Depression affects a large percentage of the population: one in four women suffers from depression and one in eight men will have the complaint. Contrary to popular belief, depression is not sadness, although sadness is one of the many symptoms of depression. Just feeling “blue” or low happens to everybody on occasion, and a shift in one’s routine, exercise or diet can lift one’s mood. However, symptoms of depression are more serious than a run-of-the mill sadness, and what makes sadness one of the symptoms of depression rather than an ordinary bad mood is that the sadness will not go away as it will in a normal case. When sadness becomes persistent and obsessive, for which there can be no consolation, a person knows that their sadness is not a mere passing mood, but one of the symptoms of depression.

There are many symptoms of depression, and those who suffer from the complaint do not have to have all of them to have this ailment. The most obvious symptom is a deep sadness that will not go away. While many people become sad for a long time after the death of a loved one or losing one’s job, sadness and other symptoms of depression continue to an unusual degree. Usually friends and family are better able to see that a loved one’s sadness is one of the symptoms of depression and not a mood that will pass. Other symptoms of depression can likewise be noticed by those close to the person who is suffering from the problem. Fear is another of the symptoms of depression that is also experienced by those who are not depressed, but occurs to a greater or obsessive degree among depressed individuals. Particularly if the fear is unjustified or if seems akin to paranoia, it can be considered as one of the symptoms of depression.

Other symptoms of depression include a loss of interest in activities that once provided pleasure, a loss of an increase of appetite, a loss or increased need for sleep, unjustified and intense feelings of guilt, difficulty concentrating, increased sensitivity to noise, a loss of awareness of time, aggression, a lack of concern for oneself, including personal hygiene, anxiety about the future, and feelings of suicide. One does not have to have all of these symptoms of depression to receive treatment for depression, but the majority of them should be present.

Once symptoms of depression are recognized, the patient should undergo some kind of treatment for depression. There are more and less severe forms of depression. Clinical depression often requires the combination of medication and therapy, and in some cases, a patient is required to spend a certain amount of time in an inpatient facility, particularly if they have expressed a strong desire to harm themselves or other people. Most of those who have symptoms of depression can continue with their lives to the extent they are able and receive outpatient therapy, and in some cases, medication. Most medications for depression are intended to be used only on a temporary basis. The combination of drugs and “talking therapy” is usually a good treatment for most people.