how do you know if you are depressed?

You need help from a Physician when: YOU can't find apparent reason for your feelings of sadness, the lack of desire for things you used to enjoy, Feelings of overwhelm for little things, loosing interest in your appearance, swing moods very fast. Or merely if you feel you can deal with your present situation alone. It's time to run for the doc's couch, must possible there you will find the help you need to get back on your feet!

Depression symptoms vary from one person to another. For example, some would develop a decrease in their appetites, while some would eat a lot more than they normally used to. It is kind of hard to separate depression from normal feelings of sadness, but doctors have their own way of medically diagnosing patients by using tools that would determine if a person really is depressed. Some criteria used to determine this illness are the duration and severity of the symptoms that you've been experiencing. Like, the love of your life passed away a year ago and you still haven't gotten over it to the point that you are incompetent in your job that you used to be really good at. Changes in your daily activities would be a sign as well. I read in a book some time ago that even oversleeping may be a suggestion of depression. So if you think a friend has been sleeping a lot lately try asking him or her about it, or maybe just drag him to the nearest psychiatrist! hehe

If you are feeling down and depressed for more than a couple of weeks, and you are experiencing other symptoms such as loss of appetite, loss of weight, trouble sleeping, trouble facing the day, lack of interest in activities that you usually enjoy, and a lack of interest in life in general, you may be suffering from depression. If you even think that there is a chance that you are suffring, please seek medical help. Depression effects people from all walks of life every day. It is not a sign of weakness, and is absolutely not something you should be ashamed of. The medications that are out there that can help will take a little time to kick in. Sometimes, it can take as long as two weeks to see or feel any improvement, but, they do help. They help you get back to feeling like yourself, and help you get through the period of depression.