What is Depression?

Depression is an extreme low mood that lasts a long time and makes a person feel sad, irritable or empty. A person with low mood or depression:

• has much less energy to do activities
• feels like nothing matters
• sees life in a negative way
• feels like it will never get better

But depressed people do get better and depression does end.

Depression is not

• Feeling sad or low because something goes wrong in your life.
• Being upset about a situation but then feeling better in a few days or a couple of weeks.

Depression is

If you feel very low mood or almost no interest in your life, every day, and this feeling continues for at least two weeks AND if you have other problems like:

• big changes in weight or appetite;
• not being able to sleep enough or sleeping too much;
• feeling that you are always restless or slowed-down;
• thinking that you are worthless or guilty;
• feeling really tired most of the time;
• feeling numb or empty;
• having a lot of trouble concentrating or making decisions;
• thinking about death or suicide.

Definitions

Low Mood - Feeling sad because something happened.

Mild Depression - The sadness goes on too long. Very hard to get out of the low mood.

Major Depression - Misery, despair, it goes on and on. Feeling numb or empty.