What is Depression?

Depression is a common disorder that affects 121 million people worldwide and is responsible for almost 850,000 suicides annually. Early recognition of symptoms and signs of depression can help in taking a holistic approach to the management of depression. Less than 25% of the people suffering from this mental disability have access to treatment.

‘I’m feeling low’, ‘I’m fed up’, ‘I’m sad’, ‘I can’t concentrate’, ‘I don’t have energy’,– you may have heard these statements umpteen times from the people around you or you may have felt this yourself sometimes and thought that you were depressed. But this may not constitute clinical depression.

Feelings of disappointment or being upset about something are just part of normal ups and downs of life. For example, grieving at a major loss is a natural process but it may seem to you as being depressed. In fact, grieving to a certain extent is actually a healing process but if grieving persists for more than two months then its time to get help. The difference between depression and ‘feeling blue’ lies in its duration, as well as degree.

Depression is when you’re persistently in a low mood or you lose interest in life and its pleasure for a long duration. If you have negative thoughts about yourself and the world, and you cannot seem to snap out these blues after a certain period of time and it is affecting your physical health, then you may be suffering from clinical depression. Clinical depression involves your mood, your thoughts, and even your body. It is the illness of the ‘whole body’.

Published on Sep 04, 2014
Last Updated on Jun 14, 2018

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