Understanding Depression: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

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Depression is a mental disorder that currently affects more than 350 million people worldwide (who, 2012). With such a staggering amount of people suffering from depression it is important for people to know about it. While some people think that depression is just short term differences in one’s mood that is not the case at all (who, 2012). Someone suffering from depression can have their disorder have negative effects on their life and other people’s lives. Luckily for most people suffering from depression there is treatment available Sadly though because many people don’t understand depression they may not seek treatment at all (NIH, n.d). In order to truly understand depression you need to understand what it is, signs and symptoms, causes, how to diagnose it, and treatment. The definition of depression according to Funk & Wagnall’s New World Encyclopedia (2014), “Depression, mental disorder characterized by feelings of worthlessness, guilt, sadness, helplessness, and hopelessness. While this definition is accurate there is a bit more to it than that. Like stated earlier depression isn’t just a temporary mood change, it is something that can have negative repercussions on one’s …show more content…

Many people think that depression just means that someone is sad, but that is not the case. There are many symptoms that depressed people may show such as hopelessness, guilt, worthlessness, or pessimism. If someone is depressed they may also be restlessness and have difficulty concentrating. More signs of depression include loss interest in activities they once found enjoyable or difficulty making decisions. They may also experience a lot of fatigue (NIH, n.d.) Remember just because someone exhibits these signs or symptoms once in a while does it mean that they are depressed. If someone is depressed they will show these symptoms for a while. One major indicator of depression is thoughts or attempted suicide (helpguide,

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