Depression

How it works...

Depression can strike at any time. It has no outward symptoms, so people may experience difficulties at work and home because others expect them to 'snap out of it'. Many factors contribute to depression, such as stressful life events and genes or early life experiences. Depression is very common. Almost anybody can develop the illness; it's certainly NOT a sign of weakness.

Symptoms of Depression

In addition to feeling low most or all of the time, many other symptoms can occur in depressive illness (though not everybody has every one).

• Being unable to gain pleasure from activities that normally would be pleasurable.
• Losing interest in normal activities, hobbies and everyday life.
• Feeling tired all of the time and having no energy.
• Difficulty sleeping or waking early in the morning (though some feel that they can't get out of bed and 'face the world').
• Having a poor appetite, no interest in food and losing weight (though some people overeat and put on weight – 'comfort eating').
• Losing interest in sex.
• Finding it difficult to concentrate and think straight.
• Feeling restless, tense and anxious.
• Being irritable.
• Losing self-confidence.
• Avoiding other people.
• Finding it harder than usual to make decisions.
• Feeling useless and inadequate – 'a waste of space'.
• Feeling guilty about who you are and what you have done.
• Feeling hopeless – that nothing will make things better.
• Thinking about suicide – this is very common. If you feel this way, talk to somebody about it. If you think somebody else might be thinking this way, ask them about it – it will not make them more likely to commit suicide

Many people need some help finding their way through these times.