Depression symptoms can vary from mild to severe and can include:

• Feeling depressing or having a depressed mood
• Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
• Changes in appetite — weight loss or gain unrelated to dieting
• Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
• Loss of energy or enlarged weakness
• Increase in purposeless physical activity (e.g., hand-wringing or pacing) or slowed movements and speech (actions observable by others)
• Feeling worthless or guilty
• Difficulty thoughts, concentrating or making decisions
• Thoughts of death or suicide

Symptoms must last at least two weeks for a diagnosis of depression.

Depression affects an estimated one in 15 adults (6.7%) in any given year. And one in six people (16.6%) will experience depression at some time in their life. Depression can hit at any time, but on average, first emerge during the late teens to mid-20s. Women are more likely than men to experience depression. Some studies show that one-third of women will experience a major depressive episode in their lifetime.

Risk Factors for Depression

Depression can affect anyone—even a person who appear to live in comparatively ideal situation.

Biochemistry: Differences in certain chemicals in the brain may contribute to symptoms of depression.

Genetics: Depression can run in families. For example, if one identical twin has sadness, the other has a 70 percent chance of having the illness sometime in life.

Personality: People with low self-esteem, who are without difficulty overwhelmed by stress, or who are usually pessimistic appear to be more likely to experience depression.

Environmental factors: Continuous exposure to violence, neglect, violence or poverty may make some people more vulnerable to depression.

How Is Depression Treated?

Medication: Brain chemistry may add to an individual’s depression and may factor into their treatment. For this cause, antidepressants might be prescribed to help modify one’s brain chemistry. These medications are not sedatives, “uppers” or tranquilizers. They are not habit-forming. Usually antidepressant medications have no stimulating effect on people not experiencing depression.

Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy, or “talk therapy,” is sometimes used alone for treatment of mild depression; for moderate to severe depression, psychotherapy is often used in along with antidepressant medications. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been found to be efficient in treating depression. CBT is a form of therapy focused on the current and problem solving. CBT helps a someone to recognize distorted thinking and then change behaviors and thinking.