different parts of the brain communicate to each other. Folks that suffer from Depression may have come from homes where the depression runs in the family. Stress is a big factor in causing depression, loss of a job, a divorce, loss of a loved one, problems with bills or health issues can all take a toll on the body and may lead to bouts of depression. Even life changes like having a new born child can lead to blues. Fear of being able to cope with the newborn, am I doing the right things, am I caring baby correctly, what happens if she starts to cry at night and I don't know what is wrong? Questions many new moms ask themselves may lead to baby blues.

Get to know the signs of depression, so that you can cope with it and deal with it. If you fee sad all the time, things that used to make you happy don't anymore, you don't smile anymore no matter what you do you just don't feel any joy. Depression is physical also, you don't sleep right, you are always tired, you stop eating or to the other end you over eat. The slightest thing that goes wrong will make you start to cry, for no reason at all. You find yourself being extremely nasty towards other, short, and curt. These are traits that were not there before and now are present, you could be suffering from depression. Or you just plain don't give a damn about anything anymore, you don't care if your bills are paid, you don't care if your house is cleaned, you don't care if you are doing your job, you don't give the quality that you used to, these are all signs of depression. And worse of all, that life no longer has a meaning to you and that you have feelings that the world and everyone you know will be better off if you were no longer alive.

I had a friend that was going through this and you could see the change in her. If you have some of these signs for more than two weeks, you may be depressed. Go to your doctor or your clinic. There are medications that can be prescribed to assist you in your time of need. There are counseling sessions that are available. One in five people in this country at one time or another has a bout of depression and may need assistance. If you cannot locate a clinic in your area please call National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 8184, MSC 9663 Bethesda, MD 20892 Phone: 301-443-4513 http://www.nimh.nih.gov, they can help provide you guidance on where to obtain the assistance that you need.